New Ideas CityHello Museum

Renewal/ Part 1 (part of Art in Empty Spaces)

A lifelike figure cast in plaster sits behind the bar of a former taqueria with its back to us, staring at a television set visible through the window. The television plays a looped video with haunting images of a giant whirlpool carrying a fishing boat from the recent Japanese tsunami. With artists Boris Rasin and Kenny Komer, curated by Kai Matsumiya. Followed by silent auction to benefit Japanese disaster relief organizations.

Art in Empty Spaces is a collaboration between CB3’s Arts & Cultural Affairs Task Force and No Longer Empty to transform the neighborhood’s empty storefronts into temporary arts exhibitions. The initiative draws together building owners with the local arts community to make a difference: showcase local talent and organizations, attract foot traffic, increase cultural tourism, patronize local businesses, and assist with leasing vacant storefronts in the Lower East Side/East Village.