Artlog

The New York City Waterfalls

Olafur Eliasson
June 26th-October 13th 2008

Clockwise from top left: Mark Larrimore, Craig Sinclair, 917press, drmiggy

About the project

Beginning Thursday, June 26th and on exhibition until Monday, October 13th, the New York Public Art Fund presents Olafur Eliasson's New York City Waterfalls, an unprecedented public art installation in the New York City Harbor. The project consists of four monumental, man-made waterfalls installed at four sites along the East River: one by the Brooklyn anchorage of the Brooklyn Bridge, one between Piers 4 and 5 in Brooklyn, one in Lower Manhattan at Pier 35, and one on the north shore of Governors Island.

The waterfalls range in size from 90 feet to 120 feet—the tallest matching the height of the Statue of Liberty from head to foot—and operate every day over the course of the summer from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM. After sunset, the falls are lit with LED lights adding a striking quality to New York City's iconic skyline.

The Danish-born artist, Olafur Eliasson, is becoming an ever more recognized name in the contemporary art world. With a major retrospective featured at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and a simultaneous show at the Museum of Modern Art and at P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center in New York (through June 30), an unforgettable 'solar' installation at the Tate Modern in 2003, as well as opening his first permanent outdoor installation in the United States at Bard College this July, Eliasson has already set himself apart as one of the most significant artists of his generation.

Intended to revitalize New York's outdoor spaces as well as invigorate the practice of contemporary sculpture and public art, the New York City Waterfalls highlight the dramatic public park initiatives being undertaken by the City of New York to transform the Brooklyn Bridge Park, Governors Island, and the East River Waterfront Promenade into sites of outdoor enjoyment. The Mayor expects an additional $55 million to flow into the economy as a result of Eliasson's exhibition. These funds are expected to support the key development initiatives at the waterfront including the creation of the Harbor District. In addition, as part of PlaNYC, the City has committed to open 90% of New York City's waterways for recreation by reducing water pollution.

While Eliasson's exhibition encourages viewers to see the Harbor in a completely new way, coming into contact with water and relating to Harbor physically rather than as a landscape, the artist does not intend to parody natural waterfalls but rather to construct an urban equivalent that will be unique to New York City.

In Eliasson's artist statement he explains:

"They are as real as any waterfalls; it is real water falling. The scaffolding supports are clearly visible and may be recognized as the same kind that has been used to build New York over the past century. My point is not to reinitiate the discussion of nature versus culture or the natural versus the artificial, but both to open up the possibility of a nature-based experience within an urban setting and allow us to reconsider our experiences of nature."

The waterfalls are carbon-neutral and run on electricity generated from renewable resources. Built according to an innovative "green power" model, the falls are intended to protect water quality, the shoreline, and aquatic life by filtering water through intake pools suspended in the East River.

As the New York Public Art Fund's most ambitious project to date, Eliasson's work situates the viewer in a place of rare environmental sensitivity and encourages critical debate about issues that are salient in politics today. As Eliasson states:

"I believe that we need to make nature tangible and relevant to people in order to add clarity to the discussion of natural resources. The New York City Waterfalls is an attempt to synthesize and amplify all these questions regarding the environment, politics, urban planning, responsibility, education, and natural phenomena within a single work of art—and all in relation to the iconic shoreline of New York City."

Thanks to the collaboration of the Public Art Fund, the Department of Education, the Department of Environmental Protection, and non-profit environmental groups, curriculums will be developed for the New York City public school system that link the studies of art and ecology in innovative ways for a generation of new art appreciators.

For more information about the New York City Waterfalls, please visit nycwaterfalls.org.

How to view

Circle Line Downtown, the official water tour operator of The New York City Waterfalls is offering free and specially-priced daily boat tours to view the waterfalls. Free tickets for the official 30-minute tours are available on the Circle Line website or by calling 1.866.9CLINE1 (1.866.925.4631). The special boat trips will leave from Pier 16, South Street Seaport in Manhattan, will include an audio introduction by Eliasson, and will provide up-close views of the waterfalls for the length of the exhibition. In addition, there are several other Circle Line Downtown experiences that will provide nice views of the waterfalls: Shark speedboat thrill ride, Happy Hour on the Harbor, Karaoke Cruise and Dance Cruise.

The Staten Island Ferry will provide views of the waterfalls between Piers 4 and 5 in Brooklyn. Travel time is approximately 25 minutes. The full schedule of departures from both the St. George Terminal and the Whitehall Terminal is listed at the Staten Island Ferry website. All rides are free.

The Governors Island Ferry is a six-minute boat trip that will run every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for the duration of the exhibition. Ferries leave from the Battery Maritime Building, at the corner of South and Whitehall Streets, in Lower Manhattan, and are free and open to the public. Ferry schedules may be found at the Governors Island Preservation and Education website. The Island is open from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM on Friday and 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM on Saturday and Sunday until October 12th.

New York Water Taxi provides three ways to experience the waterfalls. The “New York City Waterfall Cruise” is a one-hour guided daytime cruise throughout the Harbor; tickets are priced at $25 for adults and $15 for kids. The “Sunset Waterfalls Cruise” runs Thursday – Sunday evenings, 90-minutes, featuring a cash bar; tickets are priced at $25 (must be 21 years or older). Visitors may purchase a half-day bike rental from the South Street Seaport along with a NY Water Taxi Waterfalls Cruise for $45. All tickets may be purchased online at the Water Taxi website.

To see the waterfalls by bike, click here to download a free guide to bicycle routes and viewing locations provided by the Public Art Fund.

Visit the Waterfalls' site for a detailed list of vantage points and views.

About the Artist: Olafur Eliasson

Olafur Eliasson was born in Copenhagen in 1967, and grew up in both Iceland and Denmark. He attended the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen and currently divides his time between his family home in Copenhagen and his studio in Berlin. Studio Olafur Eliasson is a laboratory for spatial research that employs a team of 30 architects, engineers, craftsmen, and assistants who work together to conceptualize, test, engineer, and construct installations, sculptures, large-scale projects, and commissions. Many of Eliasson’s works take inspiration from natural elements and phenomena that evoke sensory experiences. Recent works reflect Eliasson’s increased interest in architecture and the built environment. Since the mid-1990s, he has presented his work in numerous exhibitions and outdoor venues. Eliasson made his first visit to New York City in 1989 while he was in art school.

About the New York Public Art Fund

Since 1977, the Public Art Fund has worked with over 500 emerging and established artists to produce innovative temporary exhibitions of contemporary art throughout New York City. By bringing artworks outside the traditional context of museums and galleries, Public Art Fund provides a unique platform for an unparalleled public encounter with the art of our time. Current and recent critically acclaimed exhibitions and presentations include: Sarah Lucas’s Perceval at Doris C. Freedman Plaza at 60th Street and Fifth Avenue (through May 2008); Dara Friedman’s Musical at multiple midtown Manhattan locations (2007); Anish Kapoor’s Sky Mirror at Rockefeller Center (2006); William Kentridge’s 9 Drawings for Projection at the Central Park and Prospect Park Bandshells (2005).

Public Art Fund is a non-profit art organization supported by generous contributions from individuals, foundations, and corporations, and with funds from National Endowment for the Arts; New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency; and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.