Alexandria’s Waterfront Park will showcase a new art installation in 2026.
Artist Alicia Eggert was chosen on Tuesday (April 15) by the Alexandria Commission For The Arts to bring her vision for the public art installation “Site See: New Views in Old Town” to life.
The Alexandria Commission for the Arts picked Eggert from a group of 23 artists who responded to the city’s call for submissions.
A memorandum from the Office of the Arts to the Alexandria Commission For The Arts detailed the process.
“Thirty-six artists were invited and 23 responded to the call with a portfolio of work and letter of interest. The Task Force selected three (3) to interview. Virtual interviews were held on April 1, 2025. Each artist/artist team gave a presentation about their work and answered a series of questions from the task force. After an extensive discussion, the Site See Task Force recommends selecting Alicia Eggert for Site See 2026”.
Eggert, who teaches studio art at the University of North Texas, plans to create an interactive piece that unfolds over time.
Alicia Eggert’s Summarized Artist Statement
My work centers around giving physical forms to intangible concepts like language and time, which I think of as powerful but invisible forces that shape our perception of reality. I often use light and signage to convey complex ideas in an approachable way, and install these sculptures in places where they can engage a broad public audience – on rooftops in Russia, on bridges in Amsterdam, and on uninhabited islands in Maine – beckoning people to ponder their place in the world and the role they play in it. I believe deeply in the power of public art to evoke wonder, bring communities together, and enrich people’s daily lives.
For Waterfront Park, I envision creating a time-based artwork that will come alive through visitor participation, similar to the way touch and collaboration have brought my artwork to life in the past. I would explore different ways people could physically engage with the work through touch, or by moving their bodies around the work in order to see it from different perspectives. Guests will be encouraged to explore and participate as the installation reveals itself over time, inspiring a sense of wonder and anticipation that beckons them to return to see it on multiple occasions. This could be accomplished with physical materials that change naturally over time, or by programming light-based elements to activate and illuminate in different ways.
This installation will be the eighth in the Site See series, which started in 2019 to highlight Waterfront Park as a new public space. Each artwork stays up for a year, giving residents and visitors plenty of time to experience it.
Diane Ruggiero from the Recreation, Parks & Cultural Activities Department says Eggert will visit Alexandria in late May or early June. The exact dates are still being worked out.
Eggert’s work has been shown in prestigious venues like the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Corning Museum of Glass. She’s also received several grants and awards, including a Fulbright Specialist designation and a TED Fellowship.
Previous Site See installations have featured artists such as SOFTlab, Olalekan Jeyifous, and Nina Cooke John, each bringing their unique perspective to the waterfront. Artist Nekisha Durrett’s “Break Water” is currently on display through November.
