Many Baruchians walk through Madison Square Park to get to school, gym class, or recreation. Often, paths are blocked for construction, events, and even art installations.
However, on Wednesday, there was a peculiar sight on the great lawn: a fallen crane. The crane’s nature has sparked conversation among Baruchians, who are curious to know if it is an accident or a prime example of contemporary art.
When asked, students had differing opinions. Junior, Sundus Kassim, said, “It’s an accident, if it’s art it’s embarrassing.”
While, senior, Alyssa Montanez, said, “I think it’s art because it’s not something you see very often.”
Students don’t share the same sentiments and definitions of what makes something art. Merriam Webster defines art as “the conscious use of skill and creative imagination, especially in the production of aesthetic objects.”
The executive director of the information department at the Madison Square Office, Holly Leicht, said in an email, “I’m happy to let you know there was no accident: the crane is part of an art installation titled ‘Fixed Crane’ by Nicole Eisenman.”
On VIA Art Fund | Fallen Crane, Eisenman’s installation is described as “a monumental sculpture commissioned on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of Madison Square Park Conservancy’s public art program.”
Further along on the same site, they explain the meaning of the work.
“Embellished with handmade sculptural forms, the work destabilizes familiar heroic objects associated with human achievement and exploration. The dormant crane echoes the destabilizing feeling of a city constantly in flux.”
Art is often in the eyes of the beholder. The exciting part about art is how open it is to interpretation. Onlookers can determine for themselves whether or not they believe this installation to be art or what it may signify.
Sheyla Saenz, a junior, said “At first it didn’t look like it, I just remember walking fast and just seeing it on the floor. I thought maybe it just fell and they were too lazy to pick it up. Now learning the meaning I kind of understand it.”
Isabella Chow, a junior, said “I agree with Sheyla, for me art is when something has meaning to it. So now knowing the meaning of it, I can see how it is art. Before I wouldn’t say that it is art because I didn’t know the meaning of it.”
