FLOAT

Yesterday I embarked upon the long inter-borough journey of taking the G to the 7 to the N train in order to get to Astoria. I then walked 10 minutes on Broadway to Vernon to finally arrive in LIC and escape into the FLOAT exhibit at the Socrates Sculpture Park. For those of you not familiar with the Sculpture Park, it is a large open space located on the East River just across from Roosevelt Island. It was a landfill until 1986 when a coalition of artists and community members transformed it into an open studio and exhibition space for artists and a neighborhood park for local residents. The fascinating history of the park is told eloquently in this short video that you can watch here:




I had no idea what to expect when I arrived at the park. I was just excited to have a Sunday evening off and be able to enjoy the beautiful weather. I picked up a brochure detailing the 2 day exhibit which explained that it is the 4th in a biennial series of "interactive installations and ephemeral sculptural works." The artworks were to be presented as "encounters and interventions for the passerby" and would feature performances and temporary sculptures created by 15 artists specifically for Socrates Sculpture Park. Although I did receive a BFA in Drama from Tisch School of the Arts and took my fair share of classes in the Experimental Theater Wing, I've always had a hard time understanding "performance art." As strange as it may seem to me (as my brain just does not work like that), it fascinates me. I love to see what people create and how they choose to express themselves within these mediums.

As I entered the park I was immediately distracted by screeching sounds on the microphone. It was "open mic" hour and small children were approaching the stage to take a stab at their own form of "performance art," by making bizarre sounds and occasionally singing, encouraged by a middle-aged man wearing a skirt who was the creator of the Silk soymilk sculpture (pictured below). "Strange" I thought, but it seemed to go with the theme of the day (starting them young, right?) There were also artists demonstrating dying techniques and if you brought an article of clothing to them they would transform it into a vivid indigo hue. There also was an arts and crafts table for children which was a big hit.

(The photo below shows you the Silk soymilk sculpture, and if you look in the distance the man in the blue skirt was the creator)

Now on to the "sculptures." One of the ones that caught my eye was Megumi Tomomitsu's Fantastic Plastic Collection based on her photography series. On Saturday she apparently wore a customized bag costume and then proceeded to wash, hang to dry, and fold her growing collection of plastic bags. (We all have to have a hobby, right?) Then on Sunday she placed small plastic fruits in the bags before hanging them on a tree. The bags were intended to "amplify the wind blowing through the branches for the rest of the day" and pillows were placed around the base of the tree to "encourage a momentary rest surrounded by the meditative sound of the wind." I missed the "performance" part of the art but I managed to capture a photo of the final product.



What I am sad that I missed was Paint Box, performed by Nellie Fleischner. Nellie was twisted up on a tree swing that hung in the middle of a 10ft tall wood structure wrapped in fabric. The performance was slated to happen while I was there on Sunday, but as her assistants were twisting her up to the proper height before she was to be released, the swing broke and she fell from 10 ft. high. Thankfully she bounced up immediately from her fall and was unharmed, but the performance was postponed an hour and I was unable to stay. I have a "before" photo of the box below. In order to visualize the "after" picture, imagine that when she was released, the paint cans that were hanging from the bottom of her swing were lifted by centrifugal force and paint was spun onto the fabric to create a "uniform abstraction". Sounded pretty cool, if anyone has a photo of the colorful "after" paint box, please e-mail it to me!


As I was leaving, I saw two people drilling and digging in the grass. I wasn't sure if they were doing construction on the park, or if it too was a version of "performance art." Sometimes it is hard to tell the difference between a daily task and "art." Do we need an audience for it to be considered art? Or is "art" simply a state of mind? It is all up to interpretation and intention. It was a bizarre day, but an exciting one nonetheless. I have posted some more photos below that I took yesterday of other installations in the park. Although FLOAT is over, the Socrates Sculpture Park hosts many other exhibits year-round. For a complete list of events, visit their website by clicking HERE.