Art

Ever wondered what's the story behind NYC's ubiquitous outdoor monuments

Sometimes a rose is just a rose, but in the case of an outdoor art project on view in FiDi's Zuccotti Park, a rose is a 26-foot-tall sculpture made in painted steel. The piece comes courtesy of German artist Isa Genzken, whose career was the subject of a major 2104 retrospective at MoMA. Weighing in at 1,000 pounds, Rose III, as it's called, was unveiled on the seventh anniversary of Occupy Wall Street's takeover of the park, which is privately owned by Brookfield Properties. Genzken works in a wide range of mediums, but giant flowers have been something of an obsession for her: A similar rose sculpture was installed on the New Museum's facade from 2010 to 2013, while a pair of gargantuan white orchids (rising to 28 and 34 feet respectively) stood at Doris C. Freedman Plaza in front of Central Park during the spring and summer of 2016. As for Rose III, it remains on long term loan for now, meaning it will probably be in bloom well into winter.

This week, the High Line announced its inaugural project for its new, upcoming public art venue, the Plinth: A 16-foot-tall bronze bust of a black woman by artist Simone Leigh. Titled Brick House, the sculpture takes it title from the 1977 Motown hit by the Commodores, and portrays its subject as a monumental head, crowned with an afro wreathed in braids, surmounting a domed shaped decorated with elongated ridges.     Photograph: James Corner Field Operations and Diller Scofidio + Renfro, courtesy the City of New York       Leigh's sculpture could be described as a kind of homage to the strength and fortitude that African-American women have displayed in the face of adversity throughout American history, from the travails of slavery to the Black Lives Matter protests of today. It also represents the largest addition so far to the artist's ongoing "Anatomy of Architecture" series, in which elements of the human body are paired with forms evoking houses and other structures from the Old South and various regions in Africa.         Leigh, 50, is only now starting to garner worldwide acclaim for a body of work in several mediums (sculpture, video and installation) that focuses on the intersectionality of feminism and African-American identity, and how both relate to built environments that serve as expressions of political and economic power.   Photograph: James Corner Field Operations and Diller Scofidio + Renfro, courtesy the City of New York       Brick Ho

Photograph: Courtesy Ben Lau (@just_a_spectator) Renowned Brazilian street artist Eduardo Kobra has unveiled another soaring mural in New York. Following up on his split-faced Michael Jackson in the East Village and combined profiles of Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi in Chelsea, the artist has moved in a more symbolic direction for his latest work: a seven-story kneeling firefighter meant to pay tribute to lives lost on 9/11. The new piece, which Kobra referred to as “the braves of 9/11” on his Instagram, has completely transformed a formerly blank wall located at 780 Third Avenue in Midtown East. The mural depicts a brightly-colored firefighter, mirroring the artists’ other murals, in front of an American flag. View this post on Instagram A post shared by ɹoʇɐʇɔǝds (@just_a_spectator) on Sep 5, 2018 at 8:57pm PDT “In the specific case of this mural, I am paying homage to the firemen who fought bravely that day. At the same time, I believe that this image also symbolizes our lament for all the lives that were harvested,” Kobra said in a statement provided to Time Out New York. “The image contains details that allude to the historical episode. On the helmet, I wrote the numbers 343. This is a reference to the number of firefighters killed that day. There is also a representation of the Twin Towers, and the flag of the United States. The stars represent all the lives that were lost in the tragedy—which left nearly 3,000 dead. Lastly, th

A post shared by Eduardo Kobra (@kobrastreetart) on Aug 19, 2018 at 2:36pm PDT Fresh off the unveiling of his East Village mural depicting Michael Jackson, renowned Brazilian street artist Eduardo Kobra is at it again with another project done in his signature, harlequin-pattern, technicolor style. Painted on the side of a building on 18th Street and Tenth Avenue in Chelsea, the three-story image features the profiles of Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi, facing each other in a tribute to their roles as two of the world’s greatest humanitarians. Gandhi, of course, led India in its quest for independence from British rule by pursuing a campaign of non-violence that was later emulated by the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther during the Civil Rights movement. Mother Teresa, meanwhile, won the Noble Peace Prize, and was granted sainthood by the Catholic Church, for her work ministering to the poor of Calcutta. Gandhi and Mother Teresa are just some of the famous personalities from history and pop culture that Kobra has immortalized in murals around the world, a roster which includes Anne Frank, Tupac, Neil Armstrong, Nelson Mandela, Bob Dylan—and Yoda. Though he's created projects from Mumbai and Malawi to Moscow and Minneapolis, the New York City area has always been one of his favorite places to work: Besides this latest project and the one involving Michael Jackson, he put up a monumental mural last year on a Jersey City high-rise that celebrated David Bowie in character as Z