Orly Genger's Red, Yellow, and Blue Installation at Madison Square Park

Orly Genger’s Red, Yellow, and Blue Installation at Madison Square Park

May 22, 2013

Maybe it was the glorious spring weather that had me swooning, or the fact that the flowers and trees were all in full, spectular boom, but I must say that Orly Genger's massive new art installation in Madison Square Park, titled Red, Yellow, and Blue, could be the best yet to grace the lawns of this Flatiron District oasis.

Considering that Genger's predecessors include the likes of Roxy Paine (and his shiny metallic trees), Sol LeWitt, Antony Gormley (looming guardian angels/fiends of death), Mark di Suvero and Jaume Plensa (that beautiful giant white head), that is high praise indeed.

Orly Genger's Art at Mad Sq Park

Orly Genger's Madison Square Park installation Red, Yellow, and Blue is so appealing, and even destination-worthy, for a number of reasons. First, there's the piece itself, which would be cool even in a shiny, sterile gallery. For Red, Yellow, and Blue, the Brooklyn-based artist painted some 1.4 MILLION feet of heavy-duty, intricately-knotted nautical rope, piling it layer upon layer to create these lovely, undulating walls that form huge enclosures. More astonishing numbers: the total length of rope used in Genger's piece is equal to 20 times the length of Manhattan; she used more than 3,000 gallons of paint (it's glopped on really thick), and the whole thing weighs nearly 100,000 pounds.

Mad Sq Park Colored Red, Yellow, and Blue

But what really makes Genger's Red, Yellow, and Blue special is the way its organic forms blend so easily into the landscape (despite the screaming primary colors), and that it encourages all manner of interaction with us, the viewing public. As you can see from the photos, people sit and lounge and pose for endless photos on the art. They use it for as a backrest, and for shade, and as a secluded-feeling nook in which to relax. The texture is so scratchy and raw, the colors so bright and childlike, the form so soothing and "naturalistic", that Genger's work hits you on many levels. A huge winner for Madison Square Park.

Orly Genger in Madison Square Park

Orly Genger's Red, Yellow, and Blue will be at Madison Square Park through September 8. But if you go before May 31, you can a great meal (or snack… or dessert) across the street at Mad. Sq. Eats, a food festival open daily until 9:00 p.m. and featuring more than 30 first-rate vendors, from Roberta's pizza, MMM Enfes's Turkish street food, and La Sonrisa empanadas to Dreamscoops ice cream, Eleni's cookies, and slices of Momofuku Milk Bar's legendary Crack Pie. More info on Orly Genger here; more on Mad. Sq. Eats here.

Posted in NYC Events | Tagged Mad sq park art • Madison square park eats nyc • Madison square park orly genger • Orly genger new york • Orly genger red yellow and blue

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