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April 7, 2008

Closing Bell: Tom Otterness Comes to Dumbo

Coverd%20Wagon.jpg
The above instillation by Tom Otterness, a former Dumbo artist (he relocated to Gowanus) probably most recognized from his work at the 14 Street subway station, will be on view in Dumbo at the intersection of Prospect and Washington streets until Jan. 4, 2009. The sculpture, about 7 feet tall, is sponsored by Two Trees Management and the Dumbo Improvement Association.




Posted by sarah ryley at 4:00 PM | Comments (30)
Categories: Dumbo

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Comments

hey--good article, but i read this two weeks ago in the nysun.

could you please link better.

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 4:35 PM

hey--good article, but i read this two weeks ago in the nysun, although you have better image.

could you please link better. or else i think maybe there are two tom otternesses showing pieces in dumbo or two two trees

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 4:37 PM

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Tom's work. I always did. this is definately an addition to any neighborhood!I think he's sort of the keith haring of today.

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 4:42 PM

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at April 7, 2008 4:49 PM

I knew this from reading dumbonyc.com -which had nysun link--two weeks ago.

I have already been excited. Agree that links could be better here.

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 4:57 PM

one of his annoyingly cute little metal guys takes up a full seat at the 14th ave subway station. a seat that people can't sit on. im a working artist. but if the mta wants to beautify their stations they should start with their upkeep and design and worry about decorating them with knickknacks and paddywacks second.

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 4:57 PM

one of his annoyingly cute little metal guys takes up a full seat at the 14th ave subway station. a seat that people can't sit on. im a working artist. but if the mta wants to beautify their stations they should start with their upkeep and design and worry about decorating them with knickknacks and paddywacks second.

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 4:58 PM

I agree 4:57...from what I notice there are subway stops in deplorable condition...Jay St on the A, Bleecker on the 4/5,etc, etc,etc. I'm sure they get far worse in neighborhoods that I don't frequent

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at April 7, 2008 5:03 PM

can those who appreciate digestable art read and spell better?

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 5:04 PM

I like his work. It's whimsical and seems to make a lot of people, including me, smile. As for taking up a seat at 14th Street, if one of the cute little metal guys wasn't there, you would have a 50% chance it would be some 350 pound rider that typically overflows into a second seat on the waiting benches or inside the train itself.

I'm not sure what was paid to have the display at the station, but I'm sure it wouldn't put even a tiny dent in the cost of improving even one of the deplorable stations in question. If anything, we should be complaining about tax dollars paying for the ridiculous, ineffective and intrusive "random" police searches in the subways.

Posted by: Biff Champion at April 7, 2008 5:11 PM

I really enjoy his crows at the Canal Station. Upstairs it feels like you're surrounded by birds. And in Battery Park City there are these great clergymen with rat tails. Some of the work is a bit cutey but on the balance I dig it.

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 5:15 PM

The first place I saw his work was in the chess area at the very north end of Hudson River Park by Stuyvesant High School. If you are fan of his and haven't been there, it is really great. A little dark and really witty.

Public art like the stuff in the subways was probably funded from grants specifically for that purpose. No money would have been diverted from maintenance to put a metal man on the seat.

Posted by: trudylou at April 7, 2008 5:44 PM

I've got pix of Tom and his studio during Open House New York last year:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/20085053@N00/sets/72157602291882073/

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 5:52 PM

5:04, those who can't spell usually don't realize they can't spell. I think you literally have to point out the word.

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 7:13 PM

so what's the story with the boots on a cow?
boots are made of cowhide, kind of creepy.
completely subversive.

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 7:55 PM

The boots on the ox belong the the late husband of the woman driving the covered wagon. She ate him during a rough patch on the trip across the Great Plains.

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 8:22 PM

Great book - Great Plains
Oh and I like the sculpture too.

Posted by: guest at April 7, 2008 8:27 PM

Tom Otterness also has a wonderful installation in the East River just off of Roosevelt Island called the Marriage of Money and Real Estate.
For those interested, I write a blog about Roosevelt Island and have a post on these sculptures here.
http://rooseveltislander.blogspot.com/2007/09/marriage-of-art-and-real-estate-on.html

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 1:05 AM

Tom Otterness also has a wonderful installation in the East River just off of Roosevelt Island called the Marriage of Money and Real Estate.
For those interested, I write a blog about Roosevelt Island and have a post on these sculptures here.
http://rooseveltislander.blogspot.com/2007/09/marriage-of-art-and-real-estate-on.html

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 1:08 AM

Tom Otterness also has a wonderful installation in the East River just off of Roosevelt Island called the Marriage of Money and Real Estate.
For those interested, I write a blog about Roosevelt Island and have a post on these sculptures here.
http://rooseveltislander.blogspot.com/2007/09/marriage-of-art-and-real-estate-on.html

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 1:09 AM

Tom Otterness also has a wonderful installation in the East River just off of Roosevelt Island called the Marriage of Money and Real Estate.
For those interested, I write a blog about Roosevelt Island and have a post on these sculptures here.
http://rooseveltislander.blogspot.com/2007/09/marriage-of-art-and-real-estate-on.html

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 1:09 AM

Tom Otterness also has a wonderful installation in the East River just off of Roosevelt Island called the Marriage of Money and Real Estate.
For those interested, I write a blog about Roosevelt Island and have a post on these sculptures here.
http://rooseveltislander.blogspot.com/2007/09/marriage-of-art-and-real-estate-on.html

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 1:09 AM

Nice shtick--better than his 1970s gimmick of adopting a dog so he could shoot it on film. The title of that adorable work of art? "Shot Dog Piece." Yeah, he was young and angry--so was I, and yet I somehow managed not to kill anything for attention.

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 3:04 AM

He also has this one that's been in Metrotech for a while.
http://www.tomostudio.com/exhibitions_subway.html

Personally, I don't like animals, so I could care less if he shot a dog on film in the 70's.

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 7:47 AM

He also has this one that's been in Metrotech for a while.
http://www.tomostudio.com/exhibitions_subway.html

Personally, I don't like animals, so I could care less if he shot a dog on film in the 70's.

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 7:49 AM

what other subway stations do you think have interesting artwork? i can't recall any good ones in brooklyn versus UWS in Manhattan.

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 9:44 AM

Tom Otterness also has a wonderful installation in the East River just off of Roosevelt Island called the Marriage of Money and Real Estate.
For those interested, I spam blogs about Roosevelt Island and have a post on these sculptures here.
http://rooseveltislander.blogspot.com/2007/09/marriage-of-art-and-real-estate-on.htm

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 1:00 PM

"Personally, I don't like animals, so I could care less if he shot a dog on film in the 70's."

I DO like animals. Anyone who purchases a dog to kill it has no redeeming values, no matter how "cute" his or her art. Tom Otterness is an a-hole. A BIG, BIG one.

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 1:29 PM

Very cool. Another great reason for me to mosey on down to dumbo as this weather finally warms up.

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 2:27 PM

subtle, one o'clock, but i liked it

Posted by: guest at April 8, 2008 4:24 PM

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