An NYC Living Room With A View

This week, a suspended living room opened above Columbus Circle which enclosed the famous statue of the man who is credited with discovering America.  It's a truly wacky and inspired work of public art by a man named Tazu Nishi. Actually, that's not his real name...changing his name is also part of his odd work as a multmedia artist.

Tazu scouted a number of statues in NYC and almost picked the one of an angel in Central Park. But he liked that this one was up of the ground a bit, as opposed to other statues which didn't have much of a base. While the living room is nicely designed, what's really cool are the completely unobstructed views out the windows to the north (of Central Park West) and to the East (of Central Park South).

You can read more about him in a fun Times Q&A piece. And you can visit his living room box some 80 feet above the circle through November 18th.

Some Cool New Public Art For New Bleecker St Station

Recently, the MTA unofficially unveiled a new work of public art at the Bleecker Street station.  They took down the construction boards blocking the view of the new 6/BDF train transfer, which will eventually allow passengers to transfer to the uptown side of the 6.

The art on display is by an artist I know from my NYU days, Leo Villareal. He has created a honeycomb-like pattern of colorful flourescent tubes that shift and change color constantly.  It's really cool and watching the colors change is almost hypnotizing. Leo has specialized in computerized LED style displays, large and small.  This one is called "Hive" and it's a beautiful addition to the newly renovated station.