Very rarely is art as simple as flooding a giant space with water. However, at the Park Avenue Armory in New York, home to art installations and performances ranging from intimate the xx shows to a forest made by Paul McCarthy, there is now a huge pool of reflective water made for, well, reflecting.
It's not as simple as 122,000 gallons of water, but when you first arrive at the massive armory—which was built in 1980 and is one of two remaining armories in New York City—that's what it looks like. When you get closer, you realize that the piece by Scottish, Turner Prize-winning artist Douglas Gordon, titled tears become . . . streams become . . . , is a feat of lighting; the floor was painted black (it's normally a warm wood) to create the appearance of depth, and the overhead lighting is minimal yet present enough to create simultaneous darkness and light. The pool contains the contents of the ceiling above it, making the space tunnel-like and fascinating from every angle and distance.
Additionally, there are two pianos where pianist Hélène Grimaud does evening performances (all currently sold out). She plays a program of water-themed works by Debussy, Ravel, Liszt, and others, creating an unparalleled connection between the visual arts and classical music. Now that the evening shows are sold out, visitors can still visit the space in the daytime through January 4, 2015, and sit on benches that exist on three sides of the rectangular pool. New Yorkers are guaranteed to enjoy the space and quiet that contrasts the noise and congestion of the city.
Of the piece, Gordon told the New York Times, “I once saw a small boy playing the piano with one hand and wiping away tears with the other. The tears ran down his face and onto his hand and then onto the keys of the piano. It stuck with me, those tears."
Visit the piece through January 4, 2015 and look forward to The Armory's 2015 programming.
