Nick Cave "HEARD•NY"

Grand Central

poster for Nick Cave "HEARD•NY"

This event has ended.

From March 25–31, 2013, a major project by Chicago-based artist Nick Cave will transform Grand Central Terminal with 30 life-size, multi-colored horses, peacefully “grazing” and periodically breaking into choreographed movement to the accompaniment of live music. Titled HEARD•NY, the installation-and-performance piece is presented by Creative Time and MTA Arts for Transit on the occasion of the centennial of Grand Central Terminal. It is Cave’s first public art project in New York City, introducing locals and visitors alike to his wearable mixed-medium sculptures, or “Soundsuits,” and turning the busy railway station into a place of surprise and awe.

For HEARD•NY, sixty students from The Ailey School, the official school of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, will don Cave’s Soundsuits and perform specially choreographed movements, or “crossings,” at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. every day. The horses may perform together as a herd in Vanderbilt Hall, or in smaller groups within the Main Concourse and throughout Grand Central. When they are not being worn, the Soundsuits will be displayed in Vanderbilt Hall, enabling visitors to look more closely at the meticulously crafted horses and providing a “backstage” glimpse of the performance.

Creative Time Chief Curator Nato Thompson notes, “One of the things that makes HEARD•NY so compelling is that it catches people off guard. Coming across these horses is in itself an unusual experience, but it is all the more so in a place as majestic as Grand Central Terminal.”

Anne Pasternak, the organization’s president and artistic director, adds, “Creative Time has always enabled artists to create trailblazing projects that expand their practice while enlivening public places. We are thrilled to be working with our wonderful partners at MTA Arts for Transit to present this multifaceted, magical project. This is our third collaboration with Arts for Transit, following landmark exhibitions by Takashi Murakami and Rudolf Stingel. Happy hundredth birthday Grand Central!”

Sandra Bloodworth, director, MTA Arts for Transit and Urban Design, notes, “We are excited to partner with Creative Time to bring to the Centennial the work of Nick Cave, an artist we have long admired. Along with the Ailey School students, Nick is creating an ephemeral experience that will be remembered by its audience as an enchanting moment in New York City’s history.”

SOUNDSUITS
Cave’s extravagant, richly textured Soundsuits, a hallmark of his oeuvre, draw on his extensive knowledge of traditional and modern fiber arts, combined with his familiarity with performance and choreography, to create a multisensory experience for the viewer. When simply displayed, as they will be in Vanderbilt Hall, they are visually compelling art objects; when occupied by human beings, as for the “crossings,” they are transformed into stunning vehicles for movement and sound, blurring the boundaries between visual art and performance. The Soundsuits have been described as part of a costume tradition stretching from African tribal ritual to Renaissance pageantry, to African-American Mardi Gras Indians in New Orleans, to drag queens and performance artists of the London Underground.

Cave’s first Soundsuit, dating to 1991, was made of twigs. Since then, materials have included colorfully dyed human hair, sisal, plastic buttons, beads, sequins, feathers, and other flea market and thrift store finds. Made of colorful raffia, the horse Soundsuits in HEARD•NY wear facemasks embellished with patterns from India, Tibet, Morocco, and elsewhere, creating a peaceful herd that embraces a variety of racial and cultural identities.

CROSSINGS
Situated within the context of what is perhaps America’s most iconic transportation hub, visited by more than 750,000 people each day, the mysterious presence of the horses will act as a powerful dislocating force. Slowly and majestically weaving through the bustling crowds, they will invite commuters, tourists, and passersby to stop in their tracks as they encounter these otherworldly figures. As the artist says, “We used to be dreamers, thinking ‘What would l like to be?’ But under the stresses of contemporary life, we seem to have lost that capacity. With works like HEARD•NY, I try to create a moment that brings us back to dreaming and fantasy, to a state of mind where we can think about alternative ways of being.”

Collaboration is an essential component of Cave’s practice, and the artist often opts to work with local dancers on site-specific productions. For HEARD•NY he will work with Chicago-based choreographer William Gill to create a piece for the Ailey School students that incorporates both choreographed and improvised movement.

Drawing on his training as both a visual artist and dancer, Nick Cave works in a wide range of mediums, including sculpture, installation, performance, and video. His Soundsuits exist as both sculptures in themselves and, when occupied by the body, activated forms, and they reference dress and ritual attire from around the world, responding to the globalization of cultural identity. “My ability to make objects sing lies within the multiple readings of each work,” says the artist.

Cave’s work has been included in group shows internationally. His many solo exhibitions include Meet Me at the Center of the Earth (2009–2012), which was presented at arts institutions throughout the country to wide acclaim. His most recent solo exhibition, Triple-Ripple, FANTASTIC Lille3000 (2012), Lille, France, will travel to the Trapholt Museum of Modern Art, in Kolding, Denmark, where it opens on March 13, 2013. A new exhibition opens at the Denver Art Museum on June 9, 2013.

Cave’s work may be found in numerous public collections, including those of The Museum of Modern Art, New York; Brooklyn Museum; Hirshhorn Museum, Washington DC; and the De Young Museum, San Francisco, among many others. He has additionally received numerous awards and grants, among them the Joan Mitchell Foundation Award (2008) and Joyce Foundation Joyce Award (2006). He received an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

Media

Schedule

from March 25, 2013 to March 31, 2013

Artist(s)

Nick Cave

  • Facebook

    Reviews

    All content on this site is © their respective owner(s).
    New York Art Beat (2008) - About - Contact - Privacy - Terms of Use