Wow, did that make any sense at all?

... great piece by Julie Lasky (ID Magazine) at Design Observer expressing suspicion of the Gates.

also this NY Times satellite before and after feature is pretty sweet.

interesting ref pieces mason - can anyone mention public art works they find successful?

I strolled through the Gates yesterday. While I liked, but didn't love, the aesthetics of the project, I'm far more impressed with the cultural event it has created. It's like a mini Bilbao Guggenheim in New York's Central Park. If you're opinion on the art is that it is good, bad, or indifferent, it doesn't change the fact that people are traveling to see this thing.

Far more importantly, however, I did spot a celebrity while walking through the Gates. Tom Cavanagh, the guy who played "Ed" on the tv show "Ed," was walking through the park with an attractive female friend.

i find most public art bad. laws for buildings to include it are partly to blame. that said, i love alexander calder's pink flamingo in chicago. meis' buildings act as a nice back drop too.

mm, people are traveling to see it. i just had two friends in seattle buy tickets at the last minute. $1400 just for airfare. i'm not sure i'd spend that much to see it.

$1400? That's insane. Christo clearly has the cult of personality.

I had to debate spending $2 on the subway fare up to central park. But seeing a celebrity made it all worth it.

yep, 1400 bones. insane indeed.

'the somerville gates' would be meaningless if christo gates weren't installed. small detail but true..
not that christo gates take me anywhere. the only success it has to bring more people to central park who otherwise would not go or been there.

the creator of the sommerville gates is my financial advisor.

The somerville gates? seriously, some people have way to much time on there hands. not to mention the bizarre affection towards a cat

i can't believe the nyt's covered the somerville story. ???