THE ARTS IN NEW YORK CITY Fall 2017 | Baruch College | Macaulay Honors

Often, as I walk around NYC, it feels as if I am lost in a mass of people. The pace feels hectic and cacophonous. However, sometimes it feels as if this hectic buzz has a sort of rhythm and beat. It is true that the tempo is incredibly quick, yet, there is organization to the multiple sounds and motions. Lewis Mumford writes refers to a city as a “theater of social action and an aesthetic symbol of collective unity”.  Framing the city as a theater of social action allows one to see how each event, structure and being that walks the concrete streets is a participant in a real drama.

On Friday, I headed towards Madison Square Park to observe the “theater of social action”. I have always found parks necessary functions amid the concrete jungle. I feel that in a park, one can really observe people from a far and truly get a sense of what they are doing. It is different than observing pedestrians on the avenues. As I observed, I realized that there is less rush in a park. People come to relax, read, sit with friends, play with their children or to merely observe. The park was a social commonplace for unwinding.

As I looked around the park, I was found it interesting that this environment seemed like an outdoor social venue. This was because I observed people doing specific actions that seemed community like. There were eating lunch together outside on the picnic tables. There were couples sitting on benches and laughing together. One of my favorite scenes I observed was a group of young adults gardening. I asked them what they were planting, they told me daffodils. I found this beautiful because it showed me how people feel a sense of responsibility and commitment to their environment. Interestingly, their environment is everyone’s environment. This was not only their backyard, this was everyone in NYC’s backyard. There is not only one participant in the “social theater”, rather, there is a whole cast.

I better understood how shared space creates a common bond. Because all those who reside in this shared space are preforming on the same stage, they are knowingly or unknowingly connected. This connection is what allows me to tap into that hectic melody as I walk down the streets of NYC. I loved the “social theater”  definition that Mumford offered in his article. This helped define the show that observe or act in each day in NYC.

• Tourist couple kissing
• Tourists with kids taking pictures
• Shake Shack line
• Business men and women scurrying with briefcase
• Man smoking a cigarette
• Homeless man wrapped in blanket on bench
• Woman feeding squirrel

These are a few broad and reoccurring images in this park. I have both sat in it and scurried past it. In the mornings, I need to pass through the park to get to school. I notice some things out of the corner of my eye, but most times I just focus on trying to get to class right on time. The difference between running through and sitting down in the park, is that you separate yourself from the city when you sit and observe. It is so intriguing to see tourists shine with delight as they look up at buildings, speaking hastily in their own languages and reaching up for cameras. The city is something I am used to, so their excitement is not something I relate to as I hardly pay attention to the landscape and scrunch my nose at putrid smells. However, when I took the time to look up, I realized how breathtaking this view really could be. There are diverse people and diverse structures. This captures Mumford’s “aesthetic symbol of collective unity” aspect. The buildings reach up, seemingly touching the sky. One particularly interesting building is the Flatiron Building. A beautiful structure that seems to be so symmetrical and never ending. It is staple to New York, but I would understand the excitement of seeing it for a first time. This carries the “geographic plexus” aspect. I instantly wonder how or why these people chose to come here. It is definitely past the prime of tourist season. There is the contrast of the tourists, however, with the bustling natives. As one man passes angrily on his phone frowning at the people in his way. That would totally have been a reaction I would have.  There are also people dashing out of the “R” and “W” train station, speed-walking to their destination. Then, there are the people lining up out Shake Shack. I have always avoided the one in the park. It Symbols the “an economic organization”, because Shake Shack started there and has generated so much revenue. Also, the countless number of stores and close proximity to fifth avenue shows the lavish and rich taste of the city and its money. The business people running around also encompass that since New York is seen as an economic capital as well. As a significant collective drama, this is achieved through the constant activity. There is restlessness and action everywhere. These simple scenes in the park could be made into a movie on its own. Also, the social action intertwines with this thought since there are so many people and various amounts of interactions that shape this park and this city.

Marie Traore

In his excerpt “What is a City? ” Mumford introduces the notion that a city is a combination, or rather, a relationship between two components: the physical design and economic infrastructure, and the natural values of spirituality and “human community.” Mumford mentions that human community and natural interaction not only trump the second factor but are the fundamental characteristics of humanism that allow populous places like cities and metropolitan areas to become the economically thriving areas that they are known to be in the developed world.

Honestly speaking, I went into Madison Square park unsure of what I was looking for. After reading Mumford’s passage, I had a general idea of the theoretical relationship he was describing, but these ideas did not translate into tangible characteristics that I would think to look for. The phrase “The city fosters art, and is art itself” was one that I found interesting, and facilitated my understanding of the reading. As I walked through the park, I took note of the way people tended to walk around the park in groups, most likely with family or friends, as if being around nature, in a place with very little, encouraged people to spend time with those closest to them. With this in mind, I was inspired to look for other patterns or characteristics of the people in Madison Square Park.

Things that I noticed included the following:

• 4 or 5 dog owners waiting for their pets to stop nibbling at the grass
• Husband and wife discussing weekend plans while watching their son feed the birds
• Tourists looking at a map, most likely trying to reach a destination
• Many people looking at their phones, some eating Shake Shack fries
• People talking in at least 3 different languages I didn’t understand

Mumford’s comparison of cities to “theaters of social action” began to make sense to me as I looked, as extensively as I could, around the park and at as many people as possible. With the fact that many people were doing the same thing, eating, socializing, spending time with family, walking their pets, came the fact that people were doing their own thing. The park was a microcosm of the city in the sense that though there were countless people gathered in the same place, they were all busy with some commonplace activity, akin to the daily activities of most New Yorkers which typically include eating out, going to work or school, spending time with family, and the list goes on.

Once again, I had no idea what Mumford meant when he used the phrase “collective drama” to describe the city. On the train ride home, I pondered on the notion of how I could find a specific meaning in such abstract yet relatable terminology. I thought of “collective drama” as something that is inherent in the notion of a city being a “theater of social action.” With everybody in the park engaging in whatever task they were engaging in, some form of conflict, or drama was always present. The dog walkers pull on their leashes to get a dog to move after it has been smelling the dirt for over five minutes, the couple calls to their son after he gets too far trying to feed the birds, tourists begin to argue over where they want to go, people have verbal conflicts with their bosses, significant others, and someone is always pissed that someone near them is speaking a foreign language. With everybody engaged in their own activity, everyone is prone to some kind of conflict, which is what constitutes a “collective drama.”

Ronald Osherov

I often pass Madison Square Park on my way to school every day; however, I am usually running as to not get to my class late. So visiting the park for the sole sake of observing nature, human nature in this instance, even though the landscaping is beautiful, was certainly something unique. I recorded some of the things that I noticed:

• People seem to be convening at the statue to take pictures of it and the Flat Iron Building across the street.
• The tables around Shake Shack are packed with people with a fairly high turnover rate.
• People seem to be sitting on the benches a little bit longer than at the tables.
• The population gracing the park is so diverse, and everyone remains courteous and friendly.
• Some people are sitting alone, either reading or playing with pets.
• People are mostly focused on themselves, rarely turning to the person next them to strike up a conversation.

With Mumford’s words in mind, I mulled over these findings trying to understand what makes the experience of a park in the middle of New York City a prime location essentially for a “theater of social action.” I came to the conclusion that the park really was a theatre, but with several stages displaying the behavior of the people of the city. In certain places, like the benches, the social action of relaxing among peers and stopping to enjoy the scenery was prevalent, while in other places, like near the trees, a sort of lack of social action was displayed in a single person sitting under a tree and reading. For some, interaction was with family, for others, with friends, and for some, it only involved a quick glance or a second of eye contact with a passerby. The diversity of the park depicts so many different scenarios we tend to encounter on a daily basis as we face the world. There are people enjoying company, enjoying solitude, interacting with people, and interacting with nature. I believe, that in this sense, the park stands as some sort of microcosm that represents the city as a whole. It provides a place for people to get away, even if for a second, from the rush of city-life and interact with people, or even with themselves, in a way that differs from a typical New York mindset. This experience definitely opened my eyes in appreciation for the opportunities that parks or little green spaces provide as a relief, either through nature or the camaraderie surrounding a local eatery. Observing, I understood this small pocket of Manhattan facilitated something so much larger than I could ever imagine: connections with a place, people, and even an inner self.

Madison Square Park has always been one of my favorite places in New York City toeat, socialize, and relax on a nice summer day before I moved to the city. Now that MadisonSquare Park is right next to Baruch, I am able to enjoy it on a daily basis, with the help of some Shake Shack. I believe that Madison Square Park is one of the best places to capture the social community of New York City and how well it represents the congregation of people throughout.

Today I visited Madison Square Park with Lewis Mumford’s theory in mind, the theory that the city is a symbol of collective unity and is subsequently theatrical and artistic in its own ways. As I stepped into the park, I noticed how many people were sitting, eating, and chatting with each other, although it was a rather cold and rainy day. I wondered who these people were, and why they would want to sit outside on such a cold day. I wondered who they were talking to, and what they were talking about. Just being able to watch these people go about their lives was, in away, a “collective drama” of its own. There is always something going on in Madison Square Park, whether its people talking, walking, reading, or just about anything else you can do outside in New York City. To me, this represents a “collective drama” because there is always something taking place.

I then began to observe a child trying to feed the birds, as he proceeded to be attacked by a few of them. I found this to be an excellent representation of the city as a “theater of social action.” I noticed how his father was shouting at him to stop, while he disobeyed. It was a comedy, something I would want to watch on television. In New York City, there are so many people interacting with each other, that you have no idea what the result will be. I found it so funny that the boy’s father was warning him to stop feeding the birds, until the boy was bombarded by over 10 birds at a time. New York City really is a “theater of social action” and a “significant collective drama” that anyone is able to observe and appreciate as they are passing by.

Notes

• All in their own world
• Only connection is through some eye contact
• Tourist family taking a selfie
• Shake shack line
• Groups of people eating and enjoying lunch
• People on their own agenda/life
• Some people alone on their phones (all of them)
• Passerby’s
• Busy people except food that makes them slow down and take time
• Birthday party
• Changing leaves and frigid weather
• Little interaction with people around them/little appreciation for setting

Interaction and connection may seem to go hand in hand; however, one does not always need social interaction in order to form a connection to another person or their surroundings. As I observed the numerous of people walking, running, and sitting throughout Madison Square Park, I soon realized how connections can be formed in an infinite amount of ways. As Lew Mumford described in his piece “What is a City?”, a city is “a theater of social action, and an aesthetic symbol of collective unity.” This park demonstrates how the city is truly a “theater of social action.” The park is the center for such “social action” since it is a habitat for human connection to both the people around them and their natural surroundings.

Further observing the people in Madison Square Park, I soon realized how it also represented a “collective drama.” Again, you have the people and setting as the overall factors that make up a drama, but it goes further than just the logistics. Dramas involve interactions among the characters, whether that be directly or indirectly. I soon realized how little people actually interact with one another. They may interact by the occasional eye contact or a brief “excuse me,” but there are slim to no instances where individuals truly attempt to connect with another and their surroundings. They all seemed to be so absorbed in their own lives and objectives for the day. The only obvious instances of social interaction were in the seating area of Shake Shack. Co-workers, friends, family, and individuals either connected to their peers or to their electronics while enjoying their break/lunchtime. Although they may have not interacted with those outside of their “group” they all connected through the act of taking the time to relax and take their “break.” Madison Square Park represents this center of connection outside of social interaction. By being able to experience our own lives and our own tasks for the day, we all are joined together in one central city within all of our differences.

A city, in this sense, is more than just a collection of people and buildings. A city is the center for bringing people of all different backgrounds, lives, and tasks in one central place. Although we may not physically interact, we all share this connection of being in one central area sharing and embracing our differences.

Claire Ng

I visit Madison Square Garden very often on my break. I usually sit down in the center with the chairs, connect to the free wifi, and work on whichever assignment is due that week. For this assignment I decided to sit in the same spot and observe what everyone else was doing during this time. There are so many people doing different things that it was a little overwhelming to watch. I was a student from a nearby school doing homework, there were people taking a break from work in their suits, people taking their children on walks, people walking dogs, tourists taking in the beauty of the area. Everyone was on a different mission.

When I started observing people I did what I usually do when I’m at the park and put on headphones to listen to classical music so I can concentrate on my work. As I began watching people go about their days, what I was seeing was a little more surreal because I had the music playing in my head. I didn’t hear extra outside noise or people talking. I had no idea what people were discussing or what their relationship towards each other was. This definitely reminded me of the silent films we watched. The music in my head set a certain tone to the whole process and completely changed how I was seeing different interactions. Once I took my headphones off and got to listen in on whatever people around me were saying, the theme kinda changed. I could now understand why one couple was upset or why the woman beside me was excited to be talking on the phone. From where I was sitting, everyone just seemed like actors playing out their roles in their life.

What I saw:

I noticed how popular dogs are at this park. I kept seeing adorable dogs being walked by their owner. So many people were stopping to pet them. A lot of the dogs were very friendly and were excited to have so many people wanting to play with them.

I also saw a man nearby with buckets of soap water. He has these big sticks with strings attached to them. He would dip the sticks in the soap water, and then hold them up and the strings would create giant bubbles that the wind would push out. All the kids in the park were going crazy for them and all wanted to try blowing the bubbles. The man was more than happy to let the kids try. He never asked for any money and was doing it just out of the happiness that it brought everyone.

I saw a lot of people having lunch with their coworkers and having very dry conversations about office life. Some people were meeting up with their friends for lunch and those people seemed happier on their breaks. A lot of people were also taking the time to have conversations with their family on the phone. I overheard one woman talking to her mom on the phone about dating life in NYC. It was nice to see people taking time out of their busy schedules to call back home and connect with their parents. I think a lot of people often forget to do that.

Notes that were taken at Madison Square Park:

-See a person throwing money into the pond

-A group of people is circling the mini pond in order to go around

-family eating around a table at shake shack

-Men with suits are smoking next to a tree

-Man and woman are walking and holding hands

-Man begging for money with a homeless sign

-Many people are rushing somewhere and speedwalking 

Walking, or shall I say running to school every day through Madison Square Park is a daily routine for me. Due to this familiarity, I have been sucked into not paying attention to my surroundings and the places which I am walking through on a daily basis. Yet, in class, when we’re discussing what a city and everyone was throwing in terms to try to define a city I was a little skeptical of the definition. So when I looked at Lewis Mumford’s definition I was still a little confused until I got up and went to Madison Square Park. I couldn’t see what a city was because it was too vast to define, but using this method of a microcosm of certain areas encompassing the idea of a city worked wonders for me. The idea of Madison square park being a theatre is very true. As long as the characteristic of a drama within that theatre. A person sees so many SCENES in the park going on at once that it’s kind of a small play and it’s all being DIRECTED by the geographic nexus of the park and the people passing by are the characters. For example, I saw people circling the mini pond because they had no choice if they wanted to get the other side. Furthermore, I see a man and woman holding hands-love, men with suits are smoking-friends/business, and people are speed walking because they need to get somewhere. These are all characteristics of a complex play occurring in a somewhat random motion. Lastly, he says it’s an economic organization which is shown in shake shack and the homeless man. This provides a small scale money circulation to occur, thereby, showing its self-sufficiency in a way. When leaving the park, I noticed that the whole park is encircled into some domain and as soon as you leave that you in the vast city which reminded me if when I suggested in class that a city needs some type of city to be defined as so. The awareness which was present during and after my trip to how everything in NYC is especially complex is something I am looking forward to seeing more of in the next weeks.

By: Alon Bezalel

To think of people as a participating in a social drama is a perplexing thought. One definition of drama is a scripted performance of some sort, so to think that everyday life could be categorized as such is a challenging concept, since, of course, it’s not scripted. Another definition of drama is “an exciting, emotional, or unexpected series of events or set of circumstances” (Google), which also poses a challenge to the thought of everyday life as a collective social drama, because like I said, it’s everyday life, there aren’t usually much unexpected events that happen on a regular basis, nor are there exceptional or emotional circumstances on a regular basis, by definition. From both these angles, seeing a city as a “theater of social action” seems ridiculous. By definition, it’s just not.

In order to truly answer this question, we need to take a step back. We need to look cities, and the social environments within, as if we were seeing them for the first time. Basically, as if we were aliens from another planet. From this perspective, it’s almost easy to see the city as a theater. Every action of every person comes into question. Why is that person conversing with that other person? Why are those kids playing on a climbing structure crafted of metal and other materials? Why are people bringing their dogs to play together? Everything we normally see starts to pop out when we ask why someone is doing something. Our individual and collective psychologies become objects of curiosity, and this analyzation make us akin to being a social drama.

In my pictures below, I tried to capture certain common occurrences that can be seen as examples of a “theater of social action”. There’s one picture of nannies sitting together on a bench, talking to each other as they care for their kids. There are also a few people walking in the background of that picture. Another example, is the picture of people sitting together at tables, conversing as they eat or just relax. The last example is a picture of a musical ensemble that regularly convenes at Madison Square Park, as well as a diverse group of people in motion around them. I think these pictures express the richness of human life, especially as seen in a city. The fact that we choose to spend our free time (e.g. eating lunch) as well as our work time (e.g. babysitting kids) conversing and connecting with other people is a fascinating and special thing about us, and a city more than anywhere else is the place where this can take place. Yes, a city is a collection of people and buildings, but parks like this one, prove that it’s more than that. Cities are centers of social interconnectivity, places that allow us to take part in the things that make us human.

Notes taken when observing in Madison Square Park

• A group of nannies/babysitters sitting on a bench socializing while the babies are sleeping in the carriages
• 2 men in a suit talking on a bench
• A few people walking their dog
• A construction worker taking a lunch break
• A bunch of children playing on the playground while moms/babysitters worry from the ground
• A few older people reading a book/newspaper
• Tractor constructing something
• A group of people eating at shake shack
• A homeless man sleeping

Lewis Mumford could not have defined a city any better. In his elaborate answer to the question “What is a City?” Lewis says that a city is a “theater of social action” and a space of “significant collective drama”. Originally when interpreting Mumford’s definition, I did not fully comprehend his personal definition. It was not until today, after visiting Madison Square Park and observing the people and atmosphere that I thought Mumford was a lyrical genius. Madison Square park is a microcosm of a city, especially its respected city, New York City. When walking from E 25^th street into the park it felt like was leaving a large city to enter a miniature city within the large city. Madison Square Park encapsulated in miniature the exact characteristic qualities and features of a city physical and metaphorically. Physically, Madison Square Park is an island amidst the busy streets of New Yuck City consisting of many people, grass, a playground, fountains, statues etc. Metaphorically, the park consists of a range of people in age, cultures, professions etc. who all work independently of each other or with each other to create a “theater of social action”. Whether two Wall Street men in suits discussing stocks or two international babysitters watching kids, elderly people reading books or kids sliding down slides, the park, like a city, is a space of “significant collective drama”. Additionally, the Madison Square Park, like most cities, is a paradox. It is a relaxing and serene place with fountains and lots of grass where many people read, a homeless man sleeps and a construction worker escapes for a lunch break, while also being a noisy construction site, a place where 3 year olds scream and a place to walk one’s dog. Just like a city, Madison Square Park with all of its features and characteristics is a place for everyone. It is not the physical structure of a park that makes it a city, rather it’s the people and the “significant collective drama” and “social action” they bring. Furthermore, for me the park is a place I like to have a football catch with friends, while for you it can be the place you like to have a picnic, thus what makes a city is everyone contributing to a specific place.

Andrew Langer

Intersection Street Signs

Park Sign