A social space is any place where people come together and congregate and interact with one another. It can be a physical location or it can be a virtual location, such as a social networking site on the internet. Similarly, it can be a privately owned spot such as a website but also like a bar, restaurant, or shopping mall. However, it can also be a public domain such as a city park or a town square.
My research will focus on public places which have urban art on display in them. This will assure that certain variables are kept constant. The locations will be accessible by virtually anyone, and they will all contain some type of potential conversation piece. I hypothesize that the presence of the art will encourage interaction, and thus, contribute to the location becoming a popular social space.
There are typically certain elements in urban areas that encourage human interaction. Similarly, there seem to be a limited number of interractions amongst humans that typically take place in urban settings. For example, physical interaction, other than just a simple holding of hands between a parent and child, or arms around the waists of two lovers, rarely is seen in urban spaces. Also, loud interactions, with the exception of public performances, seems to be quite rare in public. On the other hand, any activity that seems to be a social norm is found with great frequency in urban areas. People talking on cell phones or speaking quietly with their travelling companions can be witnessed all the time. Also, when public seating is made available, people tend to gather around and congregate in areas such as this. My research will explore further the various types of human interaction found in urban spaces.
My focus for my research is "urban art" and its ability to create, encourage, or discourage social spaces in New York City. The traditional definition of urban art typically invokes images of graffiti or cartoon characters, usually on display in a public space and usually not commissioned by the owner(s) of the "canvas." However, the traditional definition of "urban" is "from the city." Therefore, research will look at any art that is located in public places throughout the city.
This is a picture of the fountains out front of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in new York City's Upper West Side. The Lincoln Center is a 16.3 acre area where many art forms meet in one place. Not only is it home to the opera, the ballet, the symphony, and the Juliard School of the Arts, but on the Saturday we were there it also hosted a huge arts and crafts festival outside in the plaza.
John D. Rockafeller III tore down a 17 square block of old tenements in the late 1950's to build the arts complex. Today is hosts the upper crust of New York in their artistic endeavors. The entire area is build over a huge underground parking area for the luxury vehicles driven by the rich patrons of the area that come from New Jersey or other areas outside of the city. The wall that faces the public housing in the area is completely closed off to the Lincoln Center complex, creating virtually no interaction between the patrons of the arts and the surrounding community. However, despite its alienation in the heart of Manhattan, inside the complex a vast array of social spaces are created around the art. This recently expanded and improved fountain hosts several social groups at any given time. Some sit around admiring the jumping water display, while others cool off by getting sprinkled on the sides. Yet others simply use the ledge as a sitting space while chatting amongst their friends. Regardless of its many uses, this urban arts center is certainly a social space.
Many New Yorkers who aren't lucky enough to have a yard space of their own bring their social spaces to the park. Here, some teenage girls host a birthday party for one of their friends.
Many people of all ages, races, and orientations came out to support the Pride gathering. On the right, the Boys' Choir Group of NYC performs "Dream Girls." There was something for everyone inside the gates of the Pride Festival.
June 19th kicked off Pride Week for the GLTB community in New York City. They had their opening festivities in the heart of the park. Shown here is the group Sunday Morning Mimosas performing "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" in honor of the troops overseas.
Exercising is popular in Central park, and on the weekends, they close off the car lanes and open them to cyclists, rollerbladers, joggers, and pedestrians only. It is much more pleasurable to jog along a shady, tree-lined path than it is to run amongst tall buildings on the sweltering sidewalks in the heart of the city.
Although they are a lot more expensive than the ones in India, and not nearly as authentic, rickshaws are still a popular way to travel in Central Park. Here, a mother and her children sit back and relax while the driver makes his hard earned daily wages.
Many park goers prefer the shade to the sun. Here a family has a picnic while one family member takes a much needed power nap after spending all day in the sun.
Many people seem to gravitate towards water on a hot day. In this picture, some people are actually partaking in water sports such as canoeing and swimming. Others prefer to simply sit around the fountain's edge and take in the views.
There were several fields in the area which hosted baseball and soccer games. These more deliberate, organized social spaces encouraged social interaction in the form of spectating, cheering, and downing a good hot dog or two!
Central Park is about as bustling a social space as any on a warm summer Saturday afternoon. On June 19th, our professors asked us to go through the park and document the various types of social interaction we saw taking place throughout the area. This first shot is taken in the Sheep Pasture (which actually used to house live sheep as they grazed)! It has now transformed into a huge field for scantily clad New Yorkers trying to soak up the sun 's rays on any given weekend. As one can see, "being seen" sunbathing is definitely one of the social activities that takes place in the park in the summer.
There is also a "prison ships martyrs' monument" in Fort Greene Park. It is dedicated to the American soldiers who lost their lives in Wallabout Bay during the American Revolution. During this battle, the British had captured Americans aboard ships in the bay and provided them with atrocious living conditions. As a result, over 11,500 American deaths resulted from malnourishment and disease aboard the vessels. In 1873, America decided to put a crypt with the soldiers' remains atop the hill in the park.
The city eventually commissioned for a monument dedicated to the soldiers. the architecture firm of McKim, Mead and White won the opportunity to do the design and they created the largest freestanding doric column in the world at the time. The granite column rises 149 feet over top of the crypt. It also holds an eight ton urn at the top. I also noticed that they fly a POW MIA flag below the American flag at the monument. I think that this is a very special touch to the park. While it may not create a social space, it certainly brought about some proud memories and introspection for me personally. I would be amiss not to mention my own valiant grandfather who courageously served as a bombadeer and was shot down while serving our country in WWII. He ended up serving as a POW in Germany for some time. Thank you, and rest in peace, Thomas Albert McQuade. You were an amazing man.
This is F0rt Greene Park, or more specifically, the Visitors' Center at Fort Greene Park in Brooklyn. Fort Greene Park is a 30.2 acre area that is the oldest park in Brooklyn. During the American Revolutionary War, the Americans built Fort Putnam on the high ground of the area to defend against the British. General Nathaniel Greene was the one who initially chose the site and supervised the construction of the fort. The site was then re-used in the War of 1812, and this is when it was re-named for Fort Greene.
In 1847 it became Brooklyn's first park under the name of Washington Park. It was designed by Frederick Law Olmstead and Calvert Vaux, who also designed Central Park and Prospect Park in New York City. The name was changed to Fort Greene Park in 1896.
Today the park serves as a social space for many young couples with children that live in the surrounding Brooklyn brownstones. On any given Saturday, one will find countless games going on in the park, not to mention a plethora of strollers passing by. The artistic design that Olmstead and Vaux created in the 1860's has definitely evolved into a major social space for Brooklyn residents.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
So this is me on the Brooklyn Bridge, one of architecture and engineering's great feats of the 19th century. When the Brooklyn Bridgewas first built in 1883, it was the longest suspension bridge in existence, and over 50% longer than any suspension bridges that had been built in the past. The design was actually a family affair, although John A. Roebling usually gets the most credit. This is likely because he did similar bridges in Lackawaxen, Pennsylvania and Cincinatti, Ohio. However, truth be told, several generations of Roeblings worked on the bridge, several even getting paralyzed and dying due to the treacherous construction conditions at that day in age. Remarkably, it was Emily Warren Roebling who did much of the calculations herself and helped the men of her family take all the credit. She was also the first person to cross over the bridge after its completion.
The bridge was the first steel wire bridge and it spans 5,989 feet in length. It runs from Brooklyn to Manhattan over tp of the East River. It provides scenic views of both boroughs' skylines as well as a distant view of the Statue of Liberty. Interestingly enough, the tower on the Manhattan end rests only in sand, and falls 30 feet short of hitting bedrock. This is because so many of the initial construction workers were falling ill from what they called "caisson disease." It was actually decompression sickness caused by working underwater. Nonetheless, the bridge has remained structurally sound for over a century now. It was even deemed a National Historical Landmark in 1964. It is a great feat of architecture and engineering, indeed!
The Brooklyn Bridge is a massive six lane bridge with walkways for both pedestrians and bikers going down the middle of it. Eve n back on the first day it opened in 1883, 1800 vehicles and 150,300 people crossed over it within a twenty-four hour period. However, it is not a social space. The cars go whisking along at a "New York pace" and even the pedestrian lane is bustling. As we were walking across, several times bikers yelled at us to get out of the way and move along. However, even worse was the situation that occurred when people tried to stop to take pictures. Even if the photographer managed to get to the opposite side of the bridge where it was far enough back to take the picture, there was never enough of a lull in traffic to be able to get a shot in. Furthermore, even at the benches which were sporadically placed along the bridge, one did not feel truly at peace. The crowds were intimidating and rushing along the entire way across. Several people in our group wanted to stop and get water due to the heat last Saturday, but opted to pass up the opportunity as there was too much pressure to dig their money out extra quickly and "keep it moving." All things considered, the Brooklyn Bridge may be art, but it is definitely not a social space.
In contrast, this wall, while one could argue it is art, is not a social space. It has been painted and then has also corroded, in a quite interesting manner, at that. However, as the picture shows, no one is interacting while passing it and it does not lend itself to becoming a gathering place.
However, I did want to include it in my blog as this picture shows my two fearless leaders (professors). Furthermore, it is the same two colors as our school's colors are. Go Morgan State Bears!
Do Vespas count as artistic creations? I think many fans would wager to say "yes." I can personally say that the way the store lines their brightest colored scooters out on the curbside is a form of art.
While we were walking through Brooklyn, a Vespa store caught the eye of my classmate, my professor, and myself. We had all previously been walking pretty much seperately, in more or less a single file line, not conversing. However, when I saw the Vespa store across the street in the distance, I immediately ventured over. Sure enough, my professor followed, and so did my classmate. Next thing I knew, we were all suddenly discussing Vespas. Come to find out, my classmate even bought one for his wife's anniversary gift! Yet another social space created by art.
The Vespa was first manufactured in 1946 in pontedera, Italy by a company named Piaggio. b Since then, not only has the company created millions of social spaces with their designs, but they have also become Europe's largest producer of vehicles with two wheels.
As we ventured further through Brooklyn approaching the Brooklyn Bridge, I noticed that these water parks seemed to be popping up everywhere! So I did a little research and found out that in 1996, British Columbia named these creations "spray pools" and defined them as "an artificially constructed depression or basin for use by children, into which potable water is sprayed but not allowed to accumulate in the bottom." After they were officially labelled they began "springing up" everywhere!
These spray pools typically employ drains in the pavement so as to not overflow nearby landscape. The most eco-friendly designs will recycle the water and use it over and over again. However, there are also spray pools that draw from fresh water sources that ultimately end up wasting a lot of valuable water just for the creation of a social space. The good thing is that most spray pools are set on timers so that they only go off in increments or must be manually triggered by a user. The two which I visited seemed to stop the spraying about five minutes after first being triggered.
Throughout the course of my research, I discovered that these spray pools are especially popular in urban settings. They are often used as deterrents for children who might otherwise open fire hydrants. Summertime play in fire hydrant water is a popular yet dangerous pastime in many urban areas. It not only wastes a lot of water, but it also dangerously lowers the water pressure for the firefighters who could potentially need it to stop a fire at any time. Therefore, in addition to creating a social space, it seems as though these spray pools have other benefits as well!
So we began "Week 2" of our NYC class by catching the subway to Brooklyn. Upon entering Brooklyn, we were immediately hit by a very commercial district leading into a residential area. Once we got into the "meat" of the residential area, we noticed a quaint little park tucked behind some condos off of the main road. It turns out that the park is actually a rather new, quite famous park as it graced the cover of a landscape architecture magazine recently. As you can see, the park mixes wildlife with man-made art for an interesting combination of the two. The designers also decided to bring a water element into it to give it that special edge over other parks in the area.
While we were there, the sprinkler system went off. This one artistic component immediately created a social space. Mothers brought their babies to the water's edge, my fellow students and I ran through it to cool off, and my professors even got involved. If you look closely, you can see one of them behind the stems trying to win a $10 bet that she wouldn't get wet!
I noticed that this is a very deliberate form of art built intentionally to create social spaces. The whole entire surrounding ares is set up as a system of social spaces that encourage interaction amongst people and create entertainment for all.
This is the second example of art creating a social space that I stumbled upon in New York City on My 29th. As we were walking back from Wasshington Square Park towards the Meat Packing District and Chelsea, I noticed this fence that was completely covered with different small scale pieces of art. The fence was located beside a pocket park at 1 Jackson Square. There were a number of onlookers inspecting the artwork, so I walked over for a closer look. It turns out that the fence had been covered with tile-sized homages and prayers for soldiers and veterans that serve or served for our country. Many were hand-made versions of the American flag, but others were various anti-war messages or doves of peace or ideas along those lines. The on-lookers, while none of them had stopped there check out the art together, had struck up a conversation with one another nonetheless. I overheard two girls discussing how one had a husband overseas now and the other had a cousin who had just returned from his second deployment overseas. I could tell that it was a quite emotional and touching experience for the two to have crated this impromptu social space in such a way. I definitely feel that the art was totally responsible for this social space being created at the time and place that it happened.
This is the first example of a social space being created by an "artist" of sorts after entering Washington Square Park. Although he was not an artist in the traditional sense of the word, judging by his "donation cup," he certainly seemed to think he was some sort of pay-worthy performance artist.
His performance art basically consisted of sitting really still and holding bird seed. The pigeons in the park would then flock to him and sit all over his body as if he were a statue of sorts. This created a public spectacle, because not only did the birds perch on him, but the also defecated on his (as you can see on the back of his left shoulder). He was particularly a hit amongst children, as he would let the kids hold some bird seed in their own hands and then the birds would also come and sit in the children's hands. Because of the fact that so many children stopped to watch and participate, the parents of the children also stopped to keep an eye on their offspring. Thus, one man created an entire social space consisting of children, adults, and animals just by sitting still and sharing some bird seed. However, despite what the "Pigeon Man" himself might claim about his artistic abilities, I feel as though it was more so the rarity of the situation than the actual artistic talent involved that truly drew the crowd and created the social space in this situation.
After visiting Washington Square Park, I decided that I wanted to observe more closely how art and "artists" affect social spaces in New York City. Furthermore, when I says "artists," I am actually referring to anyone who creates a public spectacle, not just the more traditional forms of artists. The course that I am taking for summer school which has provided me the opportunity to go on these trips is entitled "Social Aspects of Urban Form: Public Spaces in NYC." Therefore, I will be paying closer attention to how the addition of art to public spaces affects the way people interact around it. Or, to put it in the form of a research statement, I am studying human interaction around urban art forms in order to understand how social spaces are formed so that I can better explain to my blog followers the impact of art on social space formation.
I know that there is an abundance of public art on display throughout the city. I also know that New York City is famous for luring artists in to its streets from all over the world. I think that once I start paying attention to all of the art that is surrounding me while I am in the city, there will be no shortage of examples of social spaces being created left and right. Art invites one's opinion, and human interaction about art is basically inevitable.
This is Washington Square Park, located in Greenwich Village in the Manhattan borough of New York. Although it is considered to be one of New York's most famous of the 1900 public parks in the city, it is technically on the campus of New York University. The school uses the park for its graduation ceremonies every spring. The enormous arch seen on the left is used as a symbolic "transformation" in their graduation ceremonies. Thee 9.75 acres that comprise the park lay between west 4th Street on the east and west sides and MacDougal Street to the north and south.
The area was inhabited in between 1643 and 1664 by African-Americans, and earned itself the nickname "Land of the Blacks." Laterit was used as a mass burial ground for people who died of yellow fever in an attempt to exile them towards the outskirts of the city. Many indigents were also buried here, and the makeshift cemetery had over 20,000 bodies buried in it by the time the cemetery closed in the early 1800's.
Much of the area is comprised of pavement paths which join the park's landmarks, including the arch, a gigantic water fountain, nd monuments or statues honoring George Washington, Garibaldi (an Italian soldier), and Alexander Lyman Holley (an engineer who invented the Bessemer process to aid in mass production of steel. However, these paths also invite artists and musicians to come out and peddle their wares or play their music on sunny afternoons. one can find everything from imprompteau bands to human "bird houses" to speed chess competitions going on in various corners of the park. This magnificent park has created many social spaces for the artists and their patrons as well as the average New York City lo
The Standard Hotel is a hotel that was built over the High Line in 2009. It is an architectural and engineering feat in that it actually spans the distance of the old railroad tracks that now make up a public park in New York City's Meat Packing District. The hotel is built in a style remniscent of Le Corbusier and is supported on two stilts of concrete on one end. The rest of the building is comprised of angled glass and steel. It is comprised of 18 stories, 317 guest rooms, and 4 or 5 restaurants and bars. The top level is a two story high private lounge with enormous glass windows on all sides. it provides for lovely views of the Hudson River, Empire State Building, and other new York landmarks.
The building was designed by Todd Schliemann of the New York-based firm Polshek Partnership. Roman and Williams Interiors is the firm that created the inside of the building. It is located at 848 Washington Street on the west side of the city. The owner, Andre Balazs, owns several other Standard hotels in trendy cities such as Miami and Los Angeles. However, this particular one is the only one that has started some urban legends. The glass siding was quite a topic of controversy after the construction was first completed. It was rumored that guests in the hotel were doing trip teases for the passrsby on the West Side Highway and for peeping Toms walking along the High Line.
This is a picture taken while I was walking the High Line. As you can see, although it is still under construction, it has already become a quite popular spot.
The High Line is a trendy new park that has popped up between Chelsea and the Meat Packing District in New York City. It used to be an old railroad line used for moving freight on the west side of New York City. It was initially developed in the 1930's in response to the high amount of accidents happening because of ground level freight tracks. In fact, the accidents were so frequent that locals re-named the strip "Death Avenue" after it was first built in 1847. The city responded by elevating 13 miles of the railways off of the ground level.
The original tracks had dilapidated quite a bit, and in the late 1990's, Mayor Rudolph Guiliani slated them for demolition. However, a green preservation group called "Friends of the High Line" noticed the the riveted steel structure itself was still in fairly good structural condition. They lobbied for a green space and public park to be put on top of the tracks. In 2004, under the leadership of Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the city donated $50 million to rehabilitating 1.45 miles of the line for public use.
The High Line is still under construction but much of the space is already serving as a public park for New Yorkers and tourists alike. The landscaping firm of James Corner Field Operations and the architectural firm of Diller, Scofidio, and Renfro have come up with a successful design so far. It will eventually span the area from the Javits Convention Center near the West Side Yard through the neighborhood of Chelsea and end in the Meat Packing District in the West Village .
Hello World! This is my blog spot about New York City … I’m an aspiring architect working on my Master’s degree at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. I will be studying urban design in NYC for the next month. You can look forward to informative, intellectual blogs about the development of the city, its history, and its future… beginning after my first trip “up top” tomorrow. Enjoy!
