This is my last post from the Dumbo Arts Festival. Here, we see Jae Hi Ahn’s patch of underwater flora which embraces the shore of the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park with the Manhattan Bridge as backdrop. The sculpture created a lot of interest – it was one of the most visually prominent works outdoors, with its bright plastic colors. The installation was part of an outdoor group of works called Project Glow. Click here to see works nearby, including Sparkling Air, with its sparkling sequins.

Jae appears to be quite an active artist – you can read her resume here and her artist’s statement here. The afternoon I was there, I got to meet her; Jae was on site taking photos of her work – that’s her in the upper right photo. By the way, click on the photo to enlarge it and take note of her earrings 🙂

This sculpture was part of the Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition’s (BWAC) 24th annual outdoor sculpture show Garden of Delights in Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park and Brooklyn Bridge Park in Dumbo. This show overlapped the Dumbo Arts Festival.

The sculpture, Travel with the Kitchen Sink, an assemblage of stainless steel sinks, was created by Tyrome Tripoli. More photos here. (BTW – I learned from reading online and a photo that the work had stainless steel sinks flowing out from a suitcase, but the suitcase was gone when I was there). Originally from California, Tyrome studied biochemistry but became interested in pursuing art after a stint as itinerant surfer.
From his website:

“Tripoli creates assemblage sculpture from transformed materials and ordinary objects. This new medium was first inspired when Tripoli was selected to participate in an artist in residency program at the San Francisco Refuse and Recycle Center in 2001 … At the moment he resides in New York City pursuing a career as an assemblage sculptor. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and surfs Rockaway Beach, New York.”

He apparently is fascinated with water 🙂

This year is the 10th annual Dumbo Art Under the Bridge Festival, now the largest event in Dumbo. Dumbo (Down Under Manhattan Bridge Overpass) is an artist’s district (now heavily gentrified) along the waterfront in Brooklyn between the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges and also extending east. This 2-day event (Oct. 13-15), featuring hundreds of emerging artists, expects to draw 250,000 people. There are extensive gallery showings, outdoor installations and sculptures, interactive art, live art, graffiti, video, music, light installations – even the Pink Ladies participate with Plouf! (a comedy cruise).

The photo was taken at the PowerHouse Arena (see here), which was doing No Sleep ’til Brooklyn – a 30-Year Hip Hop Retrospective. There was so much to take in, so I will do a couple more posts this week. If you can’t make it today, try next year. I think that regardless of your interests, there is so much diversity that you are likely to find things that you will enjoy. And, of course, the vistas of Manhattan, the bridges, and waterfront from the parks are magnificent…

Twice a year for 75 years, Greenwich Village has been home to the Washington Square Outdoor Art Exhibit on Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend (and the weekend following). It was started in 1931 by Jackson Pollock and William DeKooning, when both Village residents, both desperate for cash, took their paintings to the street. Their efforts were noticed by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, founder of the Whitney Museum of Art, and Alfred H. Barr, Jr., Director of the Museum of Modern Art, who organized the annual event. It is now attended by over 200 artists and 200,000 visitors. The entrants are juried by fellow artists based on slides submitted. Prizes, donated by individuals and organizations, are awarded by artist-judges in various categories: Fine Arts (Graphics, Mixed Media, Oils & Acrylic, Watercolor), Photography, Sculpture and Crafts (Jewelry, Metal Work, Ceramics, Glass, Mixed Media, Fiber, Wood).

The artists I know no longer take this show seriously, considering it too commercial. But this is a common criticism of virtually everything these days, and given that art and snobbery are virtually synonymous, perhaps you should be the judge. There is one weekend left (September 9 & 10). The show currently runs primarily along University Place (where the photo was taken – click here for more photos). There is a map showing the exact location at the WSOAE site…