ArtBridge projects beautify New York City construction zones
NEW YORK - Construction zones can be seen on almost every corner of New York City, but an art project in collaboration with the Cultural Affairs department aims to bring a little vibrance to all that green plywood.
Scaffolding stretches for 300 miles around the city's construction zones. City-commissioned art is currently on display across one of those miles.
One of Culture Commissioner Laurie Cumbo's favorite pieces is "Steal Away" outside the National Black Theatre's new multi-purpose building at the corner of 125th Street and 5th Avenue in Harlem.
"It's become such an eyesore in New York City," Cumbo said of the scaffolding, "and Mayor Eric Adams wanted to make sure that we take that scaffolding down, and where we can't take it down, we're able to put up beautiful works of art."
Artist Xenobia Bailey found groundbreaking inspiration to move from Seattle to New York City to pursue African American design after seeing the NBT's late leader on television.
"When I saw Barbara Ann Teer, it was almost like artistic license to go mystical with it, you know," Bailey said, "because we didn't have the family stories about, we did this or the customs that we practiced. Nothing was handed down."
Describing her aesthetic as "Cosmic Funky," stars share the stage with the stars of the theatre throughout history, with nods to the native Lenape people who first called this land home.
The theatre now plans to incorporate Bailey's work into the new space, which will be topped by mixed-income apartments and welcoming back the community within three years.
"This is a small part in helping to make sure our communities are beautified, but not gentrified, making sure our communities are a reflection of ourselves, and this new edifice that might be showing up is not about displacing us but about grounding us," said NBT's executive artistic director Jonathan McCrory.
Zeehan Wazed included a Queens dance troupe in his Long Island City installation covering 700 feet of plywood walls along the water.
"It shows our work to people who aren't walking into galleries," Wazed said. "I think a lot of the change happens out on the streets, so I hope it exposes more people to our work. I grew up in Jamaica, Queens where there wasn't a lot of artwork, so yeah I think it's important to have it in these neighborhoods."
"To see the scaffolding with faces that look just like the residents of this community allows them to know that this space is going to be a space for them," Cumbo added.
The city's Cultural Affairs department is still seeking artists to submit designs for scaffolding in their neighborhoods. To learn more, click here.
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