Dumbo Art Under the Bridge Festival -- Neither Wind Nor Rain

After the rain Sunday we rushed down to Dumbo for the 2008 Art Under the Bridge Festival. After a while it became apparent that we should have come Saturday, too, even if there was a hurricane. There was so much great stuff, we just couldn't get to everything in one afternoon.

Here's just a small bit of some of the more obvious outdoor pieces, in no particular order.

This piece was "Pachyderm," by Dan Das Mama and Karen Cusolito, in the newly opened bridge archway. You could stand inside it and experience "shifting light and sound," or sit in a chair, put on earphones and watch Current TV. (Current sponsored this year's festival.) When we came back later, video was being projected on the ceiling and walls. It was a good use of the space.


Remember those "crane" games they have in restaurants and arcades, where you put 50 cents in the slot and then try to maneuver the crane over the toy you want so you can grab it?

The modified crane contraption above is called The Clone Corporation, by Kate Kaman and Joel Erland. Instead of toys, you try to grab (here's where the art comes in) fetus sculptures. It cost two dollars a try.

We never win anything when we play these things, not even the stupid plastic cars. We really wanted a fetus sculpture, but we lost our two bucks and were too cheap to try again.


We think this was part of "Sporangia Beach" by Barbara Campisi. We couldn't find a sign but there were little egg-like spores all over the rocks on the beach which were labeled Sporangia Beach, and this looked like a thing capable of producing those spores.


This was in the lobby at 50 Washington Street. It's called "Succulent Girl Friday" by Allison Berkoy. The hair and hands are, of course, succulent plants, and the face is a video. We love her description: "resilient, prickly, and almost impossible to kill."


We're not sure what they were, but there were four or five of them and they were running down the street.


This was called "The Lost State," by Natsu. It was a colorful net type of thing, very pretty.


Bummer -- Jane's Carousel was not allowed to take passengers because there wasn't enough wall clearance. Didn't this happen last time?



Finally, this was a performance art piece called "Sustenance," by John Bonafede. The farmer peeled the potatoes while the friar read from the Bible about sustenance. The the farmer chopped up the potatoes and the friar deep fried them (you can see him heading through the door to the deep fryer just inside). Then he put a little salt on them and voila! French fries!

He handed them out to whoever wanted them. They were delicious. Very good art.

- DUMBO Art Under the Bridge Festival In the Rain?
- Dumbo 'Arts Under the Bridge' Festival 2007

Photos copyright MK Metz

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