Ryan Gander in ‘Panorama’ on the High Line

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.

Fiona Connor at Lisa Cooley Gallery

Visit a New York City park in the summer and you’ll find clusters of kids filling water balloons at fountains identical to LA artist Fiona Connor’s handmade replica of a cast concrete water fountain. Connor’s indoor version offers more peaceful and contemplative refreshment, however, on its own in the back room of Lisa Cooley Gallery. (On the Lower East Side through August 21st).

Fiona Connor, On What Remains (fountain), concrete, EPS foam, antique brass hardware, plumbing supplies, steel, ply, paint and coatings, car battery, Jabsco pump, potable water, 36 x 24 x 36 inches, 2015.

Subodh Gupta at Hauser & Wirth Gallery

The star of Subodh Gupta’s exhibition at Hauser & Wirth is this fountain, titled, ‘This is not a fountain,’ apparently in deference to Magritte’s pipe and Duchamp’s notorious 1917 urinal. Like those works, it begs the question of what’s original and what’s a copy. A constant flow of recycled water cascades over an accumulation of pots and pans used in daily life in India simultaneously suggesting individual lives and the sameness of a common culture. (In Chelsea through April 18th).

Subodh Gupta, ‘This is not a fountain,’ old aluminum utensils, water, painted brass taps, PVC pipes, motor, 2011-13.

Jeff Koons’ ‘Balloon Flower,’ at 7 WTC, Manhattan

As New York galleries take a break in the final weeks of summer, New York Art Tours heads to the city’s parks and public places to enjoy our lively public art scene.  Here’s a sculpture that several of you mentioned when we toured Jeff Koons’ show of giant balloon dog sculptures this spring.  Koons’ ‘Balloon Flower’ outside of 7 WTC in downtown Manhattan is a hit with kids on this sunny summer day.  

Jeff Koons, Balloon Flower, mirror polish stainless steel with transparent color, installation view in park of 7 WTC, July 2013.