Reported for the Flatiron Hot! News by Sanika Shah
Leonardo Drew’s “City in the Grass” Installation – Photo by Sanika Shah
For Madison Square Park Conservancy’s 38th commissioned artist, they have chosen Leonardo Drew, a contemporary artist based in Brooklyn, New York. Drew attended the Parsons School of Design, and later received his BFA from the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, and has exhibited at famous museums such as the Met. He is best known for creating “contemplative abstract sculptural works that play upon a tension between order and chaos.”
His abstract sculptures and assemblages depict formal and societal issues and he aims to challenge the architecture of the space in which his installations are displayed. These installations are normally constructed of brand new materials, such as wood, rusted iron, cotton, paper, and mud using oxidation, burning, and decay processes.
Drew uses colored sand, wood, and an array of other materials to create the cityscape upon a Persian rug, which ties in with the running “order and chaos” theme in his work. He aims to present a topographical view of an abstract cityscape. His project is multilayered and complicated, metaphorically and physically, as he communicates the way cities can be “places of great inspiration but also great denigration” (Brooke Kamin Rapaport).
Drew’s goal with City in the Grass, his first major outdoor sculpture, was to “bring people close to his work, to study the swells and folds of his cityscape, and to locate a personal place within the purposeful voids in the work.” The last part of this refers to the holes that he left in the “Persian carpet” piece of the work, or the base, which is constructed of aluminum and decorated with traditional Persian patterns to resemble a Persian rug. Drew has left holes in the rug, with grass peeking through, to symbolize the wear and tear which, according to Drew, makes any carpet “beautiful” as it has been “lived in.” Additionally, the holes in the carpet add to the representation of promise and lapsed commitment of home life, comfort, and stability. Drew has let the grass stick out in hopes of reminding his audience that “a forgotten remnant can become overgrown, careworn, [and] tattered” (Madison Sq. Park).
A close look at Drew’s Installation – Photo by Sanika Shah
This piece is beautiful in person, interactive, and a must-see if you are in the area. You can read more about it at Madison Square Park’s website or take their lunchtime art tour.
NYC Theater News
City in the Grass: Madison Square Park Commissions Leonardo Drew as 38th Exhibition
Reported for the Flatiron Hot! News by Sanika Shah
Leonardo Drew’s “City in the Grass” Installation – Photo by Sanika Shah
For Madison Square Park Conservancy’s 38th commissioned artist, they have chosen Leonardo Drew, a contemporary artist based in Brooklyn, New York. Drew attended the Parsons School of Design, and later received his BFA from the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, and has exhibited at famous museums such as the Met. He is best known for creating “contemplative abstract sculptural works that play upon a tension between order and chaos.”
His abstract sculptures and assemblages depict formal and societal issues and he aims to challenge the architecture of the space in which his installations are displayed. These installations are normally constructed of brand new materials, such as wood, rusted iron, cotton, paper, and mud using oxidation, burning, and decay processes.
Drew uses colored sand, wood, and an array of other materials to create the cityscape upon a Persian rug, which ties in with the running “order and chaos” theme in his work. He aims to present a topographical view of an abstract cityscape. His project is multilayered and complicated, metaphorically and physically, as he communicates the way cities can be “places of great inspiration but also great denigration” (Brooke Kamin Rapaport).
Drew’s goal with City in the Grass, his first major outdoor sculpture, was to “bring people close to his work, to study the swells and folds of his cityscape, and to locate a personal place within the purposeful voids in the work.” The last part of this refers to the holes that he left in the “Persian carpet” piece of the work, or the base, which is constructed of aluminum and decorated with traditional Persian patterns to resemble a Persian rug. Drew has left holes in the rug, with grass peeking through, to symbolize the wear and tear which, according to Drew, makes any carpet “beautiful” as it has been “lived in.” Additionally, the holes in the carpet add to the representation of promise and lapsed commitment of home life, comfort, and stability. Drew has let the grass stick out in hopes of reminding his audience that “a forgotten remnant can become overgrown, careworn, [and] tattered” (Madison Sq. Park).
A close look at Drew’s Installation – Photo by Sanika Shah
This piece is beautiful in person, interactive, and a must-see if you are in the area. You can read more about it at Madison Square Park’s website or take their lunchtime art tour.