In celebration of Australia Day yesterday, we thought we’d share one of our favorite installations in one of our favorite cities. “Cow Up a Tree” is the aptly-named bronze sculpture by Australian artist John Kelly on the shore of Melbourne’s dockland precinct that depicts a cow helplessly stuck in the branches of a gum tree. Displaying his quirky Aussie humour and bringing an inside joke in Australian history to life, Kelly’s sculpture is an homage to helpless victims of flood waters and Australian artist Sir William Dobell, who when tasked with camouflaging airfields during World War II, filled them with paper mâché cows in hope of fooling Japanese pilots.
“Cow Up a Tree” by John Kelly
Changes Implemented at US Embassy and Consulates in India to Alleviate Visa Processing Backlogs
Following the Department of State’s (“DOS”) October 2022 update on its efforts to improve visa processing backlogs that resulted due to worldwide embassy closures throughout the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its commitment to lowering visa interview wait times , the United States Mission in India has expanded its services. Beginning January 21, 2023, the US Embassy in New Delhi and Consulates in Chennai, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Kolkata have opened consular operations on Saturdays to accommodate first-time visa applicants who require in-person visa interviews.
Read moreUSCIS Further Extends Flexibility for Responding to Agency Requests
In response to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, US Citizenship & Immigration Services (“USCIS”) is continuing to extend the flexibilities it originally announced almost three years ago, on March 30, 2020. USCIS’ 60-day deadline extension policy for responses to various agency actions has been extended through March 23, 2023, to assist applicants, petitioners, and requestors who are responding to:
Requests for Evidence;
Continuations to Request Evidence (N-14);
Notices of Intent to Deny;
Notices of Intent to Revoke;
Notices of Intent to Rescind;
Notices of Intent to Terminate regional centers; and
Motions to Reopen an N-400 Pursuant to 8 CFR 335.5, Receipt of Derogatory Information After Grant.
It's the Year of the Rabbit
"Losing My Marbles" by Lisa Dinhofer
Spanning 32 feet along the mezzanine walls at the 42nd Street - Port Authority Bus terminal subway station is Lisa Dinhofer’s “Losing My Marbles,” a glass mosaic work depicting toy marbles, challenging the viewer’s imagination by playing with illusions that alter physical perceptions of space and movement. Dinhofer describes herself as an ‘illusionist’ artist rather than a ‘realist,’ as the spaces she creates in her artwork are believable, but not actually real. Rather, she designs and invents her own space in her work. Installed in 2003, the work is one of many in the MTA’s “Art for Transit” initiative, which encourages the use of public transit by presenting visual and performing arts projects in subway and commuter rail stations, while simultaneously increasing access to public art. The permanent art program is one of the largest and most diverse collections of site-specific public art in the world, with over 300 works by world famous, mid-career, and emerging artists alike.
Lack of Immigration Reform is a ‘Catastrophe’ According to US Labor Secretary
As global political and economic leaders gather at The World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland (“Davos”), US Labor Secretary Martin “Marty” Walsh called attention to the fact that “we need immigration reform in America" during a panel session on the future of jobs. As a champion of immigrants and advocate for immigrant rights and opportunities throughout his public career Mr. Walsh recognizes the importance of immigration within our economy.
Read moreUSCIS Implements Final Phase of Premium Processing Service Expansion, Including Option for New Petitions
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) announced it is implementing the final phase of its expansion of premium processing for Forms I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, in the EB-1 Multinational Executive and Manager and EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW) categories. This final phase is set to commence on January 30, 2023.
Read moreSixty Years later, MLK Inspires Todays’ DREAMers
“NYC LOVE” by Nina Chanel Abney
Newly adorning the High Line on the West Side of Manhattan is a mural by artist Nina Chanel Abney, entitled NYC LOVE. The piece is an homage to and celebration of New York City via its iconography. Abney first moved to New York as a self-described Midwestern suburbanite in 2005, and found great comfort and joy in some of the city’s more tourist-oriented icons that many longtime New Yorkers take for granted. NYC LOVE brings these icons to the forefront, recreating the joys of first experiencing those stimulating sights and sounds in Abney’s signature bright colors and geometric forms. The work graces the High Line, an icon in and of itself, welcoming millions of New Yorkers and visitors alike to enjoy all that the city has to offer. Like Abney, we have only love and gratitude for this city we call home.