T.L. Luke standing beside the interactive piece at the 2023 Sustain Dane Summit at Monona Terrace in Madison, WI.
YEAR COMPLETED: 2023
CLIENT: Sustain Dane
DELIVERABLES: A grayscale digital illustration printed on canvas and wrapped over a light weight, aluminum panel (size: 70 x 30 inches / 5.83 x 2.5 feet), with 350 hand-cut petal and raindrop shaped elements (size: 1 x 3 inches), made from recycled Kraft paper, that were attached to the illustration with magnets.
TOOLS: Illustrated using a Wacom Cintiq Pro 24" tablet and Photoshop. Printed on canvas via CatPrint.com. Aluminum cut to size and sourced from Badger Diversified Metals in Madison, WI. Assembled in my studio in the Madison Enterprise Center and hand delivered to the Sustain Dane Summit at Monona Terrace in Madison, WI.
SCOPE: This commission was an interactive think-piece and fundraiser auction item for the 2023 Sustain Dane Summit, in which the nearly 300 attendees were asked to write down an answer to a few prompts ("What makes our community healthier, more equitable, and more resilient?" and/or "What climate actions inspire you?") on the provided paper petals or raindrops, and then add them to the empty flower buds on the illustration. The illustration is a necessary collaboration, as it's incomplete without the attendees additions (see above).
The piece itself is meant to show Dane County's commitments to sustainability, and is divided into 5 sections representing (left to right)--food, energy, ripple effect, investments, and transportation--and goes from rural Dane County concerns on the left, everyone can make a difference in the center, and urban Dane County concerns on the right.
The interactive flowers and raindrops represent how we must water and maintain these initiatives for them to continue growing into effective local policies.
REVIEW: We had the pleasure of working with T.L. Luke to create an interactive art piece for our Sustain Dane Summit, and the experience was great from start to finish. T.L. guided us through the brainstorming process, providing thoughtful concepts and drafts that aligned with our vision. Their communication was excellent—keeping us updated through emails and meetings, ensuring everything was completed on time. T.L. came up with creative ways for participants to contribute, making the artwork both interactive and meaningful. We received wonderful feedback from attendees, and the piece truly enhanced the event. We highly recommend T.L. Luke and would love to collaborate with her again in the future! - Samantha Worden, Sustain Dane Program Manager
Maggie Radl and Samantha Worden with the piece, currently hanging in the Sustain Dane offices!
TL'S THOUGHTS: I really love working with and supporting Sustain Dane and all their initiatives in Dane County. When Samantha Worden and Sustain Dane's Executive Director, Claire Oleksiak, approached me for this project, I was excited to offer them a few creative ways we could make a piece that wasn't just a fundraising tool, but rather an educational opportunity to interact with the attendees. They provided me with all the resources to make this fun piece possible! During the Summit, I was invited to speak about the piece (which I happily did!), and stayed (almost) the entire time to chat with everyone who participated! Below are some photos I took from the event, and some of the responses!
