Friday, March 17, 2023

Report: The Astor Place cube will be ready for a spin once more this summer

The Astor Place cube (aka Alamo), out of commission with structural damage since late 2021 (first noted here), will reportedly by spin-worthy again by July 17.

According to The City, there's a proposal from the Department of Transportation in the works.
The plan, which is slated to go before the city's Public Design Commission on Monday for approval, would see the 1,800-pound cube temporarily removed next month and shipped to Bethany, Conn., for restoration by Versteeg Art Fabricators — a firm that also did restorative work to the cube in 2005.

Their proposal calls for fixing the spinning mechanism and reinforcing and repairing the base of the East Village piece by early July.
The barricades first arrived around the cube in December 2021, before the city removed them in late April 2022. At the time, we were told that the spinning mechanism for the cube, which manually rotates around a pole hidden in its center, was not working. A DOT spokesperson previously told us that they didn't have a timeline for repairing the spinning component.

Tony Rosenthal's sculpture first arrived here in November 1967. 

at

3 comments:

  1. BTMarch 17, 2023 at 11:18 AM

    Did everyone already know the cube was featured in Miami Vice? Season 5 - the episode is called "The Lost Madonna". Halfway through there is a pool party scene - and for about 5 seconds there's a close up on the spinning cube. Not sure if it's the exact same one? (It is clearly a duplicate)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousMarch 18, 2023 at 12:27 AM

      This cube was one of many temporary art installations all over many College campuses. People in NYC liked it so much they kept it.

      Delete
  2. AnonymousMarch 18, 2023 at 1:59 AM

    This one is really a head scratcher. That thing was gone for something like a year or more for a full refurbishment back when they did the plaza. Who screwed up?

    Also, what ever happened to that guy who lived inside the cube? Wish I could find that short movie about him.

    ReplyDelete

Your remarks and lively debates are welcome, whether supportive or critical of the views herein. Your articulate, well-informed remarks that are relevant to an article are welcome.

However, commentary that is intended to "flame" or attack, that contains violence, racist comments and potential libel will not be published. Facts are helpful.

If you'd like to make personal attacks and libelous claims against people and businesses, then you may do so on your own social media accounts. Also, comments predicting when a new business will close ("I give it six weeks") will not be approved.