Art in the Parks

Flowers of Turtle Island is a fiber art installation depicting a field of wild flowers that appear to be growing from the ground up so that when you walk past you will feel as if you are walking through an oversized field of flowers.

All the flower species are native to North America, in particular the northeastern part of the country. The larger flowers, lady slipper orchids and coneflowers, will loom overhead in bright colors of pink, yellow, and purple, with several shades of green.

Flowers of Turtle Island is installed on the fence that surrounds Eugene McCabe Field, adjacent to the elevated train tracks on Park Avenue.

The beauty of flowers connects people to nature and this installation will also inform people with a series of artist-guided tours. Many flowers that we now consider native to New York and New England were brought here by European settlers. The artist researched what was growing here prior to colonization to determine which species should be included. Echinacea, Coneflowers, Bluebells, Oypripedium, Lady Slipper, Aster, Goldenrod Solidago, Sanguinaria Bloodroot, Sunflowers, Violets, Rosehips all grew wild on Turtle Island, the name that the Lenape Indians used to identify the region.

Flowers of Turtle Island is made possible in part with funding from New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and administered by LMCC. Additional funding provided by the Marcus Garvey Park Alliance.

Broadway Blooms is a series of eight marble sculptures installed at eight major intersections along Broadway starting at 64th Street (Dante Park/Lincoln Center), then 72nd, 79th, 96th, 103rd, 117th, 148th, and ending at 157th Street. The artist chose the floral forms for their universality and accessibility. Carved from seven different types of marble, their ephemerality is contrasted against the durability of the hard stone.

This exhibition is presented by the Broadway Mall Association and Morrison Gallery.

The installation will honor Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and others, it is imperative that we continue to move the conversation forward.

I Can’t Breathe is made possible in part with funding from LMCC and Department of Cultural Affairs. Additional funding provided by the Marcus Garvey Park Alliance.

Ascending the Mountain is a public art installation that celebrates the urban forest that grew up the east side of the mountain of Manhattan Schist. Visitors climb the stairs heading up to the Harlem Fire Watchtower viewing the artwork in 3 parts as the mountain changes from rock to the tree canopy.

At the base of the stairs the first section will explore "Roots in Rock", visitors will be able to see through the fence to a view of roots growing into the rocks of the mountain. Part way up the stairs the second section "Growing Powerhouse", illustrates the trees bringing gallons of water and minerals thru their trunks to photosynthesize and produce leaves. The third section near the top of the staircase and mountain " Tree Canopy" draws the viewers focus to the view of the treetops adjacent to the Harlem Fire Watchtower

Ascending the Mountain is made possible in part with funding from the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation and administered by LMCC. Additional funding provided by the Marcus Garvey Park Alliance.

The scale of the installation will illustrate the abundance of single use plastics and their impact on our public spaces and on our environment. Viewers entering the park and facing the photographic assemblage will see the installation in its entirety, a colorful intervention in the space but once they get closer, they will recognize the common subject matter.

The goal of this project is to support the ban of plastic bags in New York City and to encourage residents to take responsibility for their own environmental footprint. 

Plastic Fantastic! is made possible in part with funding provided by the Marcus Garvey Park Alliance, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Friends of Art Park Alliance, and individual donors.

Tomb Effigy of Margaret Corbin pays tribute to Revolutionary War hero Margaret Corbin (1751–1800), considered the first woman to fight for America, and namesake of several Fort Tryon Park features. Corbin took control of her fallen husband’s cannon and fought during the Battle of Fort Washington at this site in 1776. The artwork takes the form of the tomb effigies at The Met Cloisters, figuratively and aesthetically stitching together the Revolutionary War battlefield and the ahistorical, relocated medieval French abbeys that comprise the Cloisters. In addition to paying homage to a lesser-known female historical figure, Landsberg’s sculpture contributes to the contemporary conversation around representation in monuments and public commemoration.

This exhibition was made possible by the Clare Weiss Emerging Artist Award. This award was made possible with support from Janet and John Koehne.

This exhibition features nine of George Rickey’s classic, large-scale kinetic sculptures, some of them not exhibited in many years. These works will showcase much of Rickey’s diverse and energetic repertoire, with the oldest first made in 1964, and the latest officially completed in 2002. On verdant Park Avenue, the show will fully realize Rickey’s theses about the bridge between the built and natural worlds. 

This exhibition is presented by Kasmin, the George Rickey Foundation, and the Fund for Park Avenue.

Begun in 2010, Good Neighbors became a way to celebrate and preserve the history of a place by photographing its residents and business owners. This year, in the midst of a pandemic, a project that began in admiration of a neighborhood and its inhabitants has new significance. With support from the Columbus-Amsterdam BID, El Taller Latino Americano, and City Artists Corps, this project has expanded to bring a larger sense of optimism to our minds as we face this moment, unclear of when it will end and what our return will look like.

Black, Trans, and Alive (Return Home) is made possible in part with funding from ArtBridge, and Facebook Open Arts.