Spring has arrived in New York City and with it, a plethora of outdoor art exhibits in public spaces. Here are 10 installations to check out this month:
10. JR’s Walking New York (All 5 Boroughs)
French artist JR has installed 14 photographs of recent immigrants all over New York City as part of Walking New York, from The New York Times Magazine. The goal is to encourage people to walk all over the city to find the pieces. Check out a full list of where to find all of the works here.
9. Masks (Pentagon) at Rockefeller Center
Thomas Houseago’s commissioned work Masks (Pentagon) opened on the plaza at Rockefeller Center on Tuesday, April 28th. The five plaster sculpture masks are set on a redwood frame, an inviting installation where the public is encouraged to walk around and in-between the masks, viewing the city from the inside out.
8. Fata Morgana, Madison Square Park
Fata Morgana, the most ambitious installation Madison Square Park has had to date, was fully completed for public viewing on April 30th. The 500-foot mirrored sculpture piece is the artwork of Teresita Fernandez and will be on display until January 10, 2016.
7. Desire Lines, Central Park
The Public Art Funds exibit at the Doris C. Freedman Plaza, Fifth Avenue and 60th Street, is Tatiana Trouve’s piece Desire Lines, which will be on display through August 30th of this year.
6. Frida Kahlo Studio Recreation, New York Botanical Garden
Frida Kahlo Art Garden Life will be a rare display of more than a dozen original paintings and works on paper and a re-creation of Casa Azul, the artist’s garden and studio in Mexico City. The much anticipated exhibit will take place from May 16th to November 1st at the New York Botanic Garden.
5. Please Touch the Art, Brooklyn Bridge Park
Another much anticipated installation is a three-part project going up in May along the 1.3 mile length of the Brooklyn Bridge Park by artist Jeppe Hein. The installation named Please Touch the Art will consist of outdoor rooms of rising water, an arching bench and mirrored panels enlarging the surrounding landscape (above). These installations will open on May 17 and run to April 17, 2016.
4. Tom Fruin’s Kolonihavehus, Brooklyn Bridge Park
We enjoyed Tom Fruin’s colorful Kolonihavehus when it was here during the Dumbo Arts Festival, and are pleased to see it back in the Brooklyn Bridge Park following a tour of Europe and Scandinavia. The installation is made of found plexiglass and steel and is 12′ x 12′ x 14′ in size. You will find this installation near Jane’s Carousel until June 2015.
3. Light Over Time, Brooklyn Metro Tech
Sam Falls exhibit Light Over Time has been on display at The Metro Tech Center in Brooklyn since July 30, 2014 and will be up just until May 29th this year. The beauty of this exhibit is in viewing the UV protected work against the untreated surfaces, which have all been exposed to the elements as the installation has gone through the seasons, presenting to us in images the passage of time.
2. Fictitious Force, Old Stone House, Park Slope
Sponsored by the Brooklyn Arts Council, in partnership with the NYC Parks and Recreation, Beka Goedde has installed Fictitious Force at The Old Stone House, enter at 5th Avenue between 3rd and 4th Streets in Park Slope (below). This exhibit opened on April 20th and will remain up until April 19, 2016.
1. The Lightning: A Project for Wave Hill
Stefan Hagen, Courtesy Wave Hill
Wave Hill is celebrating their Fiftieth Anniversary with a month-long celebration, which includes evening events and an outdoor installation by artist Chris Doyle, The Lightening: A Project For Wave Hill’s Aquatic Garden will be on display through May 31.
BONUS M2M Program in Riverside Park
The Arts Student League has collaborated with the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation in a five year partnership called the M2M Program. This program has brought us seven sculptures on view along Riverside Park south between 59th Street and 69th Street. We are now in the fifth year of this program. In addition, Tree of Life (above) is currently on display in Van Cortlandt Park through June 1st of this year.
Get in touch with the author at AFineLyne.
