Category: Blog Posts (Page 6 of 6)

Paving the Way to a Subway

This is collage and poetry combined. The images of the murals at the 36th Street train station in Brooklyn, Sunset Park, were taken with my phone camera, and I used Paint 3D to create the collage and type my poem. Growing up in Sunset Park all my life, I have seen these murals for as long as I can remember, and observing them made me understand and appreciate the history behind the tiles and tracks that lined the subway. I felt it was finally time to honor the artwork itself, which captured my wondering gaze since a very young age.

I made a piece showing a scene from the park. I used color in certain areas to emphasize the themes of permanence and preserving history we saw in the public artworks we saw. I’ d love to hear how you guys interpret it before sharing my intentions. PS. Take a close look at what the people have in common 🙂

Somewhere between then and Now

I learned to love the city

The city that knows no borders

One neighborhood bleeds into the next

Somewhere between then and Now

Stand judges and scholars

Justinian, Manu and Louis IX

Now, she knows no borders

Somewhere between then and Now

I came back home

Where stands my own statue:

A polar bear

Somewhere between then and Now

The bear was painted brown

Either a tribute to “Kavkazskaya Plennitsa”

or “Masha y Medved”

I decided to make a collage and a poem to go along with it. The collage includes photos from our walk and a statue I found in a local park of the home where I grew up. The neighborhood is filled with Russian-speaking immigrants and I found out that the bear statue placed in the park was build as a tribute to the community. It was originally a polar bear but has since been painted into a brown bear, probably because of how often it would have to be repainted with its white coat. I connected the bear statue to the Now statue that we saw, and my poem demonstrates how culture is interwoven in our communities as well.

Recognizing how easily we overlook the beauty around us amidst life’s hectic pace and the constant distraction of technology, I embarked on my daily journey home with a renewed perspective and a fresh pair of eyes to fully embrace the art I encounter daily. Here’s a little collage showcasing the captivating pieces I found along the way:

In this poem, I write about the things that we had seen during our walk to and from the park. I discuss the monuments we saw atop the building, in the park. I also go to discuss the buildings that we had seen and talked about during the trip. I also talk about the beauty of the crochet artwork that was displayed in the park, among the trees and lamps.

Arts around you 

Some old and some new 

You see a lot of green, who can argue. 

Fountains and statues too 

You see a lot of monuments. 

From the past and history 

Written down in documents. 

It was all a mystery. 

Displayed so prettily. 

Buildings so tall and old 

With sophisticated designs 

We call that gold. 

Buildings with lines, the signs, that defines. 

All these rhymes 

The strings attached to the trees. 

Being blown by the slight windy breeze 

Created by such an expertise. 

That guarantees to please. 

Arts around you 

They make quite the view. 

Question what you really knew. 

Worth to pursue. 

All around you 

In my poem, I talk about the natural beauty of Madison Square Park especially as a place full of nature despite being surrounded by a man-made environment. I focus on the inclusivity and immersion of the park that keeps people wanting to come back.

Had I the experience of Madison Square Park,

Enriched by Sheila Pepe’s crochet,

Surrounding the natural beauty of the park’s extant features on full display,

The fountain’s beauty would remain immune to the dark

As I long to revisit Madison Square Park.

So the next day comes as I arise and go now,

Arriving at East Twenty-Sixth Street’s pathway into the park,

I make my way through the side of Twenty-Sixth Street leaving behind the crowd

Although the street is bustling with noise,

I enter the gates of the park teeming with joy.

Yarn suspended in the New York air,

withstanding weather considered “too harsh” to bare

We cower under umbrellas, cursing mother nature’s hand

despite her powers to maintain our land

The yarn my mother once taught me to weave

persists in the rain while we jump up and leave

The maternal traditions we continue to preserve

the patronization that this “woman’s craft” does not deserve

We define strength in a very certain way

yet this credit is denied to woman each and every day

A mother’s love, A woman’s hobby

swings in the air even when it’s foggy

To keep the craft inside is simply a waste

as a woman’s potential could easily dominate the entire space

Having lived in Staten Island my whole life, living in Manhattan has definitely been an adjustment for me. Everything seems different and unknown, but that doesn’t take away from the beauty of the city. Using pictures I’ve taken on my walks from the last couple days, I created a collage of people, places, and nature I’ve found interesting or appealing.

This is my collage based around my journeys with my friends before we split to different states for college. I wanted to take a photo every time I was with them so that I could have that memory of what we did and so we could remember it when we’re older. When we took photos, we wanted to try to have a downtown girl vibe or be a little Italy girl on an adventure.

In this collage, where visions collide

Shapes a tapestry where worlds coincide

Towering heights to urban lights

New York City is a wonderful delight