“The Light That Shines Through the Universe” by Tuan Andrew Nguyen

While on our daily constitutional to take our minds off the ever-changing nuances of immigration law, we came across the brand-new installation at the High Line Plinth. Towering over the High Line Spur stands Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s “The Light That Shines Through the Universe,” a twenty-seven-foot-tall figure in the image of the Bamiyan Buddhas, two incredible statues in central Afghanistan that were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001 in an attempt to erase the history of religious and cultural congruence in the region. Nguyen’s piece references the iconic sculptures both in form and name, taking the name for his creation from the translation of the nickname for the buddhas coined by local Afghani communities, “Salsal.” Despite these remarkable similarities, Nguyen’s intention is not replication but reincarnation. The sculpture’s radiant gold hands, hovering just beyond the body of the sculpture, symbolize healing and empathy, a way to move forward despite loss.

Although we will miss Iván Argote’s pigeon sculpture “Dinosaur” which guarded the walkway and Tenth Avenue below for the past year and a half, Nguyen’s piece is a poignant reminder of the power of art and memory, and of the importance of nurturing forgotten narratives whenever possible.

 Photos by Laura Romig

Brooklyn Bonsai Bar

This Wednesday, we headed across the East River for a fun and creative evening at the Bonsai Bar event hosted at Farm.One, a unique local venue known for cultivating some of the world’s best salad greens and specialty herbs! Over the course of the evening, our patient instructors Sophie and Daniel taught us the basics of the ancient Japanese art form of bonsai with our own dwarf jade plants. From root pruning techniques to control the plant’s size to the aesthetic principles that allow the young shrub to develop into a small tree that looks wise beyond its years, we were lucky to receive a hands-on introduction to the craft that seeks to capture the beautiful patterns of nature.

After some seemingly aggressive potting and trimming, we began to shape our plants and each bonsai began to take on its own unique character, ready to grow and evolve over time (fingers crossed). We wrapped up the evening with a photoshoot of our creations and headed home with beautiful new plants to brighten both our homes and office spaces. Here’s hoping our bonsai thrive under slightly less supervision than we required that evening.

A New Banksy in London

In the early morning hours of April twenty-ninth, while most across London were still sleeping, the globally recognizable but publicly anonymous street artist Banksy was hard at work constructing a new statue in Waterloo Place. The sculpture depicts a suited man stepping off a raised platform, brandishing an unmarked flag which ripples across his face as his next footstep finds empty air. We captured photos of this newly raised statue, a departure from Banksy’s usual spray-painted artwork. The nameless man stands among existing memorials for King Edward VII, Florence Nightingale, and other prominent British figures. With straight lines and steady shoulders, he exudes confidence, yet the flag holding his allegiance obscures his view of the imminent danger in his path. Banksy both signed the piece and took to social media to take credit in a short video. When asked about the statue’s future prospects, a representative of London Mayor Sadiq Khan wrote to the New York Times that Banksy’s “work always draws great interest and debate, and the mayor is hopeful that his latest piece can be preserved for Londoners and visitors to enjoy.” A striking if not subtle piece, the statue remains where it was surreptitiously built…for now.