| Project Description | - "What is Missing?" is a permanent, sight-specific sculpture by renowned artist Maya Lin that was commissioned by the San Francisco Arts Commission for the California Academy of Sciences.
- The sculpture is the first component of a multi-sited, multimedia artwork dedicated to raising awareness about the current crisis surrounding biodiversity and habitat loss.
- The sculpture is Maya Lin’s last memorial as well as her first multimedia project.
- The "What is Missing?" sculpture consists of a “Listening Cone” with a screen located within that features more than 20 minutes of video footage and sound recordings that link extinct as well as threatened and endangered species to the habitats and ecosystems that are vital to their survival.
- The video footage is overlaid with text describing the decline of the featured species and the alarming degradation of their habitats.
- The California Academy of Sciences is the only institution in the world to house two permanent sculptures by Lin, the first being "Where the Land Meets the Sea,"located on the West Terrace, which debuted at the museum’s reopening in 2008 and was also commissioned by the Arts Commission through the City’s Arts Enrichment Ordinance.
| | Dimensions | - “Listening Cone”: 8'6"h x 10'8"w x 19'2"l
- Screen: 2' 4 ¼"h x 4'6"w
| | Materials | - Bronze, reclaimed redwood, laminated glass, video, sound
| | Location | - California Academy of Sciences
55 Music Concourse Drive
Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA 94118
Sculpture located on the East Terrace.
| | Dedication | | | Funding | "What is Missing?" was funded through San Francisco’s Art Enrichment Ordinance, which mandates that 2% of the total eligible construction costs of civic public works projects be allocated for public art. Although the California Academy of Sciences is a private nonprofit institution, its buildings occupy City property and a portion of the construction cost of the new building was funded with General Obligation Bonds. For this reason, the City’s Art Enrichment Ordinance was applicable and provided the funding for the project.
Additional funding for construction related to the sculpture provided by Webcor. Support for the project was also provided by the What is Missing? Foundation. | | Artist Selection Process | Maya Lin was selected from a candidate pool of 25 artists by a joint committee composed of representatives from the California Academy of Sciences, the Arts Commission, local museum curators and the Music Concourse Citizens’ Advisory Committee. The committee representatives were appointed to oversee the development of the public art program for the new Academy. Lin was chosen through a rigorous process concluding with an interview with the Advisory Committee, which included: Former Executive Director of the California Academy of Sciences Patrick Kociolek, Academy Trustees Bill Wilson and Mary Zlot, Arts Commissioner Jeannene Przyblyski, Ron Miguel of the Golden Gate Music Concourse Citizen's Advisory Committee, Karen Tsujimoto of the Oakland Museum and Edgar Lopez of the Department of Public Works, Daniel Cornell, Former curator at the de Young Museum and a representative from the Renzo Piano Building Workshop.
| | Lead Project Team | Maya Lin Studio - Maya Lin, artist
- Amy Helfant
- Katie Commodore
- Devyn Osborne
- Jon Powell
- Dana Karwas, media director
- David Breslin, video editor
San Francisco Arts Commission - Jill Manton, current director of programs, former public art program director and project manager
- Jeannene Przyblyski, dean of academic affairs at the San Francisco Art Institute and former arts commissioner
- Larry Rinder, director of the Berkeley Art Museum and former arts commissioner
- Allison Cummings, senior registrar
California Academy of Sciences - Dr. Gregory Farrington, executive director
- Scott Moran, director of exhibition development
- Dr. Healy Hamilton, director of the Academy’s Center for Biodiversity Research
- Dr. Carol Tang, director of visitor interpretive programs
- Dr. John McCosker, senior scientist and chair, Department of Aquatic Biology
- Patrick Kociolek, former executive director
- Pat Kilduff, former director of government and community affairs
| | Media Team | - Chee Pearlman, media coordinator
- James Spindler, Radical Media
- Kathleen Russell, Radical Media
- Anne Marie Hammers, film producer
- Carolyn Jensen Chadwick of Conservation Sound, sound producer
- Luke DuBois, sound editor
- Noah Wall of Knowawall Inc., web designer
- Catalin Stefanovici, web editor
| | Fabricators | Academy Studios - Dean Weldon
- Jim Slater
- Bo Hick
- John Cavala
Walla Walla Foundry - Dylan Farnum
- Dave Anderson
- Byron Peterson-Huff
Webcor - Andy Ball
- Jes Pedersen
- Matt Rossi
- Brad Denny
- Alison Stevens
| | Core Advisory Institutions | - California Academy of Sciences
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- International Union for Conservation of Nature
- National Geographic Society
- Wildlife Conservation Society
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography
- Woodshole Oceanographic Institute
- American Museum of Natural History
| | Core Advisory Organizations | - Conservation International
- NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council)
- World Wildlife Fund
- Freedom to Roam
- Oceana
- Panthera
- Yale School of Forestry
| | Media Contributors | - Cornell Lab of Ornithology
- National Geographic Society
- ARKive
- BBC Earth
- Australian Koala Foundation
- Programa de conservación Ex–situ del Lince Ibérico
- Snow Leopard Trust
- Wild Camel Protection Foundation
- Lon Bender
- Rex Cocroft
- Gordon Hempton
- Ernie Kovacs
- Jeff Rice
- Nick Sherman
| | About the Arts Commission's Public Art Program | The Arts Commission’s Public Art Program was established by the City Arts Enrichment Ordinance in 1969, as one of the first of its kind in the country. The Public Art Program seeks to promote a diverse and stimulating cultural environment to enrich the lives of the City’s residents, visitors and employees. The Program encourages the creative interaction of artists, designers, City staff, officials and community members during the design of City projects in order to develop public art that is specific to the site and meaningful to the community. Visit www.sfartscommission.org/pubartcollection.
| | About the California Academy of Sciences | Founded in 1853, the California Academy of Sciences is one of the world’s leading scientific and cultural institutions, home to an aquarium, planetarium, natural history museum, and world-class research and education programs. The Academy has a staff of over 100 professional educators and researchers, and conducts research in eleven scientific fields: anthropology, aquatic biology, botany, comparative genomics, entomology, geology, herpetology, ichthyology, invertebrate zoology, mammalogy and ornithology.
On September 27, 2008, the Academy opened the doors to its new building in Golden Gate Park. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Renzo Piano, the facility received a LEED Platinum rating from the U.S. Green Building Council for its environmentally-sensitive design. Exhibit highlights include a four-story living rainforest, an awe-inspiring coral reef ecosystem, and interactive space shows that transport audiences beyond the boundaries of our planet. Visit www.calacademy.org for more information.
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