Laurie Anderson's "Heart of a Dog," Times Square, New York City

“Heart of a Dog” can be seen at 11:57 p.m. each night in January in Times Square. 


Laurie Anderson adapts her feature film, Heart of a Dog, which has been short-listed for an Academy Award, for Times Square. This unique edition of the film will be shown on Times Square’s electronic billboards from 11:57 pm to midnight from January 1-31. This project is a part of Midnight Moment, a monthly presentation by The Times Square Advertising Coalition (TSAC) and Times Square Arts.

Heart of a Dog is a collection of stories about dogs, time, family, love, memory and death. In the middle of the film there is a sequence from "The Tibetan Book of the Dead" that describes the transition of energy and consciousness at the time of death. In this portion of the film, which is the section that will be shown in Times Square, Anderson creates a visual song, filled with a wild collage of images. The video changes point of view frequently, shifting from a dog's eye view to the lens of a surveillance camera to free floating pictures that move through your mind in dreams and memories.

On January 4, Anderson will be on site for a special live performance, joining NYPD canine handlers and their dogs for a gathering that will begin at 11:30 pm on Duffy Square (between 46th and 47thStreets) and culminate in the 11:57 viewing of the work. The event will be free and open to the public. Headphones will be distributed on a first come, first served basis before the 11:30 pm start time and the public is encouraged to bring their own dogs.

Artist Laurie Anderson said, "I love Times Square. It's a dream. Desire, speed, the explosions of color, patterns and energy. What a great way to start the New Year! The ball drops and "Heart of a Dog" leaps onto all those massive screens at three minutes to midnight. Who could have predicted the unraveling dreams of my dog would be magnified up there like this? And sound too!"

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