Art in the Parks

This colorful new public installation brings music, solar–powered lights, seating, and community art to an underutilized space in Morrisania. This is the third Boogie Down Booth, designed by artist Chat Travieso. The first booth was installed at Southern Boulevard and Freeman Street, under the 2/5 line, in 2014, and the second was installed in Seabury Park in 2015 and will remain on view through June 24, 2016.

This booth Boogie Down Booth has solar–powered speakers that stream music that originated in the Bronx, including salsa, jazz, Afro–Caribbean, hip–hop, Garifuna, and blues. The playlist, curated by the Bronx Music Heritage Center, both celebrates the rich musical heritage of the borough and masks construction and vehicular traffic noise on the 161st Street corridor. The installation also provides much–needed picnic–style seating and solar–powered lighting to the park, which is located close to a bus stop, Boricua College, and 1,000+ units of housing. The booth also incorporates interactive elements like a community bulletin board and artwork by local artists and students. Community partners including DreamYard, BronxWorks, and Boricua College, who will collaborate on various activities at the booth throughout the year.

This exhibition is presented by WHEDco and the Bronx Music Heritage Center .

The Art Students League of New York, one of America’s premier art schools, presents the Model to Monument Program (M2M), a collaboration with NYC Parks that has culminated in the installation of the collaborative sculpture, …and We Breathe, at Van Cortlandt Park. This is the sixth year for the M2M program, which has installed nearly 50 monumental works in NYC parks since 2011. This piece by all seven M2M sculptors celebrates and explores the various aspects of “Air,” this year’s theme for Van Cortlandt Park. This installation was created by artists Aaron Bell, Sheila Berger, James Mikhel Emerson, Tanda Francis, Markus Rudolph Holtby, Shiho Sato, and Sarah Thompson Moore. The group also has works concurrently on view in Riverside South Park in Manhattan.

This work was made possible by the Art Students League’s Model to Monument Program.

The People of the Sun includes four metal sculptures along the pathway and entrances to the Lincoln Terrace Park. Each of these sculptures will function as rotating artistic billboards. Throughout the 2018 spring and summer seasons, The People of the Sun will cycle through new banners that feature themed artwork from local artists as well as celebrated members of the community. In an effort to foster holistically healthy lifestyles in the community, the monthly banners will also provide wellness instruction such as suggested exercises, stretches, healthy living tips.

This exhibition is part of Art in the Parks: Active Open Space presented by Friends of Brownsville Parks with the Department for Health and Mental Hygiene, the Fund for Public Health, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

Triquetra for Healing is a sculpture that provides a sun-activated light bath to visitors of Brower Park. The artwork aims to bring neighborhood residents of all ages together to enjoy the surprising light effects from the sun. The shapes and color schemes that are present in the artwork represent healing and unity.

The Crown Heights Community Mediation Center provides anti-violence programs, youth programs and resource links to community residents. Its mission is to encourage communication and understanding, prevent future conflicts, and help foster stronger, healthier neighborhoods.

Funding for this project was made possible by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as part of an initiative to create health-inspired public art installations that encourage park use and strengthen community connections.

This exhibition is part of Art in the Parks: Active Open Space presented with the Department for Health and Mental Hygiene, the Fund for Public Health, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Walking the line between respectful homage and brazen appropriation, Brooklyn-based artist Deborah Kass mimics and reworks the signature styles of iconic 20th century, often with a feminist twist. OY/YO is sourced from urban and Brooklyn slang, the statement “I am” in Spanish, and the popular Yiddish expression. OY/YO has been a significant and reoccurring motif in Kass’ work since its first appearance in 2011, taking form in paintings, prints, and tabletop sculptures. In a provocative gesture, OY/YO, measuring 8 x 17 x 5 ft and painted bright yellow on aluminum along the Williamsburg waterfront, is visible from Manhattan’s skyscrapers including the Empire State Building.

This exhibition is presented by Paul Kasmin Gallery and Douglaston Development.

Circadia is an interactive luminescent sculpture and seating system made from concrete and glow-sand, which will act as a guide to the park entrance. Resembling a historic building foundation, Circadia also mimics the park’s rolling hills and natural rhythms found in nature.

This exhibition was made possible by the Art in the Parks: UNIQLO Park Expressions Grant.

Musa Hixson’s steel sculpture includes several stools enclosed within a flower-shaped frame, which provide a space for intimate conversation in the public park. The sculpture’s horticultural form references the park’s mature landscape.

This exhibition was made possible by the Art in the Parks: UNIQLO Park Expressions Grant.

Jane Manus’ strongly geometric aluminum sculptures, personally welded by hand, draw their primary inspiration from the angularity and structure of architecture. With the play of its cheery, vibrant yellow paint and a dynamic use of negative space, Danielle transforms its surroundings and inspires an interactive viewing experience. The sculpture’s angular lines and joyful hue spring forth from the green lawns and trees surrounding it.