Barney Allis Plaza

Location: Kansas City, Missouri

Artists: Gijs Van Vaerenbergh

About: Kansas City Spirit: Memory and Resilience is a public artwork coming to the newly reimagined Barney Allis Plaza in the heart of downtown Kansas City, Missouri, opening in early 2027. Created by Belgian artist duo Gijs Van Vaerenbergh, it will transform the plaza into an iconic landmark and gathering space that both celebrates the city's history and looks ahead to its future.

Kansas City is a city defined by resilience. In 1899, the newly built Convention Hall opened as a bold statement of civic ambition, only to be destroyed by fire less than a year later, three months before it was set to host the Democratic National Convention. The community responded by rebuilding the hall in just 90 days, a demonstration of perseverance and civic pride that became woven into the identity of Kansas City forever.

It is that spirit that Gijs Van Vaerenbergh has set out to honor. Artists Pieterjan Gijs and Arnout Van Vaerenbergh are internationally recognised for works that dissolve the boundaries between art and architecture, transforming the way people experience the spaces around them. Their practice, rooted in transparency, silhouette, and spatial perception, creates works that invite curiosity and exploration. Developed with Petrichor Projects as curatorial consultant, they have reimagined the façade of the original Convention Hall as a soaring steel framework, its form evoking the presence of what once stood — a structural memory of the building and the spirit it represented.

Currently being fabricated in American steel in Kansas City, Kansas City Spirit: Memory and Resilience is a tribute to collective achievement and a gathering place for the generations who will carry this story forward.