Sunday was another beautiful day in NYC. The sun was shining brightly in the crisp cool air. I always think things look sharper and more in focus in the crisp fall and winter air. I am one of those weird people who loves cool and cold weather. So I was pretty happy to be out chalking even if it started at about 9:30 on a Sunday morning. (I think my future projects will happen only on weekdays).
I started the day finishing up the line through the streets of Gowanus. I was accompanied again by my friend Margo, who biked from Washington Heights to Gowanus. Quite a ride, but on such a gorgeous day she said it was fabulous (I believe her!) We were headed to Red Hook soccer fields for installation of beacons AND some great food! We finished the chalking, noting all of the scrap metal and industrial sites along the Gowanus Canal that lay below the line. This means that a storm would sweep all of these toxins farther inland, as well as washing them back out to sea when the water recedes. Of course the toxins are also leaching into the groundwater and through that process washing into the Gowanus already.
We met up with Peter at the soccer fields and treated ourselves to some Salvadorean pupusas before starting the install. Hose also came out to shoot some more for me.
This was the most fascinating installation yet! For those who are not familiar with the Red Hook soccer fields, it is a soccer field that is used from dawn to dusk on the weekends from May to October. It is always packed – soccer teams, their entire families, lots of kids, the food vendors, loads of people visiting for the food and a lot of other people just out to enjoy the day. So the installation was intertwined with many other goings on.
As I started the installation, I was swamped by a bunch of kids who were fascinated by what I was doing. They all wanted to help and were fighting over trying to help me install everything. They then took ownership of the project, telling people not to touch them and keeping the beacons well guarded. I had one young man who helped me install everything, carry water to fill them and put on the caps. This was a great installation – I talked to so many people of all ages and from all areas of Brooklyn, what a great place to meet many people.
Unfortunately I ended up a little short handed in the afternoon and needed to do some more chalking. So I uninstalled the beacons later in the day (but before nightfall) in order to do more chalking. I still wanted to have the beacons up after dark, so I returned to install a small grouping of them. A group of the girls who were watching the daytime installation were still there and they loved the beacons at night. They were looking at all of the beacons with the lights in them and told me they looked beautiful. At the end of the evening, they were huddled around one of the beacons, lost in contemplation. So from a hectic day came a peaceful and contemplative evening.
Thanks to all the kids out at the ball fields for their energy, fascination and interest in learning about art and climate change!
Apologies for the delay in posting this I was trying to get all of the images uploaded and edited.
I started Friday morning with a flat tire on my bike, but did make it out to 58th Street in 
The line cuts through a lot of industrial and quite toxic areas – including a massive scrap yard. It also cuts right through the 
I did have a number of other great conversations. One gentleman was able to share with me his first hand experience of the devastation wrought by the tornado that touched down in his neighborhood of Bay Ridge. I had two different guys who said that they just couldn’t stand it any longer they were so curious they just had to know what was going on on – YAY! I also made friends with a lovely woman named Eileen who was interested in the project and even took the time to read through the packet (I hope she went home and told some friends and neighbors about it). Another interesting comment was “We don’t get much of this kind of thing around here.” “What kind of thing?” I asked. “Art.” Oh.
I don’t mean going out and soliciting funds or votes or anything like that, but just having the conversation with people about something which you can share. It is highly unlikely that if it weren’t for this project, I would ever meet the people I have met. We might ride on the same train, or be in line somewhere, or shop at the same store, without ever talking – simply because we would have no reason to speak. By putting myself out in public and doing something which raises people’s curiosity, I have the chance to have conversations with people. Sometimes it is a passing curiosity that they have and the engagement is quite short, but more often than not I am able to have a relaxed and engaged conversation with people. I tell them what I am doing, they tell me about their own experiences – whether it is loosing flood insurance on their home, cleaning up bags and bags of plastic washed up on the shore, experiencing severe weather themselves or by way of family members. It is an entirely different experience from merely informing people about climate change. It is a chance to connect on a very personal level, and maybe (just maybe) have a greater impact because of that. I treasure every experience, and have been able to play the role of storyteller, passing on one story that I heard to another person with whom I speak, thereby sharing all of our experiences.
Yesterday I installed the beacons in 
I was joined for the day by my friend 
As most of you know, I try to do most of the project by way of the fabulous yellow trike. Sometimes though, there is a whole lot of chalk to put down – 6 buckets or so (at 50 pounds a bucket…) – those days I usually get a 
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I also was reminded of the part of my project description that says, “I will be drawing” – so even if there isn’t anybody out to document it or walk with me, I am still out there, loading up the chalker every 1/3 mile and laying out that ephemeral blue line of chalk (which also explains why some days there are no pictures of me). Good thing there were a lot of people out on the promenade today to talk to, many of them there to enjoy some free time, which meant that frequently they had the time to ask what I was doing and then have a conversation about climate change. Today I spoke with one gentleman about the loss of flood insurance in the coastal communities. I also spoke with a few different people who were quick to point out the rather crazy weather we are experiencing in New York, and certainly the weather and its affects around the world.
One person even asked, “So you are giving up all your free time to do this?” “Um, yeh, pretty much.” Although I don’t really think of it as giving up free time. If you love what you do and therefore spend all your time doing it, is it really giving up free time? This is basically the second or third time that I have been asked why I would take on this project. I don’t have a really good answer for that. I guess its because I felt like something needed to be done, someone needed to say something, and instead of waiting for someone else to do it…
Amidst a small amount of fanfare (well, actually none at all), the 
I traveled through areas where a few homes were sprinkled in amongst the heavy industry of auto shops (think buses with engines idling), speeding cars coming on and off the Belt Parkway, a concrete plant, and a Home Depot which managed to completely segregate a small grouping of homes from being part of any larger neighborhood. The area has a few waterways and canals cutting through it, guaranteeing flooding along the heavy industrial zones. And it is home to the very huge Coney Island rail yards (also known as the “
It was a short day, in expectation of the long day (over 2 miles) of chalking that I will do tomorrow along the promenade on the water side of the Shore Road Parkway. As I drew the line up to the baseball fields in the park I wondered if people might think I was an errant parks employee. Speaking of both the parks department and the promenade, I received another last minute okay on chalking in a city park – whew! – thanks to another great regional park manager. (Spoke to him at about 4pm this afternoon – about tomorrow’s drawing! This happened with 
Today I spent a quiet Sunday chalking the line through the 
