Is Geo Art?
Let’s discuss
Let’s start with a revelation that will surprise no one who knows me: I am an avid fan of public art. I live in Lower Manhattan and for decades, the fact that art appears on my walk to the grocery store, to the library, and to drop off or pick up my kids from various activities has justified the expense of so tiny a home. Perhaps my body was cramped within these walls, but my mind was free to roam.
I have long thought that the red cube on Liberty and Broadway was close to the epitome of a public art sculpture. It is whimsical without being obvious. It stands out as a clearly intentional sculpture. It is both memorable and abstract. People stand in front of it and take photos and laugh and discuss it. This is art. The Red Cube has a baffling hole in the middle (telescope? vacuum? existential commentary?) but in general it is an object that is clearly intended to evoke responses from passers-by.
And so it has — for half a century. The Red Cube was designed by Isamu Noguchi and installed in 1968. For fifty-four years, tourists and locals have noticed it, photographed it and wondered at how it balances. When it was installed, the artist said it was intended to pull the eye upward. And it does. This art stands the test of time.
