Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Artists Transforming Queens into Outdoor Gallery

By  Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska and Katie Honan | September 26, 2014 4:31pm 

 The first Queens Art Intervention will take place on Sept. 27 throughout the borough.
Artists to Transform Queens Streets into Interactive Stage
View Full Caption

QUEENS — The borough is getting its first art intervention — a public display of works including the silhouette of a girl displaying grim traffic accident statistics at busy intersections along Queens Boulevard and 300 pockets from old clothes.

Visual artists will showcase their projects for Queens Art Intervention outdoors this Saturday, from Long Island City to Rockaway, with the hope of engaging residents in discussions about social issues.

The Rego Park Green Alliance, a nonprofit promoting community-oriented projects, which started the festival, said it selected about 25 projects out of 160 submissions.

"Queens is incredibly diverse," says Yvonne Shortt, executive director of the group. Each of the presenting artists “offers something different,” she added.

In Astoria, residents will get to paint a mural promoting peace in the Middle East at 30-02 12th St. from noon to 3 p.m.

They will also see “Poketto,” an installation featuring hundreds of pockets from old clothes, at 37th Street, between 34th and 35th avenues, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Artist Niizeki Hiromi will be asking participants: "If you could find anything you like in a pocket, what would it be?"

In Jackson Heights, local artist Deborah Wasserman will display pairs of her children's shoes throughout Travers Park as part of her exhibit "Flowage."

The shoes represent her own journey as a mother as well as her daughter's growth, she said.

Wasserman found the perfect location at her local park, she said, because it is "a place where children play, a space for adults to gather, a place dedicated to expressing one’s body: jumping, skipping, running and climbing." The exhibit will be displayed from 8 a.m. until noon.

The Rego Park Green Alliance will be also launching its new initiative called "Stat Girl."

As part of the project, an acrylic silhouette of a girl will be placed at the most dangerous intersections on Queens Boulevard in Forest Hills, displaying information about accident statistics and encouraging residents to be cautious, organizers said.

Shortt said the project’s goal is "to really change the behaviors of the motorists, the pedestrians, and the cyclists.”

The organizers said they hope to expand the event to a four-day festival featuring more than 150 interventions next year.

For a complete list of events and locations, go here. Rain date: Oct. 4.