When I returned to the High Line for a second time, I came upon this sculpture that I hadn’t spotted the first time around. Before reading the plaque, I immediately noted its similarity to a human hand. I took a picture because this grabbed my attention; what was it about the High Line- or even that spot at the High Line- that had anything to do with human anatomy? I soon recognized that the sculpture was located towards the beginning (or end) of the public park, adjacent to 14th St and 10th Ave. A hand is an extremity of the human body, located at the very ends of our arms, so this sculpture’s placement actually seemed fitting. Unlike a human hand, however, the sculpture’s “fingers” are unusually linear. I noticed they’re near-perfectly straight lines. This reminded me of the linear wooden boards that make up The High Line’s walkway. The walking path is not made of concrete, nor is it made of one giant wooden plank. Instead, the walkway consists of multiple linear boards, with space in between them, just like the fingers on a hand. I felt the straight lines also resembled the train tracks on which the High Line was founded.
When I first walked by this piece, I almost didn’t realize it was a part of the park and that it was meant to be art. I thought it might’ve been part of some construction work (the fingers resembled construction tubes or beams). Also, the color of the hand is white, giving it a natural presence to the viewer. It’s a soothing, calming color that actually resembles the color of clouds or parts of nature. This is another reason I wasn’t sure the sculpture was meant to be art.
But this wasn’t enough for me. I still had to know what it was about a hand that made this sculpture an important part of The High Line? Then I recalled something Professor Gillespie mentioned in class: “…you don’t see art, you experience it.” If one is supposed to “experience” art, one needs to utilize one or more of his five senses. A hand is used for touching or feeling, one of humans’ five senses. I came to the conclusion that this sculpture bolsters the theme of the High Line as a whole. Don’t just view The High Line. Feel the High Line, observe it closely, and even give it a sniff or two if you have to. Juana Manna’s sculpture Amulet is a constant reminder to experience all the art that is The High Line.
