Release Date: Mar 05, 2012

Photo Credit: Josh Nefsky

Photo Credit: James Ewing

New York (March 6, 2012) –The Times Square Alliance, as part of its ongoing commitment to bring the best of contemporary art to the Crossroads of the World, announced today that two new public art installations have come to the Times Square district -- Manhattan Oil Project by Germany native Josephine Meckseper and Soñando New York (Dreaming New York) by Uruguayan sculptor Pablo Atchugarry.

Manhattan Oil Project, presented by the Art Production Fund, is comprised of two new monumental kinetic, steel sculptures, each standing 25 feet tall. These full-scale sculptures are inspired by mid-20th century oil pumps that the artist discovered in Electra, a boarded-up town once famous for being the pump jack capital of Texas. Each sculpture is fully motorized to simulate the motions of a working oil pump two times a day in four-hour shifts. Placed in a vacant lot, the black and red steel structures slowly creak in the ceaseless oscillations of phantom oil excavation.  The installation will be on display from now through May 6, 2012 at The Last Lot project space located on 46th Street and 8th Avenue. 

“I hope to draw parallels between the American industrial system, transitioning from a past of heavy industry, factories, and teamsters and the disembodied present of electronic mass-media, surface advertising, and consumerism - so clearly embodied in Times Square,” said artist Josephine Meckseper. “The critical placement of the pumps is a conceptual gesture that raises questions about business and capital; land use and resources; wealth and decay; decadence and dependence.”

The second sculpture, Soñando New York (Dreaming New York) is presented by the Hollis Taggart Galleries in partnership with the Armory Show. The approximately 6-foot tall, pleated sculpture is hand-carved from a single block of Carrara marble.  The artist, Uruguayan sculptor Pablo Atchugarry, is a direct carver, meaning he works directly on the material, without sketches. The sculpture will be on display in Duffy Square from now to Monday, March 12.   This year’s Armory Show runs from March 8-11, with special previews on March 6-7.

“I want Dreaming New York to be a tribute to this marvelous city, where one can feel the spirit of freedom,” said artist Pablo Atchugarry.  “The sculpture's vertical tension, realized through the Carrara marble, symbolizes the soaring heights of the city, its vital energy, and the ideals and dreams of those who inhabit it.”

“Both of these sculptures showcase Times Square’s commitment to the promotion of the Armory Show and contemporary international artists ,” said Tim Tompkins, President of the Times Square Alliance. “Soñando New York’s smooth folds of marble provide a moment of reflection while the pump jacks in an empty lot comment on the center of New York City as a center of commercial culture.”

For more information and to view the sculptures online, visit www.TimesSquareNYC.org/arts.

The Last Lot is a generous short-term donation to Art Production Fund from The Shubert Organization, and is part of the Times Square Alliance’s public art program that works to bring cutting-edge art to Times Square.

Times Square Arts presents temporary cutting-edge art and performances in multiple forms and media to the 350,000 daily visitors to New York City’s Times Square, making it one of the highest profile public arts programs in the United States. Since its inception, Times Square Arts has featured works by a diverse group of more than four dozen prominent and emerging artists.

Times Square Alliance
The Times Square Alliance, founded in 1992, works to improve and promote Times Square - cultivating the creativity, energy and edge that have made the area an icon of entertainment, culture and urban life for over a century. In addition to providing core neighborhood services with its Public Safety Officers and Sanitation Associates, the Alliance promotes local businesses; encourages economic development and public improvements; co-coordinates numerous major events in Times Square (including the annual New Year's Eve and Broadway on Broadway celebrations); manages the Times Square Visitor Center; and advocates on behalf of its constituents with respect to a host of public policy, planning and quality-of-life issues. www.TimesSquareNYC.org

Art Production Fund
Art Production Fund (APF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to producing ambitious public art projects, reaching new audiences and expanding awareness through contemporary art. Recent projects include: SHOW, Vanessa Beecroft, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, 1998;  PLAN B, Rudolf Stingel summer 2004, Grand Central's Vanderbilt Hall and The Walker Art Center; Prada Marfa, Elmgreen & Dragset, Valentine, TX, 2005, permanent; Greeting Card, Aaron Young, Park Avenue Armory, 2007; Electric Fountain, Noble & Webster, Rockefeller Plaza, 2008. The Ghosts, Sue de Beer, Park Avenue Armory, New York City, 2011; After Hours: Murals on The Bowery, New York City, 2011. David Brooks, Desert Rooftops, NYC, 2011. Co-Founders: Yvonne Force Villareal and Doreen Remen; Director: Casey Fremont Crowe.

Hollis Taggart Galleries
Hollis Taggart Galleries has worked with the finest American painting and sculpture for 30 years. The gallery’s mission is to present the work of talented contemporary artists and to pursue its long-standing program of showing important historical twentieth-century art. Committed to exploring and articulating the critical currents in modern and contemporary art, the gallery has organized acclaimed exhibitions, collaborating with dozens of museums and other lending institutions. Hollis Taggart Galleries is pleased to participate again at The Armory Show, where it will feature work by Pablo Atchugarry.

Armory Show
The Armory Show, a leading international contemporary and modern art fair and one of the most important annual art events in New York, takes place every March on Piers 92 & 94 in Manhattan. Now celebrating its fourteenth year, the Armory Show is re-establishing itself as the most adventurous and dynamic contemporary art fair in New York City. The 2012 edition will feature an international roster of exciting, leading galleries, the acclaimed Armory Show VIP program, a lively opening night party at MoMA, the eclectic and engaging Open Forum program with major art- world figures, Armory Film, a series featuring an international selection of leading contemporary video and experimental films curated by Moving Image, and Armory Arts Week in partnership with New York's top cultural institutions. This year's Armory Show will feature the work of the 2012 Commissioned Artist Theaster Gates and the vibrant art of the Nordic Countries in Armory Focus. The Armory Show has engaged award-winning, New York-based architectural firm Bade Stageberg Cox to redesign The Armory Show, creating a more comfortable, luxurious experience, including a new "farm-to-table" restaurant and cafe by Great Performances.

 

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