You were born in New York State and now return to the city with this major public artwork, your first public art presentation in the U.S. How does it feel to bring Chasing Rainbows to a place that is personally significant to you, and in what ways has the city influenced the work?
You work across a wide range of mediums, from film and sculpture to ceramics, furniture, objects and large-scale public installations. How does operating at this scale shape your storytelling and influence your material choices for this project?
Projects of this scale involve multiple collaborators across disciplines and geographies. How does teamwork and partnership shape the realisation of your ideas, particularly when working in global locations?
Childlike wonder and symbolism are recurring elements in your practice. In Chasing Rainbows, the eye motif and the hanging tree pendants feel particularly charged with meaning. How did your Latin American pilgrimage inform these symbols, and how do they help create moments of pause, protection and reflection within busy urban environments?
What do you hope passersby, whether intentional viewers or unexpected audiences, feel or reflect on when encountering these female-centred sculptures in historically male-dominated spaces such as the Meatpacking District? Installed around International Women’s Day, how do you see the work engaging with the area’s heritage and its evolution into a more inclusive, civic space for community and collective reflection?
New Public is a women-owned and operated company, including working mums, we’re forever inspired by other women making it work. How do you juggle the balance of being an artist, filmmaker and mother?
What is next on the horizon for you - new projects or explorations?
Chasing Rainbows marks the global premiere of two monumental 30-foot-tall steel sculptures by Colbert, her first U.S. public art presentation and New Public’s first international project. More than a year into the making, the project also brought together two New York District BIDs for the first time in their history. Unveiled in high-traffic, open-air pedestrian plazas across Manhattan, New York, the work’s scale reflective steel surfaces, and the surrealist expression bring childlike wonder into dialogue with the monolithic proportions of the city. We caught up with Charlotte ahead of the launch to ask her more about her practice and her global premiere:
