Color in Motion: A New Canopy for Rosslyn’s Central Place Plaza

A new seasonal placemaking installation brings color, movement, and a little more energy to Central Place Plaza this fall.

This fall, a sense of movement and color is taking shape above Central Place Plaza with Color Currents, a new site-specific installation designed by DMV-based experiential design studio The Floral Guru (TFG). Founder and artist Halima Adetona shared: “Rosslyn moves. Commuters cut through on their way to the Metro, lunch crowds fill the plaza tables, and the surrounding glass towers catch light throughout the day. That energy was the starting point for Color Currents.”

TFG brings a multidisciplinary approach to large-scale installations, blending design, structure, custom fabrication, and mixed materials to shape how people experience a space. The studio’s portfolio includes a large-scale suspended public art installation at CityCenterDC, as well as restaurant and hospitality installations, brand activations, and other public art projects throughout the Washington, D.C., area. That experience with scale, movement, and immersive design comes through in Color Currents, where TFG uses simple materials and bold color to create an installation that responds to its surroundings. 

What is Color Currents? 

Suspended above the plaza, Color Currents is made up of more than 130 individually painted mesh fabric panels. Layered and overlapping, the panels catch the wind and shift throughout the day, creating an installation that never looks the same way twice. 

Rather than simply adding color to the space, Color Currents was designed to interact with it. The mesh fabric allows light to pass through the layers, creating moments of translucency and color blending as the panels move. From one spot in the plaza, the canopy might appear as a series of distinct colors; from another, the colors merge into a continuous gradient. As the sun moves across the sky, so does the experience of the installation. 

The palette draws inspiration from Rosslyn’s own brand colors, reinterpreted across more than a dozen custom shades. Together, the colors create a visual current that travels across the 56-foot-long canopy. At approximately 16 feet above the plaza, the installation changes the feel of the space without getting in the way of everything that already happens there. People can walk beneath it, meet friends, grab lunch, or simply pass through while looking up and watching the panels move overhead. 

Placemaking in Rosslyn

Color Currents is part of the Rosslyn BID’s broader approach to placemaking: creating a public realm that feels inviting, vibrant, and engaging for the people who move through it every day. From streetscape improvements and public-space amenities to seasonal beautification and temporary public art, these efforts are designed to make Rosslyn more than just a place to pass through. They help create a stronger sense of identity, belonging, and connection, transforming everyday spaces into places where people gather, build community, and enjoy Rosslyn in new ways.