Julie Berger

Forest Illumination, 2009

Julie Berger joined the design team early in the development

of King County Metro Transit's new Burien Transit Center.

As design team artist, Berger wished to introduce the experience of nature

to this urban site, and conceived the glass frit design for the transit center’s
canopy and bus screen panels as dappled light filtering through the forest
foliage. The sculpture recalls with clarity the mystery of an intense shaft of
sunlight falling on one tree and singling it out from the many in the forested
landscape. Inspiration came from Burien’s historic Three Tree Point, and
the tower built around a single, tall fir tree that once offered prospective
land buyers a platform view of the surrounding landscape. Both a memory
piece and a contemporary artwork, Forest Illumination serves as a lighted
beacon for the transit center, acknowledges the legacy of Burien’s primeval
forest and creates a contemplative experience within the life of the city.

The artwork for the transit center, funded through King County’s 1% for Art
program administered by 4Culture, is the latest in a series of transportation
facility designs that feature significant public art. Other projects in the
area are located in Federal Way, Bellevue, Shoreline, Issaquah, and
Redmond. The artwork creates a unique and memorable marker for this
major transportation hub and adjacent civic gathering places, activates the
facilities during the day and at night with light and color, and elevates the
daily travel for thousands of bus riders.

Artist Bio
Julie Berger lives on Vashon Island. She moved to the area to work on her
M.F.A. at the University of Washington. Berger began her artistic career
as a jewelry designer and that sensitivity to detail, materials and beautiful
fabrication is still evident in her works even though the scale of her projects
has increased over the years. She has completed several other public
art projects in the region associated with transit systems including the
pedestrian bridge at Atlantic Central Base in Seattle and the Sound Transit
park-and-ride facility on Mercer Island. In addition to her public art and
studio practice, Berger is part of the Industrial Design faculty at the Art
Institute of Seattle.

Artwork Fabrication
The artist wishes to acknowledge the contribution of Scott Mansfield,
graphic designer for the glass frit pattern and Fabrication Specialties,
sculpture fabrication and installation. Without these talented team
members, the artwork would not have been possible.