Public sculptures and digital art will be adorned inside and outside of the arena, alongside a year-long media workshop engaging justice-impacted youth and adults from surrounding communities.
Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the Brooklyn Nets, the New York Liberty and Barclays Center, launched Brooklyn Art Encounters, a multiyear initiative commissioning contemporary artworks across the arena and surrounding communities.
The program includes large-scale public art, permanent architectural installations, digital works and community-based projects designed to integrate art into one of Brooklyn’s busiest public spaces, reaching fans, commuters and visitors.
Among the first projects, artist Paul Pfeiffer will serve as the arena’s inaugural artist-in-residence, using the venue as both subject and site. Beginning in May, he will co-lead Exodus, a yearlong media workshop with Shaun Leonardo. The program will engage justice-impacted youth and adults through training in video production, storytelling and live event operations, culminating in participant-created works.
Also launching in May, Art on the Hour will present 60-second digital pieces on the arena’s Oculus screen at the top of every hour, turning a prominent public display into a rotating showcase for contemporary video art.
Major installations will follow. Sarah Sze will debut Wave in fall 2026, a suspended atrium sculpture composed of more than 250 projected images that shift and recombine as viewers move through the space. The new Flatbush entrance will feature large-scale paintings by Mark Bradford and Rashid Johnson.
In spring 2027, Kambui Olujimi will install a public sculpture on the plaza depicting figures gathered around the street game Skelly, drawing on Brooklyn history and neighborhood life.
The initiative builds on earlier work, including The Liberty Portraits by LaToya Ruby Frazier, a 2025 installation honoring the Liberty’s 2024 championship through large-scale portraits and personal narratives.
“The artists in this program aren’t simply participants, they have helped us consider and ultimately realize how we create space for art in public life,” said Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment Vice Chair Clara Wu Tsai. “Brooklyn has one of the greatest concentrations of creative talent anywhere in the world, and Barclays Center is one of its busiest transit points. This program places art in dialogue with the architecture and daily rhythm of the plaza, redefining what a sports arena can be for fans, players, and the public.”
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