Rings in Manhattan

The 21st of September marked the start of the Storefront for Art and Architecture gallery’s 25th Anniversary celebrations, kicked off by the opening event where Korean architect Minsuk Cho of Mass Studies unveiled a temporary pavilion, called Ring Dome, in New York City to host a series of performances called Performance Z-A, which will last all the way till the 16th of October this year.

What seemed at first to be a small gathering of trees with a nondescript black fence, turned out upon closer inspection to be concealing a hemisphere of hula hoops which had been held together by simple plastic ties - the Ring Dome by Minsuk Cho, from Korean architecture practice Mass Studies.

The half-sphere covered most of what was Petrosino Park, which can’t be considered large at all given New York’s standard of public parks - think Central Park. The Dome broke boundaries both in material and in physical terms, the dome structure cutting across even the most stubborn black fence that lined the park boundaries. It spoke of a coy disregard for formal set boundaries, with the slight tongue-in-cheek arrogance of imposing a playful hula-hoop boundary to enclose a captivated audience. Conceptually, if you think about it, a hula-hoop is a self-imposed boundary which then controls the way you move, act, and use it. The structure did much the same, just that this time it not only controlled its inhabitants, but its context as well, ringing its way across the park fences and walls.

Contrary to what I’d thought when I’d set my eyes upon the rendered perspective of Cho’s Ring Dome, on the Storefront website, the hoops weren’t exactly only held together by plastic fasteners - a slender metal structure helped the Dome achieve its ballet. Of course, you had the usual architecture fanatics snapping away at the pavilion, yours truly included.

[Mysterious shapes were abound within the Dome’s confines…]

The festivities continued into the night, and as daylight bid the city farewell, the lights came on. Strung through the cores of the hula hoops were operable light fixtures that caused the Dome to emit a soft ephemeral glow. A projector was turned on to flash a random slideshow of Mass Studies’ acheievements and concepts to date, with edgy avant garde electronica murmuring in the background; the stage was set for something, but nothing was really happening. It was just one big gathering of people for the sake of celebrating art and architecture: probably what the people behind the Storefront wanted anyway.

[Projections animated the Dome surface, which even featured a circular projection screen.]

Seeing the surroundings through a different lens, the Pavilion allowed for interesting and sometimes captivating views of the surroundings, proving again how much impact simple, ingenious architecture can play a part in transforming and adding that extra something to the simplest of venues. One had to ask though, what the message behind the Dome was; was it some kind of abstract commentary on globalisation, with the whole Storefront event taking place in the melting pot of melting pots - Manhattan New York? Was it an stinging critique that the multi-faceted, hyper-connected, polycentric world that we think we live in - actually has its limits? Whatever the aim, the Ring brought a welcome departure from the masonry, glass, and metal that graces much of New York, and a lot of the modern world today.

[Banner & Photographs Courtesy of 5ft Creatives]

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Read the Press Release from the Storefront for Art & Architecture:

21 SEPTEMBER - 16 OCTOBER:

PERFORMANCE Z-A, A PAVILION BY MINSUK CHO/MASS STUDIES AT STOREFRONT FOR ART AND ARCHITECTURE

Twenty-five years ago, in September 1982, Storefront’s first public event got underway in its original Prince Street location. Performance A-Z, organized by the gallery’s founders Kyong Park and R L Seltman, and artist Arleen Schloss, was a 26-day sequence of performances by New York-based artists. Each of the 26 performers was allocated one evening slot.

The event became a manifesto for the gallery’s future programming: as Kyong Park wrote in his introduction, “Storefront supports the idea that art and design have the potential and responsibility to affect public policies which influence the quality of life and the future of all cities.”

In late September 2007, Storefront will celebrate its 25th anniversary with a new edition of its first event. Entitled Performance Z-A, this 26-day celebration will be hosted in Petrosino Park, adjacent to Storefront, in a specially built pavilion designed by Korean architect Minsuk Cho.

Organized by the three directors who have led Storefront over the past 25 years (Kyong Park, Sarah Herda and Joseph Grima), Performance Z-A will be an inclusive event involving not only performance artists but also representatives of all the disciplines that have participated in Storefront’s program in the past decades: architects, artists, writers, researchers, filmmakers, photographers, musicians and more.

For 26 days, from September 21 to October 16, 2007, the protagonists of Storefront’s past, present and future will host 26 evening events including performances, concerts, open discussions, film screenings and interviews. Participants will include:

Stalker Lab
Bjarke Ingels/BIG
Vito Acconci
Florian Boehm and Luca Pizzaroni
Stefano Boeri
Eyal Weizman
Anselm Franke
Minsuk Cho
Pedro Reyes
Akiko Miyake
Barbara Held
Dan Graham
Arleen Schloss
Armin Linke
Ruben Ochoa
Frederic Tuten
robbinschilds
Center for Urban Pedagogy
Jill Majid
DJ N-Ron
Academie Schloss Solitude
Tomas Saraceno
Forum for Urban Design

and many more. A detailed program of the final sequence of events will be published shortly on Storefront’s website at www.storefrontnews.org

Performance Z-A will be part of a city-wide celebration of the 40th anniversary of art programming in New York City’s parks, during which public parks around the city will host installations by a wide range of artists, both emergent and well-known.

ABOUT THE ORIGIANL PERFORMANCE A-Z (SEPTEMBER 1982)

Performance A-Z launched the opening of Storefront for Art Performance A-Z launched the opening of Storefront for Art Performance A-Z and Architecture at 51 Prince Street, its original location. For 26 consecutive nights free live performances by 26 artists, musicians and performers took place in the gallery and on the sidewalk. Teching Hsieh, who upon entering his home ended a year-long performance of living outdoors in New York City, was the only participant to hold his event at another location.

Storefront’s large display window blurred the distinction between inside and outside, performers and audience. Exploring a diverse range of performance art, Performance A-Z participants included the Gerlovins, Carolee Schneemann and Paul Boyd.

Storefront’s program is generously supported by:
New York State Council for the Arts (NYSCA)
Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC)
New York City Department for Cultural Affairs (DCA)

Performance Z-A visiting artists are supported by:
The Graham Foundaion for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts
Mexican Cultural Institute New York
Japan Foundation New York

- Storefront for Art & Architecture

JJ is co-founder of 5ft Creatives and is currently based in New York.