PHILADELPHIA (November 25, 2008) – As the autumn days got shorter, first-year art and design students at The University of the Arts shed some extra light on the city’s Lou Kahn Park, with cardboard lamps created as part of the University’s 3-D Studio course.

The many-sided lamps – made from 110 lbs. cardstock, which allowed for ease of cutting, crisp folding and decent structural integrity – were hung from trees and strategically placed in shrubs along the perimeter of Kahn Park, illuminating the neglected urban asset at 11th and Pine streets in the heart of Antique Row. Students were challenged to utilize a mixture of cubes, spheres, cylinders and cones, and more intricate shapes such as multi-faceted rhomboids and octahedrons, and interlock them to shield the bulb inside the structure.

“Having work reviewed by the public is necessary for any artist,” said University of the Arts Senior Lecturer Jason Lempieri. “Therefore, we chose a venue that gets exposure. The students really benefited from the installation and learned that their art is not solely for themselves, but has the power to transform others and their everyday environments.”

Park Board of Directors President Constance C. Moore was impressed, and as a result, hopes that a more permanent lighting approach can be developed, especially along the east side of the park.

“The light standards that are there are old, but intelligently designed. As spotlights they are mostly effective, but do not provide enough ambient illumination,” Lempieri added. “By placing the fixtures where they did, the students simultaneously interact with a place, taking its ownership away from ‘undesirables’ and reintroducing its nighttime aesthetic to the public.”

The University of the Arts is the nation’s first and only university dedicated to the visual, performing and communication arts. Its 2,300 students are enrolled in undergraduate and graduate programs on its campus in the heart of Philadelphia’s Avenue of the Arts. The institution’s roots as a leader in educating creative individuals date back to 1868.

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