Steinunn Thórarinsdóttir’s life-size sculptures fill Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza (photo by twi-ny/mdr)
Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza
47th St. between First & Second Aves.
Through September 30, free
www.nycgovparks.org
borders slideshow
Despite warnings to evacuate or at least stay inside during Hurricane Irene’s attack on the tristate area, more than two dozen figures continued to fill Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza all weekend long — and don’t plan on moving till the end of September. For “Borders,” Icelandic artist Steinunn Thórarinsdóttir has created twenty-six site-specific life-size sculptures of androgynous beings, thirteen silver aluminum statues facing thirteen rust-colored cast-iron replicas, standing, sitting on benches, and kneeling throughout the park. Thórarinsdóttir, who has installed such public works as “Horfur (Prospect)” and “Rætur” in her native Reykjavik and the expansive “Horizons” at Nathan Manilow Sculpture Park in Illinois, breathes unique life into each pair, with the figures crossing their arms as if concerned about something, walking toward each other in potential conversation, kneeling in supplication, or covering their nether regions, which are empty anyway. The works recall Antony Gormley’s “Event Horizon,” which took over Madison Square Park and surrounding Flatiron District buildings last year, thirty-one representations of Gormley himself, but whereas those were all identical (and mostly on rooftops), each pair of Thórarinsdóttir’s figures are different, fraught with emotion that makes visitors want to approach them, sit next to them, and help them with their problems. The opposing figures also provide a kind of guarded path that goes past the Japan Society and alongside the Katharine Hepburn Garden as it leads toward the United Nations at the east end. “Borders” is an engaging, welcoming exhibition that is well worth making a special trip for.