New York Streetworks 2002

During the early hours of the morning on August 10 and 11, 2002, eight Streetworks were installed in various locations around New York City and left there. The venues ranged from disused factory sidings, fences, stone walls and in the subway. This was a time in New York when the trauma of 9/11 was still present, especially due to the fear raised by authorities. It seemed important to re-claim city spaces and offer the quiet surprise of art. Some temporary installations took place. Two pieces, Postcard from the Met (after Vermeer), and Postcard from the Met (after Picasso), were both taken into the Metropolitan Museum of Art and positioned next to the 'original' and photographed. One piece, In the Hudson 1, remained attached to the collapsed rusted steel structure in the Hudson River for six months before disappearing. Another piece, Object Knowledge, was deposited on a shelf in the New York Public Library. Several weeks after installation, a postcard was received with the message,

Dear Streetworks, I enjoyed my time in the Library-but I was checked out by a nice couple in Murray Hill. So I am now staying on their bookshelf. Hope to see you again. The Dragonfly Book.

The identity of the couple remains unknown. As does the whereabouts of the other New York Streetworks.

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