LONDON.- Ringing in the New Year with a moving tribute to 100 NHS and healthcare workers who passed away this year from COVID-19, Patti Smith and her Band will mark the beginning of 2021 with a 10-minute performance at midnight on the iconic Piccadilly Lights screen, presented by the innovative digital art platform, CIRCA. A gift to London, the city that Smith loves, the event will be streamed around the world for free, via the CIRCA YouTube channel on Thursday 31st December, 23.45 GMT.

In a run-up to midnight, CIRCA will present ‘ONE’ a major new 10-minute commission by the winner of the Venice Art Biennale 2017, Anne Imhof using footage filmed at the Tate Modern during the artist’s large-scale installation and performance in 2019. Piccadilly Circus will be washed in the glow of a setting sun, whilst the video counts down to midnight and the arrival of a new year. With the Brexit transition period coming to an end, the solitary and iconic image of Eliza Douglas whipping up the waves on the beaches of Normandy offers a poignant and hypnotizing emblem for the ending of the year.

Created by artist Josef O’Connor, CIRCA pioneered a new model for outdoor exhibitions by inviting a different artist each month to present new ideas on the iconic Piccadilly Lights screen. Following the success of their first c.20:20 exhibition, which launched in October 2020 with a 30 film commission by Ai Weiwei, c.20:21 will begin with Patti Smith who has created new work for the month of January.

Starting 1 January 2021, CIRCA will be screened every evening at the new time of 20:21GMT. Patti Smith has also created 4 limited edition prints in support of the #CIRCAECONOMY costing £100 each. They are only be available to buy on WWW.CIRCA.ART/CIRCAECONOMY from 1 - 31 January 2021.

This special New Year’s Eve event will be streamed on the CIRCA YouTube Channel (23:30 - 00:10GMT) whilst visitors to Piccadilly Circus are encouraged to wear a face mask and adhere to social distancing guidelines. Headphones are required for a fully immersive audio-visual experience, delivered via the WWW.CIRCA.ART website to your phone.

Patti Smith (b. 1946) lives and works in New York City. She is a singer-songwriter, poet, and visual artist, known for her revolutionary merging of poetry and rock. In 1971, her first poetry reading at St Mark’s Church would go onto influence her debut album, Horses, which has been hailed as one of the top one hundred albums of all time by Rolling Stone. Her books include Just Kids, winner of the National Book Award in 2010, Wītt, Babel, Woolgathering, The Coral Sea, and Auguries of Innocence. In 2005, the French Ministry of Culture awarded Smith the title of Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2007.