Allison Katz, ‘Don’t ASK’ on the High Line

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Titled ‘Don’t’ Ask,’ painter Allison Katz’s 10th Ave High Line billboard poses nothing but unanswered questions. Not only do we not find out why the chicken crossed the road, we might now wonder if the rooster was being followed, and why and what the bold double-yellow, do-not-cross road markings might mean in the relationship drama between rooster and hen.  In the midst of Chelsea’s busy built environment, the billboard’s closeup on the visually pared-down scenario of birds and road acts like a giant magnifying glass, zooming in on what might be a curious happenstance or an element in a deeper narrative.  Graphically bold and suggesting comedy, Katz’s set up is an enjoyable launching point for conversation or imagination. (through August in Chelsea).

Allison Katz, installation of ‘Don’t Ask’ at 18th Street and 10th Ave, July 2025.

Gabriel Chaile on the High Line

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Inspired by pre-Columbian ceramics in his native country of Argentina, Gabriel Chaile’s High Line sculpture ‘The Wind Blows Where it Wishes’ turns a vessel-shape into a living form with a delicate face positioned both front and back on the neck.  Made from steel and adobe, the sculpture recalls ancient handcrafting processes while being protected and animated by an undulating ribbon of dark metal which ends at the front in two small hands holding a tube-like instrument.  Towering yet humble, an object yet miraculously living, Chaile’s enchanting sculpture uniquely engages the park’s visitors.  (On view on the High Line over 24th Street through April ’24).

Gabriel Chaile, The Wind Blows Where it Wishes, adobe and steel, 2023.

Sascha Braunig in ‘Mutations’ on the High Line

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Sascha Braunig is best known for paintings of quasi-human figures that seem to merge with a digital backgrounds, so her sculpture ‘Giantess’ on the High Line – set in a natural environment – is something of a fun surprise, begging the question of who would wear these huge, spur-bedecked heels. (On view through March 2018 near 24th/25th Street).

Sascha Braunig, Giantess, nickel-plated bronze, 23 x 15 x 10 inches, 2017.

Sheila Hicks on the High Line

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Known for sometimes-monumental installations of fiber art, Paris-based American artist Sheila Hicks has transformed the wilder northern reaches of the High Line with an ambitious, twisting arrangement of fabric-covered tubes. Primary colors and cable-like forms complement the construction-site aesthetic of the neighborhood as the development of Hudson Yards continues apace.

Sheila Hicks, Hop, Skip, Jump and Fly: Escape from Gravity, installation view on the High Line, July 2017.

Max Hooper Schneider in ‘Mutations’ on the High Line

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Locks of real and synthetic hair move like undersea plants in LA artist Max Hooper Schneider’s eye-catching aquarium installation on Manhattan’s High Line park. Long drawn to aquariums as hobby and art objects, the artist gathered materials from minerals to freeze-dried vegetables to create a seabed built from layers of consumer culture detritus. (On view through March 2018).

Max Hooper Schneider, Section of Intertidal Landscape (Hair Metastasis) on the High Line, July 2017.

Andrew Lenaghan at George Adams Gallery

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Brooklyn artist Andrew Lenaghan rewilds the High Line in this tiny painting of massive buildings, as seen from the elevated park. Dereliction and new development are Lenaghan’s themes; how they seem to merge is his intriguing angle. (At George Adams Gallery through November 30th).

Andrew Lenaghan, A Better High Line, acrylic on paper, 5 x 7 inches, 2016.
Andrew Lenaghan, A Better High Line, acrylic on paper, 5 x 7 inches, 2016.

Mike Nelson in ‘Wanderlust’ on the High Line

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Sleeping bags filled with rubble from nearby construction sites make for an eerie sculpture by British artist Mike Nelson. Placed in semi-hidden locations on the High Line, the bags contrast the luxurious living conditions being created in the neighborhood’s new buildings with solitary, make-do survival. (In ‘Wanderlust’ on the High Line through March 2017).

Mike Nelson, Untitled (public sculpture for a redundant space), sleeping bags, concrete, construction debris, dimensions variable, 2016.
Mike Nelson, Untitled (public sculpture for a redundant space), sleeping bags, concrete, construction debris, dimensions variable, 2016.

Nari Ward on the High Line

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Smart cars snag great parking spaces in New York; this one, created by Harlem-based artist Nari Ward, enjoys a privileged place on the High Line where an admiring audience regularly surrounds it. Inspired by an abandoned car that hosted a lime tree in his father’s yard in Jamaica, Ward planted an apple tree in this car, lining the exterior with rubber tire treads and turning a symbol of nimble urban driving into a stationary support for nature. (On the High Line through March 2017).

Nari Ward, Smart Tree, Smart car, cinder blocks, tire treads, soil, apple tree, 106 x 61 x 120 inches, 2016.
Nari Ward, Smart Tree, Smart car, cinder blocks, tire treads, soil, apple tree, 106 x 61 x 120 inches, 2016.

Matt Johnson in ‘Wanderlust’ on the High Line

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Matt Johnson’s ‘Untitled (Swan)’ marries industrial materials to the natural world by shaping a train track into the shape of an abstract swan set in the High Line’s lush gardens. Known for morphing everyday items – a crumpled Starbucks cup carved from wood and painted, a stack of plastic party cups actually rendered in painted bronze – into objects of wonder, this twisted rail pays homage to the former rail line on which it’s installed. (In ‘Wanderlust’ on the High Line through March 2017).

Matt Johnson, Untitled (Swan), bent train track, 120 x 138 x 34 ¾ inches, 2016.
Matt Johnson, Untitled (Swan), bent train track, 120 x 138 x 34 ¾ inches, 2016.

 

Damian Ortega in ‘Panorama’ on the High Line

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Mexican artist Damian Ortega finds a new to suspend his sculpture in space (last winter he created an explosion of tools at the Cooper Hewitt Museum) in this graffiti made of rebar, as if he’s managed to tag the sky. (On the High Line in Chelsea through March 2016).

Damian Ortega, Physical Graffiti #3, steel, 5 ft 10 ¾ inches x ¾ inches x 7 ft 9 ¼ in, 2015.

Ryan Gander in ‘Panorama’ on the High Line

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It’s creepy, but a steady stream of visitors to the High Line can’t resist taking a sip from Ryan Gander’s fountain, designed so that a stream of water flows from the mouth of a woman rendered in marble. The sculpture is a provocative update on traditional ‘garden of love’ imagery given that the model was Gander’s wife, leaning in for a kiss. (On the High Line Park in Chelsea through March 2016).

Ryan Gander, To employ the mistress…It’s a French toff thing, marble, stainless steel, copper tubing, 1 ft 4 inches x 1 ft 4 inches x 5 ft 4inches, 2015.

Josh Kline in ‘Archeo’ on the High Line

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Thirsty visitors to Chelsea’s High Line park will want to keep walking past New York artist Josh Kline’s contribution to the outdoor public sculpture show ‘Archeo.’ In this industrial fridge under the Standard Hotel, Kline presents a selection of drink containers labeled with ingredients that might turn you into a label checker. They include: ‘minimum wage,’ French fries, Mr Clean, K-Y jelly and fake plant. Takers?

Installation view of ‘Skittles’ by Josh Kline in ‘Archeo’ on the High Line, New York City.

Jonas Woods on the High Line

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New residential buildings are springing up on 10th Ave like weeds, making this billboard-sized domestic scene by LA artist Jonas Woods strangely appropriate.  The personality of each plant is enhanced by quirky pots – most of which resemble creations by Wood’s wife, ceramic artist Shio Kusaka.  (On the High Line at 18th Street through Feb 3rd.)  

Jonas Woods, Shelf Still Life, print on vinyl, 25 x 75 feet, 2013.

Andra Ursuta in ‘Busted’ on The High Line

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Andra Ursuta’s giant marble nose begs the question of what Ozymandias-like character would deserve such a large portrait sculpture and what went wrong, leaving only the nose behind.  It’s a highlight of the High Line’s group exhibition ‘Busted,’ which reimagines public portrait sculpture. (Through April 2014).  

Andra Ursuta, Nose Job, white marble, wheelbarrow, variable dimensions, 2013.

Frank Benson in ‘Busted’ on The High Line

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Swept-back hair and blocky shades give this graceful dancer a back-to-the-future vibe that’s complicated by the possibility that she’s a street mime, a mannequin or neither.  (Featured in the group exhibitions ‘Busted’ on Chelsea’s High Line through April 2014.)  

Frank Benson, Human Statue (Jessie), bronze, acrylic polyurethane, 2011.

Virginia Overton, High Line Art Commission at 20th Street Edison ParkFast

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Brooklyn-based artist Virginia Overton combines the city and country in her untitled project next to Chelsea’s High Line park by parking a pickup truck with a bricked in bed and a scene of flying ducks in the back window on the top of an Edison ParkFast stack.  (Next to the High Line at West 20th Street through Aug 8).  

Virginia Overton, Untitled, pickup truck, bricks, 2012.

Raymond Pettibon on the High Line

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Raymond Pettibon tends to make large installations of small drawings, so this huge drawing depicting a Boston Red Sox and Brooklyn Dodgers game, located next to the High Line at 10th Avenue and 18th Street, is an eye-opener.  The picture goes beyond baseball to hint at East Coast/West Coast rivalries (the Dodgers moved to LA) that extend to music and more. (Through July 1st).  

Raymond Pettibon, No Title (Safe he called…), print on vinyl, 2010.

Goshka Macuga on the High Line in ‘Busted’

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Public sculptures tend to depict moments of triumph, not regret. This makes Polish artist Goshka Macuga’s bronze rendition of Colin Powell, part of the High Line’s portrait exhibition ‘Busted,’ surprising and poignant as he shows the leader holding a vial of anthrax in his 2003 UN speech on weapons of mass destruction. (Through June 2014 at 22nd Street on the High Line.)  

Goshka Macuga, ‘Colin Powell,’ bronze and concrete, 2009.

JR and Jose Parla outside Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery

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I’ve been looking forward to globe-trotting street artist JR’s opening at Chelsea’s Bryce Wolkowitz Gallery next Tuesday, so spotting the artist and Jose Parla as they created this wall mural last Saturday on the gallery exterior was a treat.  For their collaborative project, JR and Parla photographed and interviewed seniors including this stately woman.  (‘The Wrinkles of the City’ opens May 7 and runs through July 12).

Thomas Houseago’s ‘Lying Figure’ on the High Line

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Thomas Houseago, Lying Figure, bronze, 2012.
Thomas Houseago, Lying Figure, bronze, 2012.

Thomas Houseago’s ‘Lying Figure’ lurks in shadow on the High Line under the Standard, like a voyeur lying in wait for the hotel’s notorious exhibitionist guests.  Composed of repulsive, fecal-looking coils cast in bronze, the character is nonetheless a commanding presence despite being laid low and missing his head. (On the High Line through March 2013).