Sheila Bernard’s “Happy Feet” brighten up Port Authority (photo © 2011 by Sheila Bernard)
Port Authority Bus Terminal
South Terminal
Daily through May 31, free
www.sheilabernard.smugmug.com
Every year, we look forward to local photographer Sheila Bernard’s new show, often held in unusual locations and featuring very different kinds of work. In past years she has displayed her “Urban Times” series, focusing on the reflections of buildings in other buildings; “Windows & Doors,” comprising pictures of the title subjects framed like works of art themselves; and “Graphsicals in Italy,” shots of Venice digitally enhanced with bursts of color. Her latest exhibit, “Happy Feet,” consists of nine photographs of clown feet on a boardwalk, displayed in the narrow glassed-in gallery in the Port Authority’s South Terminal. Even if you’re one of the many who are terrified of clowns, “Happy Feet” provides a playful counterpart to the types of shoes worn by men and women making their way through Port Authority every day, either going home or heading for work, often in a hurry trying to catch the next bus or train. A rainbow of bright yellows, reds, blues, greens, purples, and pinks explode like a candy starburst, also providing a stark contrast to George Segal’s nearby sculpture of a trio of all-white plastered people. Tourists and New Yorkers are always rushing through Port Authority; Bernard’s photographs once again offer the opportunity to take a little break and add some fun to the journey.