4. The Chelsea Market Passage on the High Line was the Site of a Subversive Art Installation
A view of an art installation, designed by Paula Scher and Abbott Miller, and book giveaway celebrating Hulu’s ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ opened on the High Line on April 26, 2017 in New York City. Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Hulu
If Chelsea Market were a person, she’d probably be a total foodie and shopping addict. The High Line would be its slightly earthier partner in crime. In April, the Chelsea Market passage on the High Line was the site of an installation based on the new Hulu series “The Handmaid’s Tale,” after the book of the same title by Margaret Atwood.
The installation gave out 4,000 free copies of the book, which many have turned to in light of American politics. The books were stored inside a red wall that also displayed the message, “Nolite te bastardes carborundorum,” a fake-Latin phrase that means “don’t let the bastards grind you down” in the book.
Another great art installation that has unfortunately left the High Line is Spencer Finch’s famous The River That Flows Both Ways. This installation, made of 700 panes of glass that represent the Hudson River over the course of 700 minutes, was the High Line’s longest-running, having already been installed when the High Line opened in 2009.
The Chelsea Market passage is the 5,900 square foot walled section of the High Line that can be used for sit-down arts events and affairs. It leads you right from the High Line into the Chelsea Market.