How do you even begin to describe Swiss artist Thomas Hirschhorn’s latest philosopher tribute and installation in the South Bronx, the Gramsci Monument? ELOISE and I got there using the directions on the WEBSITE, taking lefts and rights as though we were on a treasure hunt, Bronx-edition.
We immediately knew when we had arrived. Aside from the black graffiti that read "WELCOME," there was a tangible energy in the air that gave us that first-day-of-camp feeling. Music blasted and kids ran around as though they were in a jungle gym, all under the hazy light that poured through the shade of the sycamore trees. The project in fact recalls a jungle gym, with its thousands of railings hewn together to make rooms, corners, alcoves, and common spaces––some for hanging out, others for planned activities. Hirschhorn himself was spray-painting a banner while Forest House residents and visitors began to seat themselves in the plastic white lawn chairs for the next event, a performance by Top Notch Gentlemen, where the aspiring rapper/singer sang "My Girl" with backup vocals from a middle-aged resident and Gramsci employee.
Quotes from the Italian humanist, communist, and philosopher Antonio Gramsci are littered throughout what can only be described as a playground for the mind, complete with an Internet café, kiosk, library, arts-and-crafts room, stage, and kiddie pool––all built from the ground-up by residents of the community employed by the project, and funded by the Dia Arts Foundation. It is a monument to Gramsci himself, but also an evolving space where the community and the individual join forces in a higher pursuit that is equal parts work and play.
Through September 20, 2013.
GRAMSCI MONUMENT AT FOREST HOUSES
1010 Trinity Avenue
Bronx, NY 10456
MAP
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The daily agenda
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Eloise in front of the kiddie pool
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Hirschhorn at work
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The arts-and-crafts room
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Exploring the library
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We immediately knew when we had arrived. Aside from the black graffiti that read "WELCOME," there was a tangible energy in the air that gave us that first-day-of-camp feeling. Music blasted and kids ran around as though they were in a jungle gym, all under the hazy light that poured through the shade of the sycamore trees. The project in fact recalls a jungle gym, with its thousands of railings hewn together to make rooms, corners, alcoves, and common spaces––some for hanging out, others for planned activities. Hirschhorn himself was spray-painting a banner while Forest House residents and visitors began to seat themselves in the plastic white lawn chairs for the next event, a performance by Top Notch Gentlemen, where the aspiring rapper/singer sang "My Girl" with backup vocals from a middle-aged resident and Gramsci employee.
Quotes from the Italian humanist, communist, and philosopher Antonio Gramsci are littered throughout what can only be described as a playground for the mind, complete with an Internet café, kiosk, library, arts-and-crafts room, stage, and kiddie pool––all built from the ground-up by residents of the community employed by the project, and funded by the Dia Arts Foundation. It is a monument to Gramsci himself, but also an evolving space where the community and the individual join forces in a higher pursuit that is equal parts work and play.
Through September 20, 2013.
GRAMSCI MONUMENT AT FOREST HOUSES
1010 Trinity Avenue
Bronx, NY 10456
MAP
The daily agenda
Eloise in front of the kiddie pool
Hirschhorn at work
The arts-and-crafts room
Exploring the library
