The Hive at Moynihan Train Hall

The new Moynihan Train Hall (housed in the former James A. Farley Post Office) acts as an extension of Penn Station for Amtrak and LIRR transit passengers. It also has some incredible public art including The Hive, which greets passengers at the 31st Street entrance. Created by the artist duo Michael Elmgreen and Ingar Dragset, The Hive is a “fantastical inverted cityscape inspired by iconic buildings of cities around the world including New York, Chicago, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, London, and Paris.” The hanging structures are made of stainless steel and aluminum, measure up to nine-feet, weigh 30,000 pounds, and feature 72,000 LED lights. The structures hang from the ceiling like stalactites which pays “tribute to the highly developed cities we live in today while reminding us of our cave-dweller origins.” The mirrored baseplate places the viewer below into the fictional city above and allows you to forget at least for a few moments that soon you'll have to get on LIRR transit.

Scenes from a Snowstorm 2020

What else did 2020 need? How about a major snowstorm? Yes, please. This week a powerful nor'easter hit New York City and the northeast with heavy snow and high winds. With at least ten inches recorded in Central Park, it was the biggest December snowstorm in New York City in ten years since a blizzard in 2010 dumped twenty inches. We made our way (carefully) around New York City amid the snowstorm and were able to enjoy a few peaceful moments of freshly fallen snow before it turns to dirty slush. Oh yes, don’t forget to wear a mask!

The Holidays at Hudson Yards

On a chilly day this week we checked out the incredible holiday light display at Hudson Yards. More than two million white lights are featured throughout the shops, the Vessel (which has extended holiday hours), the Edge observation deck, and the outdoor areas. With Hanukkah starting this week, Hudson Yards is also celebrating with traditional sweets and treats and arts and craft activities. If you go, be sure to social distance and wear a mask!

Peace, Love & Happiness

Peace, Love & Happiness currently at the South Street Seaport was created by Scott Gerber, artist and founder of Tube Dude. Gerber designed the piece as a way for “people to come together and heal through art.” The “Peace Sign” aims to “bring calm to one’s mind when distracted not only by major global events, but also by everyday occurrences;” the “Heart” encourages viewers to be “kind and spread love to those who are suffering;” and the “Smiley Face” evokes “happiness and positivity to the  viewers so that they in turn may spread joy through our communities.”

The Vessel at Hudson Yards

Last night we were able to get a preview of the Vessel, the centerpiece of the newly-opened Hudson Yards. The largest private real estate development in American history, Hudson Yards consists of a vast network of residences, office space, shops, restaurants, and Instagram-worthy immersive art exhibits. The Vessel is a piece of interactive artwork designed by Thomas Heatherwick and Heatherwick Studio to be a focal point where visitors can “enjoy new perspectives of the city and one another from different heights, angles and vantage points.” Its spiral staircase is comprised of 154 intricately interconnecting flights of stairs—almost 2,500 individual steps and 80 landings—which all translate to a nearly one mile vertical climb. Heatherwick says: “We tried to see how we could make something that feels particular and doesn’t exist anywhere else in the world.” It is certainly unique, and after that climb, you will definitely need a snack! Hudson Yards officially opens today and visitors will need tickets to climb the Vessel.

Museum of the Dog

In honor of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show this week, and, you know, because dogs are just so wonderful, we visited the recently opened American Kennel Club Museum of the Dog on Park Avenue near Grand Central Station. This museum features over 200 pieces in their collection including incredible paintings, sculptures, and photographs, all celebrating “the human-canine relationship.” Highlights (apart from the adorable doggies above) include a 30-million-year-old dog fossil, a terracotta paw print from a Roman archaeological dig, and a Victorian-era dog cart for children. There is also a digital exhibit that will snap a picture and tell you what dog breed you most resemble. I got Doberman Pinscher—loyal, fearless, and alert. Sounds about right.

Mom-and-Pops of the L.E.S.

“Mom-and-Pops of the L.E.S.” is a mixed media installation that celebrates small, family owned shops in the Lower East Side, most of which have shuttered. The wood frame structure, by architectural and interior photographers Karla and James Murray, features four nearly life-size and incredibly realistic photographs of a bodega, coffee shop/luncheonette, vintage store, and newsstand. In creating the piece, they wanted to recognize the “unique and irreplaceable contribution made to New York by small, often family-owned businesses” and celebrate places that “helped bring the community together through people’s daily interactions.” The installation is on view in Seward Park in the Lower East Side through July 2019.

In Dreams Awake

In Dreams Awake features six large-scale, figural sculptures by Hudson Valley-based artist Kathy Ruttenberg on the Broadway Malls between 64th and 157th Streets. In her first major outdoor installation, Ruttenberg combines human, animal, and plant forms to allow “viewers a moment to escape from New York's urban intensity with dreamlike fables derived from rural settings.” The pieces are made of a variety of sculptural media including patinated bronze, glass mosaic, transparent cast resin, and LED lighting. I had a chance to visit “Ms. Mighty Mouse” on 79th Street and “In Sync” on 72nd Street. Ruttenberg encourages viewers to come up with their own narrative and “multi-layered meaning” of each piece. I think “Ms. Mighty Mouse” is protecting a walnut she found for the winter against other pedestrians who are trying to steal it (but I don’t know what happen to her arms, that’s very concerning!) and “In Sync” tells the story of a tree nymph and half man-half deer who are in love but are walking to the train to get to their desk jobs even though they dream of running off to the country. In Dreams Awake is on display at various points on the Broadway Malls through February 2019. What’s your interpretation?

Poetry Jukebox

Poetry Jukebox in Ruth E. Wittenberg Triangle in Manhattan.

Poetry Jukebox is a simple but ingenious project that plays poems on demand. Installed in Greenwich Village, visitors can press a button and hear poems from such New York City residents as Edna St. Vincent Millay, Sara Teasdale, Grace Paley, James Baldwin, Edgar Allan Poe, and Jack Kerouac, among others. Originally started in Prague by Ondřej Kobza, a café owner and cultural activist with passion for poems and literature, along with producer and writer Michaela Hečková, the project has spread to Slovakia, Ireland, Scotland, Bulgaria, and Germany, all with different poems in each location to reflect the literary heritage of each place. The creators of the Poetry Jukebox are focused on animating public spaces in cities and showing “how people can make their own cities more livable.”