Out and About: From New York to Tenerife

Here at our Design Studio, we love to explore all corners of the world. This week we’re exploring art around our local New York neighbourhoods before we head over to Spain’s Canary Islands to browse ‘The Tenerife Arts Space’ – join us on this journey as we go ‘Out and About’…

New York 

In Madison Square Park, two new statues have emerged. Shahzia Sikander’s  new work is called ‘Havah…to breathe, air, life’ and focuses on themes of justice. Nearby, statues of nine men from history and religion perch on the roof of the local courthouse. For the first time, the representation of a woman has joined the noble rooftop plinths. ‘The self-rooted body represents the resilience of women, who can carry their roots wherever they go’, Sikander writes in her artist statement. ‘The sculptures are temporary and not a fixed point in the landscape, nor symbolic of any fixed ideas or of a specific community. One person or a human occupant on a plinth can represent multiple histories, ideologies, or experiences’. They will be on view until June.

Over in the Financial District you’ll find ‘Geo’ – a dome created by design studio Hou de Sousa. Until 30th March, New Yorkers will get to walk inside this colourful corridor made of ropes, intended to echo the towering urban landscape surrounding it in Downtown Manhattan. The 30-by-10-foot dome boasts steel frames and over five miles of fluorescent paracord, offering an unparalleled display of lights and colours.

Tenerife

The Tenerife Arts Space (TEA) is a cultural space and museum in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The building was designed by Swiss architects Jacques Herzog & Pierre de Meuron and Canarian architect Virgilio Gutiérrez. It is made of concrete with 1200 glass windows in 720 different sizes and shapes.

Over in the Garment District, is ‘The Big Button’. This sculpture in Midtown has stood for over 30 years and has recently received a facelift. At 28 feet tall, it has a 15-foot diameter aluminium button and a 32-foot brushed stainless-steel needle. The pop art ‘represents New York City’s prominent fashion industry, serving as a beloved symbol of the neighbourhood and its rich history’ says Barbara A. Blair, president of the Garment District Alliance.

Let us show you our favourite artists exhibiting at TEA until 9th April…

Aurelia Muñoz (1926 – 2011)
A Spanish artist and pioneer of the new tapestry art. Muñoz renewed the traditional concept of the tapestry to provide it with an artistic value which stands out in her compositions, as seen here in ‘raincoat’.

Muñoz experiments with patchwork and this style is seen throughout her artistic journey. She also practises the techniques of embroidery, collage and macramé, giving her works a sense of character.

Juana Fortuny (1971)
Fortuny graduated in Fine Arts at La Laguna University in Tenerife. She practises craft construction through fabrics and scraps, using a technique that requires dedication and perseverance. The piece shown below took her 5 years to complete because of the vast array of materials used.

We hope these art explorations have inspired you. See how travelling has inspired our hotel designs in our blog post: Travel Around with Us.