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Sculptures on Display in Fort Tryon Park

By Carla Zanoni | April 3, 2012 3:19pm
Peter Bulow's collection of sculpted heads he created on the A train is on display in Fort Tryron Park through June 30, 2012.
Peter Bulow's collection of sculpted heads he created on the A train is on display in Fort Tryron Park through June 30, 2012.
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DNAinfo/Paul Lomax

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS — Fort Tryon Park is giving Madison Square Park a run for its money as a place for the arts.

Strollers out for a walk at the uptown greenspace this past weekend were given a treat as they stumbled upon the Parks Department’s latest art installation — a series of terracotta heads poking out from the trees along the promenade. 

A dozen of the sculptures, crafted by artist Peter Bulow, were tucked into verdant corners along the Stan Michels promenade near the entrance at Margaret Corbin Circle on West 190th Street. 

"It’s a little strange to see the heads pop out at you from the corners as you’re walking," said Washington Heights resident Michael Klern. "It’s unexpected."

The heads, presented in "Passing Glances," represent a small part of Bulow’s collections of nearly 400 miniature clay sculptures he created on the New York City subway system over the past four years. 

Bulow, a psychiatrist, sculpted many of the busts on the A train between 59th and 168th streets.

"Sometimes I have an entire train ride to do a portrait, and sometimes my model gets off at the next stop," the Washington Heights resident said in a public statement about the work. 

"People don’t seem to mind my sculpting them and sometimes start talking to me about their lives."

Bulow, a native of India who immigrated to the United States from Germany when he was 8 years old, said he views his subway portraits as a "cross-section of America."

"I see my subway sculptures as Roman portraits of the 21st century, a time capsule capturing the personalities of our time," he said. 

Bulow’s show is part of the Parks Department’s Public Art Program, which fosters "the creation and installation of temporary public art in parks throughout the five boroughs," according to the department.  

Bulow’s exhibition will be on display in Fort Tryon Park through June 30, 2012.