April 4: There's A Whole World Out There
📸For Your 👀 Only: There's A Whole Wide World Out There Awol Erizku, Pharaoh Whispers, 2020 The Public Art Fund was founded in 1977, and since then has brought over 500 artists working in different mediums to urban public spaces. In the age of COVID, when we turned to the outdoors for much of our entertainment, we spoke with PAF curator Daniel S. Palmer about a new exhibition featuring the art of Ethiopian American artist Awol Erizku, who grew up in the South Bronx in New York City. Their new exhibition, Awol Erizku: New Visions for Iris, is on view in New York and Chicago, on 350 bus shelters between the two cities. This is Erizku's first solo public exhibition.
Can you describe this project? Inspired by the recent birth of his daughter Iris, Awol created these works over the past year. For his first solo public art exhibition, Awol has brought together a personal selection of images ranging from bright still lifes and meditative portraits to majestic depictions of birds to create a new visual language for him to discuss topics around identity and our challenging times with his daughter. New Visions for Iris is a new body of 13 photographs by the artist that is installed on 350 bus shelters across New York City's five boroughs and throughout Chicago.
How and why did you choose to work with Awol Erizku? Awol is an artist I've admired immensely for many years now. He was one of the first artists I reached out to when I joined the Public Art Fund as a curator in 2016. We had an opportunity to include him in a group exhibition in 2017 (Commercial Break), but I always hoped to showcase his work in greater depth and on a larger platform. I have always been struck by the colorful vibrancy and striking contemporaneity of his photographic images, and the thoughtfulness of his approach to artmaking more generally. We've had such a meaningful collaboration working together on this project. Awol Erizku, Arrival, 2020. Photo: Nicholas Knight, Courtesy of Public Art Fund, NY. Can you describe a moment when you saw someone interacting with a work of public art that made an impression on you? I've seen so many people sharing Awol's striking images from New Visions for Iris on social media. That really has shown me that the work resonates with audiences throughout both cities. The images are so bold, meaningful, and accessible. The bus shelter is right there at street level, the large scale works stop people in their tracks, and the highest compliment these days is to take a second to reflect on it, snap a picture, and invite others to see it too.
How does your work for the Public Art Fund differ from similar work in a museum or in a gallery? Public Art Fund is "a museum without walls," to quote a phrase. We work with the world's leading contemporary artists to realize their dream projects and share them with the broadest audience of any institution I know. We also stage exhibitions that aren't bound by the traditional restrictions of an interior space, and have a reach that goes beyond New York City to a range of cities, like Chicago, Houston, and Washington, DC. With Awol's exhibition, we can share a group of artworks in settings that expand their meaning and audience beyond what is typically expected. I see it as very important work to share brilliant artworks with the world without traditional boundaries or hurdles. Awol Erizku, Deep Shadow (Michael Brown Sr.), 2020. Has the pandemic had any influence, as far as you can see, on how the public views public art? As of late, I think that people have increasingly realized how important our public spaces are to find respite. Public art allows them to seek out or happen upon inspiring moments that typically would come from an indoor space, like a museum or gallery. Looking back at the last year, the Public Art Fund has been able to bring responsive exhibitions by a range of important artists to local neighborhoods across all five boroughs that people could encounter in their daily routines (walks in the park, commuting on buses, etc.). Both resonant and personal, public art has played an essential role in providing some semblance of normalcy and vibrant moments of beauty when we've needed it most.
What would you like to see more of in public art? I hope that more cities realize how vital high-caliber public art is to thriving democratic urban space, and that they expand their offerings. New York City has such a great range of permanent and temporary public art — it's an open-air museum of the highest stature. The artists who have created these works and the audiences that come to experience them are from all around the globe, and the city is made richer by showcasing diverse voices. I credit public artworks with the introduction of art's beauty and meaning to so many future artists, critical thinkers, and engaged citizens. Awol Erizku, Zuhr, 2020. Photo: Nicholas Knight, Courtesy of Public Art Fund, NY. 📸THE WEEK'S PHOTO STORIES FROM BUZZFEED NEWS 📸 As always, here are some of the best photo stories from around the internet, and what we loved from our desk. BEAUTIFUL PORTRAITS SHOW HOW ADOPTION INFLUENCES ASIAN AMERICAN IDENTITY Diana Albrecht "SORRY FOR THE WAR" IS AN HONEST AND BRUTAL PORTRAYAL OF AMERICA Peter van Agtmael OTHER THINGS WORTH CHECKING OUT
You can find updates, statistics, and places to donate in this list of resources for Anti-Asian Violence.
Ben Hasty / Getty Images Happy Easter to those celebrating this year 🐰
"We are making photographs to understand what our lives mean to us." — Ralph Hattersley That's it for this week! Kate + Pia
📝 This letter was edited and brought to you by the News Photo team. Kate Bubacz is the photo director based in New York and loves dogs. Pia Peterson is a photo editor based in Brooklyn. You can always reach us here.
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