Saturday, Februrary 26, 12pm

Free

RSVP: mishkingallery@baruch.cuny.edu

Capacity limited to 20 people; first-come basis, masks required

While Gramercy Park is often thought of as an exclusive neighborhood, this walking tour visits several significant public art works on and around the Baruch College campus that challenge such exclusivity. Through these works, which span from the early 20th century to the contemporary, the tour foregrounds accessibility—asking how and for whom public art is made, and what makes a work truly public. The tour stops include the Mishkin Gallery’s New Deal-era building—formerly the New York Domestic Relations Court Building—designed by Charles B. Meyers with façade reliefs by H.P. Camden (1939); “Brier Patch,” Hugh Hayden’s installation in Madison Square Park (2022); Kindred McLeary’s Works Progress Administration-sponsored murals of New York City life located in the Madison Square Station Post Office (1939); and Martin Wong’s “Traffic Sign for the Hearing Impaired” (1991), installed outside P.S. 347 - The American Sign Language School. This tour will consider both the historical context of each commission and its relevance today. By engaging with these works in situ, this tour examines how the built environment reflects the diverse communities that live, work, attend school, and pass through the neighborhood.

Note on accessibility: This tour will be conducted outdoors. Masks are required for attendees. The tour will consist of walking and approximately 20-30 minutes of standing. Accommodations are available for anyone who might require assistance. Please contact mishkingallery@baruch.cuny.edu to arrange.