Category Archives: public art

Vito Acconci and David Antin On Art in Public Space

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“An open public space, like the piazza, is a vast multidirectional space. People are dots sprinkled across the floor; one dot slides into another and slips past to continue on its own. A number of dots queue up to form a a dotted line of tourists who follow a flag and crisscross another dotted line of tourists. Here and there, as if scattered through a sea, dots merge into islands. Its every person for him- or herself here, every group for itself, and the tower above all.” -Vito Acconci, “Public Space, Private Time”

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Alberto Giacometti, Piazza, 1947–48

“Nobody knows who the public is or what it wants or needs. Or whether it should be considered singular or plural. Though there are many people claiming to act on its behalf or speak in its name. And no one is quite sure what space belongs to it or to them, though that usually seems to be only what’s left over when all the other spaces have been appropriated, walled, shut, fenced, or screened off by whatever groups or individuals lay claims to them. So what we are left with are discards and transition spaces, spaces for a kind of temporary and idle occupation like lounging, strolling, and hanging around–streets, squares, parks, benches, bus stops, subways stations, railroad and airport terminals.” -David Antin, “Fine Furs”

Alvin Landon Coburn, The Octopus, 1909

Alvin Landon Coburn, The Octopus, 1909

Sheep before Condos: Lalanne Sheep Station in Chelsea

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Aside from the obviously pleasing incongruity of sheep in the middle of Manhattan, what’s going on here? These epoxy stone and bronze moutons are on one hand iconic sculptures by deceased French artist François-Xavier Lalanne. Sheep in Manhattan: charming and a bit surprising, even if they are cartoonish sheep elevated vis-a-vis art. Less surprising is that the Getty Filling station that used to mark this corner of Chelsea has been transformed — partially into a public art space– but more purposefully as the ground floor cornerstone to a “premier collection of luxury residences.” No doubt the art and the adjacent High Line will only add to the attractions of this future luxury development by Michael Shvo.

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Not that there is anything wrong with that. Art in New York (in the world but especially in New York) hardly exists in an art-for-art’s-sake vacuum. I hesitate to imply there should be guilt rather than the pure candor of the press release which spells out this relationship, linking commercialism and social status to art in ways that no doubt everyone is already more than aware of. But how does it make you feel about the sheep, hanging artificially onto a carefully-watered patch of grass in the midst of the vast metropolis?

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Public Art Done Awesome: Thomas Hirschhorn’s Gramsci Monument

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When I stopped in New York on my way home, I headed uptown to see Thomas Hirschhorn’s Gramsci Monument, a public art work Forest Houses, a housing complex in the Bronx. The structure started to be built July 1, and the project, now housed, will continue until September 15. This is the fourth of a series of “monuments” Hirschhorn has done that relate to philosophers he loves, but it is not the traditional monument, i.e. some grandiose sculpture.

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Rather, the Gramsci Monument is a series of plywood pavilions he built with the help of local residents he hired to create to community spaces. Hirschhorn created different areas for a stage, an arts and crafts room, a bar serving $2 cheeseburgers, a computer room, a radio station, a newspaper, and a Gramsci library and museum.

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Antonio Gramsci was an Italian leftist philosopher imprisoned by the Fascist government. During his incarceration, he wrote the Prison Notebooks. Quotes from it can be seen scattered across the pavilion and also on signs from facing nearby buildings. In all this, Hirschhorn wants to redefine “monument.” What makes the project come to life is Hirschhorn’s continued presence at the Gramsci Monument for the duration of the project, working with staff, talking to visitors, and supporting the daily programming. A typical day could include art classes for kids and a philosophy lecture followed by happy hour. Meanwhile, residents can use the space for its intended purpose or just hang out.

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So for example, I showed up one sunny afternoon and wandered around, reading the daily newspaper and staring at Gramsci’s prison hairbrush in the museum. As I wandered out toward the stage, I joined a group gathering for the beginning of the day’s talk. It turned out to be Glen Ligon presenting his work, aided by a thick color print out of images and some handfans he had made in case the day was hot. I sat with some people from DIA(sponsors of the work), Hirschhorn and the Forest Hills community president, who made the introductions, and local residents. Children and dogs also joined or ran past, creating an informal, fun atmosphere.

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I especially like that Hirschhorn will continue to be present at the Monument until the end, when the plywood structure will be dismantled, the computers raffled off locally, and the ephemeral project will be gone. As a platform for Hirschhorn, it is certainly an opportunity for him to educate about Gramsci and the nature of art and to participate in a community. But interestingly he writes about the responsibility of interacting with the Other on a one-to-one level through presence and production, without any focus on outcome.

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Unlike many participatory projects, I think his attitude takes control and responsibility more into his own hands even as it turns the goals away from anything practical or concrete. It resides in a belief in the transformative power of art, and the importance to himself of making a gesture of love like this regardless of its reception.

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