Art with a Message in Long Island City

A couple of years ago I wrote about a great art installation in Long Island City called the Top to Bottom Mural Project. For that project, dozens of street artists painted a variety of murals on all four sides of a three-story building. This spring, a new art installation appeared on the same building, covering the original murals. This project is a bit of a mystery. I’ve done some research, but I haven’t yet figured out who has painted it. It looks like the work of one artist or group of artists working together on a single concept. The murals appear to portray refugees from different geographic places and different eras. It’s a powerful work of art – there’s something different to see everywhere you look. Some are in color, while others are in black and white. The figures are woven throughout spans of glass windows. Some are small, no more than a single story in height. Others are as tall as the building.

Anything I might say about these murals is not nearly as effective as they are, so let me get to the photos. I’ve chosen a variety of shots to give you a sense of the project’s magnitude and impact, but there’s even more to see if you go there in person.

If you want to see these amazing murals for yourself, the building is located at 43-01 21st Street in Long Island City. If traveling by subway, the closest subway stations are the F train’s 21st Street/Queensbridge station and the E, G, and 7 trains’ Court Square Station. (The M stops at Court Square on weekdays, but not on the weekend.) If I ever figure out who the artist is, I will update the post later. Note: If you wish to take photos of the murals, I recommend going on a cloudy day. The sun casts shadows on the murals that make photography challenging!

The Noguchi Museum

There are so many excellent art museums in New York City that most people fail to go beyond the most well known: the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum, the New Museum, the Whitney Museum, the Brooklyn Museum. All of them are great museums, and I’ve written about many in this blog. But there are others, less well known, that are worthy of a visitor’s time and attention. One of the best, in my opinion, is the Noguchi Museum. Located in Long Island City, the Noguchi Museum houses the work of Japanese-American sculptor Isamu Noguchi (1904-1988).

One of the things that makes this museum so special is the architecture. When Noguchi decided to build his museum in Long Island City, he designed an amazing space to house his art. One part of the museum is an old industrial building that Noguchi repurposed. To that building, Noguchi added a modern structure and a walled garden. The combination of hard, industrial lines, concrete, old wood floors, natural light, and drywall showcases his work to great advantage.

The outdoor space is my favorite. There are two types of outdoor space. Part is mostly enclosed by the walls of the building, but with open spaces near the ceilings. These open spaces let in light in special ways, casting unique shadows. The day I visited, there had been some rain earlier in the afternoon. The damp floor and even slight puddling in places only added to the overall artistic environment.

The garden is a tranquil oasis, a green space that’s the perfect foil for more of Noguchi’s sculptures. There are several places to sit for a while, enjoying the beauty of the garden environment. The combination of natural materials with stone and metal is striking, and the height of the walls surrounding the garden provide a welcome refuge from the busy outside world.

Inside, there are sculptures spanning Noguchi’s professional career and utilizing a range of techniques, styles, and media. I enjoyed the contrast between different types of stone, textures, and scale.

There’s a special exhibition right now titled “Self-Interned, 1942.” As a resident of New York City during World War II, Noguchi was not required to enter a Japanese-American internment camp, but he voluntarily spent several months in the Poston War Relocation Center in Arizona with the hope (unrealized, unfortunately) that he would be able to develop an art program for the camp. The exhibition includes both art and artifacts from that time period. This exhibition is only open through January 2018.

Finally, Noguchi was also known for his lamp designs, and there is a room with a number of examples of those designs.

Want to see the Noguchi Museum in person? The Museum is located at 9-01 33rd Road (at Vernon Boulevard) in Long Island City. If you are traveling by public transportation, you can take the N or W trains to the Broadway station, and then walk 8 blocks west on Broadway until you reach Vernon Boulevard. Turn left and walk 2 more short blocks to the museum. (You will see Socrates Sculpture Park at Broadway and Vernon Boulevard, another great place to visit.) If you don’t want to walk that far, you can also take the Q103 bus, which has stops near many of the other subway stations in Long Island City. (For specific directions, use the Trip Planner on the MTA website.)

Note: The Noguchi Museum is not open on Mondays or Tuesdays. On the first Friday of each month, admission to the museum is free – and there are also extended hours on First Fridays during the summer, as well as a cash bar.

Views of New York City on a Foggy Night

My first Finding NYC blog post, more than one and a half years ago, showed some of my favorite photos of the New York City skyline. (You can find that post here.) One of the best views of Manhattan is from Gantry Plaza State Park, along the East River in Long Island City, Queens. The park is a wonderful place to watch the sun set over the city, and the city lights at night can be magical.

Last night we went to a restaurant not far from the waterfront, and afterwards we walked down to the park to view the city. The clouds were coming in, and fog was descending. It certainly was a different view than usual! Still, even without being able to see the skyline, the city was beautiful. Would you have guessed that this is New York City?

This was definitely not the night to use the viewers – as demonstrated by my wife! Regardless, we had fun. And on a night like this, we had the park to ourselves.

The fog was not so thick that we didn’t spy the Queensboro Bridge in the distance. This is one bridge that looks better at night, when the bridge’s structure is less visible.

There are always the views of Long Island City and the gantry cranes – the fog had not obscured them yet.

Or how about this view of the Hunter’s Point Library construction site, with its unique architectural design by architect Steven Holl? I can’t wait to see the library once it’s finished!

Here’s another close-up view. Doesn’t it look intriguing?

Finally, a photo of the vintage Pepsi sign. Even with some of the neon tubes unlit, the sign still glows brightly in the dark.

(If you want to visit Gantry Plaza State Park yourself, the directions are found here, in my earlier Manhattan skyline post.)

Movable Sculpture: “Lunchtime on a Skyscraper”

New York City is full of amazing public art, but Sergio Furnari’s sculpture, “Lunchtime on a Skyscraper – A Tribute to America’s Heros,” is truly unique. Furnari is a master craftsman who creates sculptures and artistic custom tile work. In creating “Lunchtime on a Skyscraper,” Furnari drew inspiration from an iconic 1932 photo of construction workers taking a lunch break on a high-up beam during the construction of one of the buildings at Rockefeller Center.

The sculpture has its own unique history. Furnari, an immigrant to New York City from Italy, finished it just after 9/11. The sculpture really resonated with the workers doing the clean up at the World Trade Center site. The sculpture spent 5 months at a temporary location near the site before going on a nationwide tour. Because the sculpture is mounted on a truck, it can be moved around. I’ve seen it multiple times near Furnari’s studio in Long Island City, Queens, near 10th Street/Vernon Blvd. and 45th Avenue. Every time I see it, I’m struck again by Furnari’s ability to portray these working class men in such a realistic way.

If you are traveling by subway, the closest subway station to this location is the Court Square station. If you head to Long Island City to visit one of the microbreweries (I’ve talked about them previously here, here, here, and here) or to see some of the community’s street art (see my post here), you should keep an eye out for this sculpture as well – finding it is always a special treat!

LIC Beer Project

There are 4 microbreweries in Long Island City, across the East River from Manhattan – they make for a nice walking tour, if the weather is nice. We’ve previously explored 3: Transmitter Brewing, Rockaway Brewing Company, and Big Alice Brewing. Today, I’m going to introduce you to the fourth and final one: LIC Beer Project.

Located on the opposite side of the Queensborough Bridge from the other microbreweries, LIC Beer Project offers a taproom and brewery space that is architecturally interesting.There’s a small bar area and a few high tables with bar stool seating, as well as a large area where visitors were playing a beanbag game called “cornhole.” You can also check out the brewing area.

Unlike the other microbreweries in Long Island City, visitors currently cannot order tasting flights at LIC Beer Project, but they do offer full glasses of beer. On the day that we visited, the taproom offered 6 LIC beers as well as 2 guest taps. I tried a Belgian-style stout called Evening’s Empire, which was very good.

LIC Beer Project is located at 39-28 23rd Street in Long Island City. The closest subway station is approximately three blocks away – take the F train to the 21st Street – Queensbridge station. Make sure that you check the brewery’s website before you go, as it is only open for limited hours.

Tasting Unique Brews at Big Alice Brewing

Wanting to try some of New York City’s most unique (and delicious) beers? If so, you should head to Big Alice Brewing in Long Island City, Queens. Located just across the East River from Manhattan, it’s not too far to travel from anywhere in the city. Big Alice gets its name from the Big Allis electric power generator, also located in Long Island City. The founders of Big Alice changed the spelling to incorporate the initials for Long Island City: aLICe!

The brewery and taproom are located in a neighborhood with a distinct industrial feel – it’s situated in a brick building with an understated entrance. As you can see from the photo below, some people actually bike to the brewery. But it’s only a short walk from the subway as well.

Inside, the taproom is cozy yet comfortable. In addition to the area near the taps, there is another seating area near the brew tanks. That’s one of the things I love about visiting microbreweries like Big Alice – I have the opportunity to see where the beers are brewed as well.

At Big Alice, you can choose a tasting flight (either 4 or 6 beers), or you can purchase beers individually by the glass. One of the benefits of visiting a place like Big Alice with a friend – you can try more beers if you share them! We started with a 6-beer tasting flight and then ordered a few more samples as well.

During our visit we tried the following beers:

• Peppermint Stout
• LIC Native White Stout
• Galena Single Hop Blended Sour
• Jalepeño Rye
• Gunpowder Tea Rye Ale
• Sour One with Kiwi Cask
• Sweet Potato Farmhouse Ale
• “Date Night, Bro? (coffee and doughnut stout)

Everything was delicious! Among our favorites: the Sour One with Kiwi was a truly excellent sour ale, for those who love sours. And the Jalepeño Rye, which always gets positive reviews online, was also really good (much better than I had expected, actually!). I enjoyed the Sweet Potato Farmhouse Ale, and surprisingly – that coffee and doughnut stout! And yes, it really was brewed with doughnuts! It looked a bit like chocolate milk, but it tasted like a seriously tasty stout. The bitterness of the coffee balanced the sweetness of the doughnuts. There actually wasn’t a beer that we regretted tasting, a rare feat for any beer tasting.

Big Alice constantly adds to beers to their repertoire, so you may not find every one of these beers on tap when you visit. But, based upon our experience tasting their beers, you will not go away disappointed. And Big Alice is classified as a farm brewery, meaning that they source their ingredients from farms in New York State.

How do you get to Big Alice Brewing? It’s located at 8-08 43rd Road, between 9th Street and Vernon Boulevard in Long Island City. The closest subway station is the Court Square-23rd Street Station, where you can catch the E, 7, or G (and the M on weekdays). While you’re in the area, check out the Top to Bottom Mural Project, which is only a short walk from the brewery.

Top to Bottom Mural Project in Long Island City

Many people don’t realize it, but Long Island City, located across the East River from Manhattan in the borough of Queens, is host to some amazing art museums – including experimental art museum MoMA PS1, the Sculpture Center, and the Noguchi Museum. There’s also free public art, particularly street art and murals. One of the latest mural projects, curated by Art Org NYC, is known as Top to Bottom.

Top to Bottom is a series of murals by more than 50 artists, painted on the three-story exterior of a building that takes up a city block in Long Island City. If you go, make sure that you walk all the way around the building, looking both high and low – there’s a lot to see! And regardless your taste in art, you are likely to find murals you like, as there is such a variety. (There’s even a poem painted along the top edge of the building!)

Here are some of my favorites. (More photos are available in my Instagram gallery @findingnyc1.) I’ve previously featured a mural by artist Alice Mizrachi at the Welling Court Mural Project in Astoria, but there’s another one of her murals here. Like her other mural, I found this one both beautiful and compelling.

There are also two wheatpaste murals by artist lmnopi, including this beautiful one titled, “Welcome.” This artist’s work always has so much power, such a strong social message, commenting on themes related to human rights, refugees, child labor, and immigration.

I was also excited to find this mural by Chris “Daze” Ellis. (You may recall, Daze has a major exhibition going on right now at the Museum of the City of New York, which I previously explored here.) This is the first time I’ve seen one of his public art pieces.

There was this graffiti heart mural by Bio TATS Cru.

This one is by Case McLaim.

I love how this mural, by Oksana Propopenko, seems to reference the art deco style of the building’s doors.

And don’t forget to look up! Here are some interesting figures up high on the second and third stories of the building, painted by street artist Cern.

This mural, by WERC, is detailed and vibrant – the more I look at it, the more I notice the small details in this piece.

I loved the colors and personality of this owl mural, perched up high on the building. This one is by Brazilian street artist Binho Ribeiro.

Or how about the details from this cartoon-like mural, painted by Yes2.

Finally, here’s a part of the fabulously detailed mural by Magda Love.

Interested in seeing the Top to Bottom murals yourself? (And you really should!) The building is located at 43-01 21st Street in Long Island City. There are multiple subway stations nearby. You can take the E train to Court Square-23rd Street (the M train also stops at this station on weekdays). Or you can take the 7 train to Court Square or Queensborough Plaza, or the F train to the 21st Street-Queensbridge station. From this area, you will have a great view of the Queensborough Bridge, as well as Silvercup Studios, with its iconic neon sign that is visible from above-ground trains and major roadways.

Socrates Sculpture Park

Socrates Sculpture Park, located along the East River in the New York City borough of Queens, is a cross between a public park and an outdoor art exhibition space. The park is situated in Long Island City, but it isn’t far from the Welling Court street murals in Astoria. Its location along the river makes it a little cold in the winter, but it’s still worth seeing its diverse, multimedia art installations even if you have to bundle up. Currently, the park features the 2015 Emerging Artist Fellowship Exhibition, which continues until March 13, 2016.

Here are a few examples of the art you will see when you visit the park. (If you click the artists’ names, you will go to the full description of each piece on the park’s website.)

First, here is Kenneth Armstead’s Master Work: Astoria Houses, Building 24, 2015. It is constructed of stainless steel, tar, and feathers, and was the largest single sculpture I saw at the park during my visit.

This next piece, by José Carlos Casado, is titled Trade, 2015.

This next work, by artist Carla Edwards, is titled Gain and Cost, 2015.

These sculptures by Charlotte Hyzy are collectively titled Dessert Babes: Queer Fat Decadence, 2015.

There’s also Tactile Formation, 2015, by Melanie McLain.

This work is Kirsten Nelson’s Displaced Corner, 2015.

I loved these painted bronze sculptures by artist John Ahearn, created in 1994. In order presented here, they are titled Cory, Daleesha, and Raymond and Toby.

And finally, here is the view from the park across the East River towards Manhattan (albeit a bit grey on the day of my visit). This view is of Manhattan’s Upper East Side, and there aren’t really any noteworthy buildings in this area. When the weather is good, the path along the edge of the river is nice though.

Intrigued by what you see here? These photos show only part of the works on exhibition at the Socrates Sculpture Park at this time – you should visit to see the full park. But notice the thin grass in places. If it has rained or snowed recently, you will want to wear waterproof shoes, as the ground can get a little muddy. The grass is much more plush in the warmer months, and the park has lovely flowers in season.

To get to the park by public transportation, you can take the N or Q trains (Q only running Monday through Friday) to the Broadway station, and then walk 8 blocks west on Broadway until you reach Vernon Boulevard. You can also take the Q103 bus, which has stops near many of the other subway stations in Long Island City. (For specific directions, use the Trip Planner on the MTA website.)

Sampling Farmhouse Ales at Transmitter Brewing

A trip to Transmitter Brewing takes a little more effort, but it’s definitely worth it. If you are a fan of traditional farmhouse ales, a visit to Transmitter Brewing is a must. Theirs are some of the best I’ve had in a long time.

It’s a small location, tucked under the Pulaski Bridge in Long Island City, Queens. There’s no taproom, but there is a small tasting room where you can taste some delicious beer. Behind the garage door next to the tasting room entrance is the actual brewing facility. You can take a peek at where the beer is brew, and there is also a small seating area if you are with other people and want to purchase beer to drink on site. Transmitter brews their beer in larger, corked bottles – perfect for sharing. You can also purchase bottles to take home for later consumption.

We sampled three beers during our visit: the G1 Golden Ale, the F4 Brett Farmhouse Ale, and the H4 Italian Plum Sour Farmhouse Ale. My favorites were the G1 and F4, as I’m not a fan of sours, but another taster who really enjoys sours said that the H4 was also delicious. If you’ve never tried one before, farmhouse ales generally have a fruity note, with a little more body to it – some have an earthier, slightly funky taste. The yeast is usually suspended in the beer, making it a little cloudy. (I’ve been told that the yeast in the beer is actually healthy for you, although I’ve never confirmed that!) They are very drinkable beers, but robust and a little rustic. There’s a lot of flavor packed in the bottle. Transmitter regularly brews new beers, so there’s likely to be something different every time that you visit.

Here’s a display in the tasting room that shows some of the previous beers that have been brewed.

How can you get to Transmitter Brewing? If traveling by subway, take the 7 train to the Vernon Blvd./Jackson Ave. station. When you get off the train, walk south along Vernon Boulevard, crossing both 51st Avenue and Borden Avenue. Turn left on Borden and then right on 11st Street. You will walk parallel to Pulaski Bride. After you cross 53rd Avenue, Transmitter Brewing is on the right. You can also get to Transmitter Brewing by way of the Long Island Railroad, getting off at the Long Island City station. The tasting room is only open limited hours at this time: Fridays from 5:00 – 8:00 pm, and Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 5:00 pm. (But check Transmitter’s website to verify times before you go.)

Visiting Rockaway Brewing Company

I recently learned that an English travel blogger I’ve been corresponding with, Marion, was traveling to New York City for the first time with her son Mark. (You can find Marion’s blog, Love Travelling, here.) We arranged to meet in person while Marion was here. I wanted to take them somewhere beyond the usual tourist destinations in the city and decided that Long Island City would be our starting point. The plan was to taste some beer at Rockaway Brewing Company’s taproom before walking the short distance to Gantry Plaza State Park, by the East River, and watching the sunset over Manhattan.

Rockaway Brewing Company is located in an old brick manufacturing building that has some great murals painted on the side.

Here are a couple of photos of the murals on the side of the building.

A sign painted on the side of the building appears to explain the bicycle theme:

Because we arrived at the taproom at 3:00 pm on a Thursday, right after it opened, we had the place to ourselves for a little while. We took advantage of the intimate atmosphere, talking about Marion and Mark’s adventures in New York City to that point and learning more about the beer. Rockaway offers 8 beers on tap, as well as a couple of special beers, as demonstrated by their chalkboard. Some of the beers are always available, while others are seasonal. Here’s the list of what was on tap during our visit. (They also serve draft cider from Descendant Cider, a local cider maker – a great option if you are with someone who doesn’t like beer.)

The brewery has two set tasting flights: the “classic” flight, which consists of beers that are regularly available, and the “other” flight, which are the seasonal beers. You can also choose to mix and match. On this occasion, I decided to create my own flight, as seen in the photo below. From left to right, we have the Helles, the Winter Whistler, the Extra Stout, and the Nitro Black Gold Stout.

All four beers were delicious. Rockaway makes very drinkable beers. As you can probably tell from the tasting flight I selected, I have a soft spot for stouts. Both of these stouts were absolutely delicious and still distinctly different from each other. They had a smoothness, with the Extra Stout having more distinct chocolate notes, and the Black Gold having a lovely suggestion of coffee so often present in a good stout. I would definitely order any of the beers I tried again. The bar manager also gave us bags of Cape Cod kettle chips to snack on, which was a nice touch.

It was a cold day out, and the tap room was nice and cozy. There’s nice seating in the bar area, but there is also another space upstairs which is perfect if you come with a small group of people. Another fun thing about Rockaway – they often host pop-up dining options that change regularly. The food is usually available on weekends only, so we didn’t get to sample anything during our Thursday visit – but that just provides an excuse to come back again! Check the brewery’s events calendar if you’re interested in one of Rockaway Brewing’s pop-up food events.

On the weekend, the brewery also offers tours of their brewing room. I actually went back last weekend to take the tour since it wasn’t offered during our Thursday visit. (The second visit also gave me the chance to try beers I didn’t try the first time! They were all delicious too.) The tour was interesting and informative, and I was left with a new appreciation for the process of putting beers into cans! Here are a couple of photos I took from the tour.

Rockaway Brewing is one of my favorite places to go in Long Island City, and a great destination to take visitors. If traveling by subway, take the E or the M to the Court Square-23rd Street Station (the M train only runs Monday through Friday), the G to the 21st Street-Van Alst Station, or the 7 train to Vernon Blvd-Jackson Avenue.