SUMMER IN THE CITY

Jaw-Dropping Installations, Sensational Sculptures, Local Tributes... What Not to Miss at the Convention Center

Parabiosis II

There are two ways to think of Kendall Buster’s Parabiosis II (2002), a hanging form that looks like a delicate drawing. This sculptural installation—which the Convention Center commissioned from the artist, a former DC resident who is now an art professor at Virginia Commonwealth University—resembles both a biomorphic entity and also a kind of organic architecture. “From above, the work resembles a view from a microscope, but from below one can see various architectural forms—like models for imaginary buildings,” Buster says. Her work changes dramatically with scale, as viewers can physically enter and walk around some of her sculptures; this one looks more like a complex of buildings seen from 50,000 feet up. Made from shadecloth and steel, Parabiosis II is one of several entries in the artist’s series. Located on the Street Level on the L Street side of the building.