BY CARMEN SIERING
Seattle-based artist Peregrine Church is bringing rain-activated art to Bloomington. Church, the creator of Rainworks, will visit Indiana University Art Museum later this year as part of the museum’s 75th anniversary celebration.
“Peregrine will create a custom design, unique to the museum,” says Abe Morris, manager of public relations and marketing for the museum. “In addition, he’ll give a workshop at the School of Fine Arts, and there will be spaces open to the general public.”
In the workshop, Church will teach would-be rainworkers how to create their own works of art that are invisible until wet. Morris invited Church to the museum after he saw his video online last year.
“2016 is the museum’s 75th anniversary, and we’re looking for exciting things to do,” Morris says. “When the video went viral, I knew this was a great project for the town and the university.”
Church says that while he didn’t invent the non-toxic, environmentally safe hydrophobic paint used to create his works of public art, he did invent the application for it. Each work of art lasts two to four months, depending on environmental factors and foot traffic, Church says, and can be removed with cleaning products and a bit of scrubbing.
Using templates, Church and his crew have made rainy days in Seattle a little less dreary with their upbeat messages. He says he hopes the attendees at his workshop will do the same in Bloomington. “We’re going to encourage students to not just stick to campus, but to go out into the city,” Church says. “And while we don’t want to stifle anyone’s creativity, we hope to keep the positivity intact and keep spreading positive messages that make rainy days better.”
After a successful Kickstarter campaign in September, Church and his crew have begun mass producing Rainworks Invisible Spray, which will be shipped in January. For more information or to place an order, visit rain.works.
