EVG regular Stephen Popkin talked with Jim Power yesterday on St. Mark's Place and Second Avenue.
Stephen asked Jim about the status of his mosaic-covered lampposts that the city removed during the reconstruction of Astor Place.
"At the last Community Board meeting that I attended recently I was told that my mosaics would be preserved. They said that they would remove the lampposts and then cut them down to preserve the mosaics and try to reinstall them back into the area where they came from. I hope that they keep their word."
You can find more updates on Jim's blog here.
Mosaic Man rocks. He should be the mayor of NY.
ReplyDeleteI feel bad.
ReplyDeleteOn one hand, I've chatted with him a few times on the street and understand how important this project is...
On the other hand, one could call this "really nice graffiti" no? We have a system in place as taxpayers to sanction some artwork and erase all non-sanctioned art... he didn't play by that system and doesn't technically deserve any special treatment.
I don't know, I don't really understand the whole situation.
Anon @ 4:18
ReplyDeleteIf your concern is "the system", you've entirely missed out on the spirit of this neighborhood, and what this renegade city has always been about. I'm thrilled the Community board saw that too, and glad you're not on that board. Jeez.
What renegade city are you referring to? New York? Really?
ReplyDeleteJim Power, a renegade himself, is a street artist. Grafitti artists are street artists, too. That work one way that the originality and creativity within the city was expressed. That moment, for Jim Power as for 5Pointz, is passing.
ReplyDeleteYou, Mr. Systems Man, can never understand or your comment would never have been made. The unfortunate fact is that a comment such as this, and also the "Really?" comment by the same or another Anon.,just reveal who now rules and how rigid the city is becoming. That's what's sad.
I saw Jim traveling up Fourth Avenue in a motorized scooter recently and I was happy to see the Mosaic Man out and about. I wish there were more creative folks like him in the neighborhood these days. Does he still have his dog Jessie Jane? Does anyone know?
ReplyDelete