EXPERIENCE ‘CLOUD CITY’
By: Hope Wilkos, Writer/Blogger Photographer: George Whylie Videographer: Maxine NolanWhen paying a visit to the cultural capital of the United States- New York City- it is a ‘must-see’ to spend a day at the enticing Metropolitan Museum of Art. There is so much to see and do in the way of creativity to captivate and thrill you.
A newly added exhibit known as “Cloud City” will take you to new heights and is on display until November 4th, 2012. This rooftop exhibit weighs in at 20 tons, 54 feet long and 29 feet wide by 28 feet high and yet, ironically, it is almost as if it is floating on air. It could only be placed on the roof by an enormous crane.
What was the inspiration behind the design? Believe it or not, foam that sits on the top of a drink, whether it be chocolate milk or beer, sparked the creativity. Before we reach the date of November 4th, there will be close to half a million visitors to check out this extraordinary exhibit.
The location of the exhibit is at the Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Roof Garden at the Museum.
And who is the artist behind this masterpiece? Tomas’ Saraceno is the world’s most active artist and architect working on life in the air. His original pieces of artwork have been exhibited around the world combining art and science into amazing results and he lives and works in Germany now. Saraceno has been awarded the Calder Prize for his innovative work and has taken part in the International Space University SSP09 program at NASA.Ames.
Saraceno described his creation in the following way, “Upside down, Central Park is a flying garden embedded in a cumulus cloud, mirrored buildings and skies appear under your feet, gravity seems to reorient itself, and people are multiplied in patchworks of cloudscape, forming unexpected interconnected networks…..Cloud City is an invitation to perceive simultaneously a multiplicity of realities, making overlapping and multi-reflective connections between things, affecting and challenging our perceptions. Cloud City is a vehicle for our imagination, ready to transport us beyond social, political, and geographical states of mind.”
Could this be a preview of the future, a new way of life in years to come? The floors are transparent, the walls are mirrored steel that open to the air.
This is the 15th exhibit to be housed on the rooftop of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is also the artist’s first major accomplishment in the United States.
Weather-permitting, visitors will walk through the structures in a timeless and weightless fashion and experience the true beauty taking place around them. The artist clearly is promoting social interaction in quite a different sort of way.
Only a limited number of visitors may access the structure at a time and can take it all in for 20-minute intervals. Tickets are free with Museum admission but available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
If not for the support of Bloomberg, Cynthia Hazen Polsky & Leon B. Polsky, The Daniel & Estrellita Brodsky Foundation, William S. Lieberman Fund and Eugenio Lopez, this would not be totally possible.
For the time being, it is a fixture that can be seen for miles as you walk the crowded streets of New York City below. It can only be described as walking in a dreamlike kaleidoscope as you enter, take part in the experience and enjoy and observe the world around and below you.
To learn more, go to www.metmuseum.org/saraceno.
PHOTO CREDITS: Metropolitan Museum of Art and Google Images
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