Park update: From 7am – 3:30pm on Monday, March 18 and Tuesday, March 19, the High Line will be partially closed between 23rd and 30th Streets due to construction. Visitors can enter and exit at the 23rd Street stair/elevator and the 30th/10th Street stair. The entrances from Hudson Yards, the Connector, and the Spur remain open.
High Line Art will premiere several new projects this spring as part of its ever-changing public art program, including the outdoor group exhibition Archeo, a new billboard by Faith Ringgold, and a large-scale mural by legendary artist Ed Ruscha.
Archeo opens April 17 and will be on view through March 2015. Centered on technology and obsolescence, Archeo brings together the work of seven artists who use out-of-date technologies and machinery as a reflection on humanity’s continuous fascination and frustration with technology. Presenting sculptures and installations that range from rusty railways to high-tech refrigerators, the group exhibition treats the High Line as an archaeological dig where the artifacts of a post-industrial society can be unearthed.
On view from May 1 through June 2 is the latest installment on High Line Billboard, a work by the celebrated artist Faith Ringgold. Since the early 1960s, Ringgold has been known for her story quilts, politically charged paintings and prints, and illustrated children’s books. For the High Line, she presents a reconfiguration of her 1986 story quilt Groovin High. Depicting a crowded dance hall bordered by quilted hand-dyed fabrics, Groovin High is evocative of Ringgold’s memories of Sunday afternoon dances at the Savoy and her connection to the African American communities of her native Harlem.
Legendary artist Ed Ruscha will make his High Line debut on May 6 with a large-scale mural at West 22nd Street. Based on a work from 1977, Ed Ruscha’s Honey, I Twisted Through More Damn Traffic Today is the artist’s first public commission in New York City. One of his few public art works ever realized, Ruscha’s mural will be hand-painted by a professional mural company. The work combines the artist’s interests in architecture, language, and public space to create a dry and humorous commentary on life in a contemporary metropolis.
To learn more, visit High Line Art’s website and follow @highlineartnyc on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Tumblr.