The Neighbors exhibit along the southern perimeter of First Street Green Art Park along Houston between First Avenue and Second Avenue was expected to be up through July 7.
However, the 86, four-by-five portraits that lined the fence were removed this past weekend...
The Daily News reported last week that 52 out of 86 of the portraits had been tagged/vandalized since they arrived on April 28...
Neighbors, a traveling exhibit, featured Americans representing all 50 states taken by photographer John Raymond Mireles.
"I expected some vandalism though admittedly not on this scale," Mireles told the Daily News. He admitted that his "heart sinks" from the tagging.
In case you missed it, here's a video of the portraits...
6 comments:
the 86 got 86'd.
I can't understand the impulse to vandalize artwork. Is it contempt for art in general? For the particular piece? Or is it just nihilism that respects neither artist, artwork, nor community?
Trying to make a statement? Make it with your own art. Trying to be amusing? Do stand-up.
Sorry this artist didn't have the guts to show his work in the lower east side. Everything gets tagged here sooner or later not that I am a fan of tagging but it is the reality of the neighborhood. The irony for me is this portraits portrayed people from all the US states which looked like 50 people you would see walking down a NYC street on any given day. If he was trying to enlighten or surprise us he missed the mark.
Such a shame the art work was tagged. Just because it happens in the EV doers not make it right. I wish the city had stronger laws and enforcement on tagging. I would not even call it tagging - I would call it vandalism. The people that did this should be ashamed...
Anonymous 26 June 1:15, I think that the point is that the artist DID have the guts to exhibit his art on the Lower East Side. And a vandal decided that the art didn't deserve to be there.
@11:26 AM.
No the artist took his pictures home when he realized that not everyone loved them. Again not a fan of tagging, vandalism, etc... but the artist was naive to think nothing would happen to his work in a downtown neighborhood a place where some of the big graffiti artists emerged decades ago.
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