Banner 144
Harlem Shelter 1
Banner 132
I was surprised to see that the exhibit in the City Museum of New York simply had art on the actual wall. I was expecting actual recreations on torn apart walls. If I made those exhibitions it would be actual torn walls replicating the street art on buildings and murals. As for the good fences make good neighbors, this was a different kind of street art that intrigued me to think about the types of people surrounding me. I have seen this art around the city, but I did not know what it was for before. Now, I am aware of its purpose. It was a different kind of street art. I visited one bus shelter and two banners. The bus shelter was named “Harlem Shelter 1”. Before I knew about this exhibit I assumed that these fences were meant to protect children from running away from the bus stop. Now, after the reading the description I have realized that these shelters do exactly what they are described as doing: they constrict. They tighten and restrict the ability of human movement. It reminds me of the wall that Trump claims he wants to build. It has an isolating feeling, it is almost like a prison. The second item was the banner named “Banner 132”. It is a lamppost banner of a refugee girl who was staying in the Berlin Airport. This made me think of how important it is to have sanctuary cities so that people are not dehumanized to living off of less than the bare minimum. It also made me think of how I would feel as that girl, having to move as a refugee and change my whole life in a foreign land. The third and final banner I saw was the “Banner 144”. This was also a picture of refugee, but he was male. This one consisted of the difficulty in crossing a strait that lead to Greece. This reminded me of the drawing I saw in the Brooklyn museum of the refugees on a tiny boat holding on for their lives. Again, it depicts the horror these people go through just to try to find a better life.
My curatorial was based on immigration itself, but I focused more on the positive than the negative. I would make a public art piece that was one big sculpture in each borough. I do not necessarily know what it would be of, but I would not want it to just be appealing. I say this because then people would only take pictures and not understand the message. I would probably make murals of people in chain, and I would make it slightly political. As an aspiring political scientist, politics are a part of my DNA. One issue that has been haunting me is that of Grenfell tower in London. Many people died in a blazing fire, because the lining in the building was very flammable, but the government kept it so that this building would not be an “eyesore” to the richer residents surrounding it. This topic has been in my mind since it happened in the summer. Why have we lost humanity? Why is it that everything simply has to be based on aesthetics. The British government claimed that only 71 lives were lost, but many believe that it was way more. I would want to include those people’s struggle, because even when the refugees come they are treated like a burden. I would want people to visit all 5 of the art pieces, because they would tell a story from the harsh and sad start to a hopefully successful ending. I think it would be metallic structures that move a little, and they would have pieces of art inspired by the wonderful Banksy. Banksy has some wonderful political art, and I would want it to spark a conversation. I would want people to question whether the art itself should be allowed in public spaces, and I would want people to question every aspect of the politics of the art. Also, the art would just target all citizens, not a specific group. The world needs more people to be kind and empathetic rather than harsh and blindly unemotional.
Marie Traore
Marie, I can definitely see that politics are part of your DNA. Your comments on how the fences in Weiwei’s art “constrict,” really struck a chord with me. It reminded me of how i felt when I visited the Circle Fence installation – trapped and a bit sad. It made me think of the many borders, both mental and physical, that immigrants face daily. I think that your idea of a mural depicting people in chains would further represent that point.
I also liked your allusion to the Grenfell Tower fire in London. It’s a great example of how often people fail to realize what the real issues are. In that situation many residents valued aesthetics over the loss of life. It wasn’t that they didn’t care that people died, it’s just that it’s easier to pretend as if they didn’t. It’s hard to accept the realities of society something, so most people try to avoid them.