Art in the Parks

Through collaborations with a diverse group of arts organizations and artists, Parks brings to the public both experimental and traditional art in many park locations. Please browse our list of current exhibits and our archives of past exhibits below. You can also see past grant opportunities or read more about the Art in the Parks Program.

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Santiago Calatrava, S4, Photo courtesy of the artist

Santiago Calatrava, Calatrava on Park Avenue

June 8, 2015 to November 1, 2015
Park Avenue Malls, Manhattan

Please note: This is a past exhibit that is no longer installed in the park.

Description:

Seven monumental sculptures represent the artist’s continued exploration of expressive forms and structure abstracted from nature. In the artist’s own words, “their relation to the natural world suggests a link between man and nature, implying the sculptures are found objects in a human forest.”

Santiago Calatrava’s work continues to shape and redefine the boundaries that have historically separated the visual arts, particularly sculpture, from architecture and engineering. Two of the new works, S2 and S3, are complex tension compression structures wherein each element is held in place through the utilization of very fine, almost invisible cables.  Calatrava’s intention is for the sculptures to “simply grow from the ground. Within each sculpture, an internal logic of autonomy delivers lyrical forms and implies a sense of elevation and spiritual uplifting.” Santiago Calatrava builds basswood models to evaluate the aesthetic and structural characteristics of each work before moving to full-scale metal sculptures.  The largest of these, S1, is 40’ across and approximately 20’ tall. From the side, its rib-like structure appears as a thin arched line. When approached, the massive layered roof reveals its architectonic depth. As a whole, these works express a unified aesthetic anchored in the artist’s continuing exploration of the relationship between the origins of creativity and the evolutionary structure of the natural world.

This exhibition is presented by the Fund for Park Avenue and Marlborough Gallery.