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Feng and Huang
©2014 Nancy Lundebjerg
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If this were a real walking tour, I wouldn’t abandon the
Saks windows (see Holiday in NYC Series below) until you’d seen them all.
Nor would I do what I’m about to do now which is head up to St. John the
Divine Cathedral and take you on a short tour of the largest gothic cathedral
in the United States.
Construction
started in 1892 and it is still ongoing today. I had such an amazing time there yesterday that I had to write about it.
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Huang
©2014 Nancy Lundebjerg |
The Cathedral is home to my favorite holiday craft show in NYC – Crafts at the Cathedral.
I like
the holiday markets too (Union Square, Bryant Park, Columbus Circle) but this
show is solely devoted to crafts and the artists themselves are pretty much
always guaranteed to be staffing the booth.
Sure enough, my favorite potter (the fabulous
Margaret Wozniak) had her
usual booth and it was great to catch up with her.
I often joke that I have a large herd of
Margaret’s smaller steeds in my curio cabinet.
All intended for gifts and all some how finding a home with me. I am obviously failing in my efforts to have everyone in my life own a piece of Margaret's work -- although some friends and family own at least two (you know who you are!).
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Feng
©2014 Nancy Lundebjerg |
One would think that since I live so close to the Cathedral
(and have for most of my 25+ years in NYC that I would have been inside it.
Not so.
I’ve circled it – eating at V&T or the Hungarian Pastry Shop when I lived and worked in this 'hood, visiting the gardens and making an annual pilgrimage
to the craft show but I've never actually been inside.
This year I decided to rectify that.
Maybe it is a life stage thing because I also
joined the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) this year and walked my first ever half
marathon.
Neither of which are things I
thought I would ever do.
Admittedly, the
Museum membership was to expedite access to the Matisse show (run don’t walk if
you are in NYC and have the time – it’s a great show!)
I was glad I did though – I like the art and
the galleries at MOMA and am hoping to spend more time there now that I am a member.
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Flying
©2014 Nancy Lundebjerg |
So what prompted this visit?
Simply put, I wanted to see the
Phoenix, a piece by Xu Bing that is on
view at Saint John the Divine through 2014.
Consisting of Feng (male) and Huang (female),
the Phoenix dominates the cavernous space that is the Cathedral.
Feng and Huang are gloriously inventive and
my photos do not do them justice given my propensity for working without a
tripod.
Mind you, I’m not even sure a tripod
is allowed inside of the Cathedral.
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Tail Feathers
©2014 Nancy Lundebjerg
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In 2008, Bing was commissioned to create a sculpture for the
World Financial Center – which was rising in the business district of Beijing,
China. When he arrived at the site, he
was so struck by the poor working conditions of the migrant laborers that he decided
to make his birds from bits and pieces of construction materials and tools
that he salvaged from the building center.
He and the builders parted ways when they expressed worry about the
piece and asked if he could pretty it up.
A project that was to take 4 months ended up taking 2 years of careful planning
and work in a factory outside of Beijing.
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Bird on a Wire
©2014 Nancy Lundebjerg
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Feng and Huang fly above the great nave of St. John the
Divine and it is as if the cathedral and they were meant to be together from
the beginning.
They face the massive doors and I can imagine their great wings flapping as they break free of the
chains that bind them to the Cathedral and take flight over NYC.
Perhaps doing a loop the loop around the
Empire State Building and the Freedom Tower on their way out of town.
Now that would be a sight to see.
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Imagining a Phoenix taking Flight
©2014 Nancy Lundebjerg
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More on the Cathedral itself in future posts (information about visiting is
here).
The Series
It is hard to know which series to assign this too -- Holidays in NYC or Hudson Yard which focuses on the huge construction site that is the West side of Manhattan in midtown. There is a synergy between Bing's piece and that series so -- what the heck -- here are the links to both!
#6:
An Enchanted Experience :: 5 (Snow White)
Hudson Yards
#1:
Hudson Rail Yard
#2:
Just Two Hooks Hanging Out at the Yard
#3:
Tinker Toys
#4:
Tinker Toys in Reverse
#5:
Attic with a View
#6:
The Big Drill
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