Steven Cushner was commissioned to create a monumental canvas for the entrance hall of the new United States Embassy in Ankara, Turkey, designed by Ennead Architects. "Endless Fountain," completed in 2020, in dialogue with the new Embassy's vast public-facing space, is an endlessly flowing composition influenced by concepts of moving waves, cascading water, landscape forms, and the horizon where water may meet both land and sky.
My goal is to create a visual vocabulary that transcends nationality, language, education, and religion, a visual language that is forever and for everyone. I try to speak a language of balance, repetition, and symmetry. These are signs of hope, of regeneration, of cyclical growth - think of the tides, the seasons, the phases of the moon, the orbits of the planets. Think of the interconnectedness in the world of nature, and think about the interconnectedness in all human relationships, both personal and international. And think about diplomacy - the art of connecting different countries, different cultures, different philosophies in sensitive, meaningful, and effective ways.
- Steven Cushner
Art in Embassies (AIE), a U.S. Department of State program, creates vital cross-cultural dialogue and fosters mutual understanding through the visual arts and dynamic artist exchanges. AIE develops and presents approximately 60 exhibitions per year and has installed over 70 permanent art collections in more than 200 of the Department’s diplomatic facilities in 189 countries. To accomplish the mission, AIE engages over 20,000 international participants, including artists, museums, galleries, universities, and private collectors.
Photograph © Scott Frances