Your name/collaborative or group name

Maskull Lasserre, in collaboration with Central Park Tours Inc.

 The title of your project:

Obverse

Obverse.  Photo courtesy of artist.

What does “FREE” mean to you?

Like almost everything, “Free” can only be understood in relation to its opposite.  Freedom is defined according to one’s conception of constraint or confinement.  Free is measured in terms of potential cost. To appreciate one, there needs to exist a knowledge of the other.  An understanding of freedom has to be earned through hard won experience of its antithesis.

Obverse.  Photo courtesy of artist.

Why is 14th Street a compelling site for creative response?

There is a potential that exists in undifferentiated public space. Its relative neutrality offers a backdrop for artistic action that grants a sharp contrast in the perception of the viewer. This contrast does not exist in institutional contexts where the experience of art is anticipated, and therefore loses the potency of surprise. 14th Street will serve as a test site for ideas and interactions unbiased by preconceptions that so often interfere between the viewer and the work.

Obverse.  Photo courtesy of artist.

What reactions are you hoping to draw from the public?

I am hoping that the public meets this project with equal parts surprise and recognition. I am hoping that it is somehow both strange and familiar in the way that causes the viewer to re-examine the things they take for granted, and see the everyday for the unexpected potential that it holds.  This work presents both an invitation to the viewer to participate, and a challenge for them to engage with the work physically and physiologically.  It blurs the boundaries of freedom and confinement, comfort and peril, claustrophobia and exhibitionism. I hope it enriches the perception of the thematic of the festival, and of the city that forms the context for this work.