Eros in London

Anyone who has ever visited London’s Piccadilly Circus is familiar with the winged statue of Eros, the mischievous Greek god of love, who watches over the popular public space. The statue, designed by English sculptor Alfred Gilbert, sits atop the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain, a tribute to the politician and philanthropist, the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury. A statue of the god of sensual love seems a strange tribute to such a sober figure. And it would be, because the statue is actually (probably) meant to depict Eros’ brother, Anteros, the god of requited love. Gilbert described Anteros as representative of “reflective and mature love, as opposed to Eros or Cupid, the frivolous tyrant.” Interestingly, the true identity of the figure is a subject of significant debate. Some will claim that Gilbert only called the statue Anteros after receiving criticism from Victorian moralists, scandalized by a nude sculpture displayed in public. In fact, it is due to these very critics that the statue has a third name: “The Angel of Christian Charity.” No matter what you call it, the beautiful statue is an iconic fixture of Piccadilly Circus.

Ghost Forest by Maya Lin

As climate change causes rising sea levels, warmer winters, and unpredictable weather, our forests are paying the price. Once-vibrant stretches of woodland are becoming what is known as “ghost forests,” as the trees die, rotted by salt water or infested with insects, but remain standing. When this happens, the delicate ecosystems that depend on the trees are destroyed, leaving these areas devoid of the normal life that should fill them. Maya Lin, an artist and architect with an interest in environmental issues, has brought a haunting ghost forest to the urban landscape of Manhattan. At the center of Madison Square Park is a stand of 50 dead white cedar trees installed by the artist and her team. The trees are from New Jersey’s Pine Barrens and were killed by an inundation of salt water from a nearby river. As Lin puts it, “each tree is a monument to climate change.” The installation brings the devastating effects of the current crisis to the heart of a city that can seem removed from nature, creating a dramatic and haunting experience for visitors to the park.

A note: the artist will offset the carbon used in installing the work by planting 1000 trees around the city. Over ten years, the carbon emissions will be offset by a factor of ten.

CowParade

New York has become a pasture for cows! Not real cows, of course, but 78 unique fiberglass cows are on view throughout New York City. Each of the cows is painted and transformed by a wide array of artists, “from contemporary art icons to well-known Wynwood graffiti artists to eclectic designers and celebrity supporters.” We found a few of the cows around the city, including “Dairy-go-Round” designed by actor Neil Patrick Harris, “Flora, the Sustainable Cow Planter” by Brian McCarthy, “E Pluribus Unum” by Yannick Lowery, “Moo York Summer Celebration” by Billy the Artist, “Creature Cow Alliance” by Danny Cole, and “CLEAR Constellations” by Chris Sainato. At the end of the exhibition, each of the cows will be auctioned off, with the proceeds going to the meal delivery service God’s Love We Deliver, which serves medically-tailored meals to sick or otherwise homebound New Yorkers. CowParade, the organization that put together this herd, has held similar events in over 80 cities around the world over more than 20 years. This is the first time the cows have been in New York since 2000.

Project Backboard in St. Nicholas Park

Almost every New York City park has at least one basketball court. They are ubiquitous in this city, a beloved space to enjoy time outdoors with friends and family. The courts in my neighborhood are in St. Nicholas Park, a stretch of parkland that runs from 127th Street to 141st Street, forming a green haven for residents of West Harlem. At almost any time of day, the basketball courts in St. Nicholas Park are full of kids practicing their skills, teenagers playing pickup games, or families enjoying the sunshine and exercise. One of my neighborhood courts recently got a makeover courtesy of an initiative called Project Backboard. This organization works with artists to repaint public basketball courts all over the country, installing colorful works of art “in order to strengthen communities, improve park safety, encourage multi-generational play, and inspire people to think more critically and creatively about their environment.” The St. Nicholas basketball court was designed by artist and Harlem native Faith Ringgold, a prolific multimedia artist best known for creating narrative quilts. The court design is based on her 1974 work “Windows of the Wedding #1: Woman.” The large-scale version of the work is an abstract, colorful pattern which “will be transformed into something of living narrative quilt” as countless stories play out on top of the painted surface.