By Gus Saltonstall
In recent days, Upper West Siders might have noticed new colorful sculptures dotting the neighborhood.
On Friday, the Broadway Mall Association, in partnership with the New York City Parks Department, launched a new outdoor exhibition that includes five large-scale sculptures within the central traffic malls along Broadway from West 64th to 117th streets.
You can find the new sculptures at the following locations:
- 64th Street and Broadway within Dante Park
- 72nd Street and Broadway
- 79th Street and Broadway
- 103rd Street and Broadway
- 117th Street and Broadway
The exhibition, dubbed “Broadway Hubbub,” was created by sculptor Carl D’Alvia.
“Being able to show these works on Broadway affords me the unique opportunity to allow these sculptures to wander into the urban fabric and whimsically challenge and interact with the public,” D’Alvia said in a news release.
The works range from five to 12 feet tall and were created out of aluminum and auto paint.
The sculptures are part of the Broadway Mall Association’s “Art on the Malls” program, which was launched in 2005 and has featured more than 20 internationally recognized artists on the malls in the years since. The organization oversees the 83 central traffic malls along Broadway from 70th to 168th streets.
The sculptures will remain up through November.
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The one on 72nd st. has already been defecated on. Welcome to the post-Covid Upper West Side.
Birds have been pooping on statues since there were statues.
Oh heavens, could this be a symptom of Bird Flu?!
Lol.
In my defense, I really had to go.
They’re coated with auto paint so hopefully that’ll buff right out 🙂
Really Covid?
Amazing what is considered art these days…
It seems to me that D’Alvia’s art (I’m in the “it is art” camp) has to be thought of from the perspective of two very different viewers: pedestrians, who can look at leisure, and those in passing vehicles, who may glimpse it rapidly as they drive by. His pieces may work better for one group than for the other. I’ll also invoke this distinction drawn by Tom Stoppard: skill without imagination is craftsmanship; imagination without skill gives us modern art. So, is D’Alvia’s work craft or art?
Amazing what’s considered an original comment these days.
I take it your one of the “artists” – LOL
You’re
Right? But I can’t edit so I will suffer the humiliation 😉
Charmless.
You think this is charmless? Try walking into a CVS.
It gets much, much worse. These are fine.
By charmless, do you mean whimsical?
I LOVE the idea of public art to add interest to the area. I wish they would have both exterior and interior rotating displays year round.
Bold colors bold shapes—kinda interesting—I appreciate the color and shape and at least there’s no annoying political statement
They’re very political, if you see them through those glasses.