the high line — pleasure in simple things

Tag: the high line

a dinosaur on the high line

December

Any day I spend in New York City usually includes a walk on The High Line.

My last visit to the city, planned as a day to enjoy the holiday festivities, was no exception.

I hadn’t been on The High Line since a particular piece of art, titled Dinosaur, was installed last October on the Plinth located above 10^th Avenue and 30^th Street. This celebrated spot is part of a contemporary art program that has been displaying sculptures in the heart of the city since 2019.

The piece called Dinosaur is a 2,000-pound, nearly 16-foot-tall cast aluminum sculpture of a pigeon created by Paris-based Colombian artist Ivan Argote. Argote’s pitch was selected from a group of 80 artists in 2020.

The sculpture’s foundation was laid in Mexico, and it was hand painted in New Jersey. It took a crane and a lane closure of 10th Avenue to position the pigeon on its perch (the concrete plinth).

Why is it named Dinosaur? Apparently, the sculpture is an ode to the pigeon’s distant past as the birds descended from dinosaurs. Who knew?

Anyway, my daughter and I really wanted to see the hyper-realistic bird in person and we hadn’t been on The High Line since before last October, so we used our recent visit as a chance to get an up-close view. I am so glad we did – despite the bitter cold!

The pigeon has to be one of my favorite sculptures I have seen on the High Line. (The two tons of Legos dumped on The High Line is still my very favorite installation! Click here to see.)

I feel lucky to live close enough to New York City to visit on a whim! And the holidays are always an extra special time to visit.

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a fabulous weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Comment » | field trips, travel

valentine’s day 2020

February

This is the first Valentine’s Day in decades (wow…that sounds crazy!) that I have been single. As you can probably tell by the way I started this post, I decided to focus on myself this year. I decided to make Valentine’s Day all about falling in love with taking care of myself and to avoid all the hype of the day that is going on around me. So far, it is working out pretty well!

As a gift to you, I would like to share some sightings that seem appropriate for the day from a recent stroll down the High Line in NYC with one of my favorite galentines. Enjoy…

Enjoy your weekend! Be good to yourself.

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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two tons of white legos®

August

What would happen if someone dumped two tons of LEGOS® into a city park and told the public to ‘have at it?’ You can find out this summer on the High Line in New York City with The collectivity project!

The collectivity project, an installation of white LEGO® bricks, features an imaginary cityscape conceived and designed by the public. The ever-evolving shape of the installation is at the mercy of those visiting the High Line who are welcome to play with the installation – building and rebuilding the structures over time.

The project stimulates tons of creative energy and provides a darn good time in the process! The idea was driven by Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson, demonstrating his desire to make the concerns of art relevant to society at large; not limited to the confines of a museum or gallery.

Visitors are a mix – from super serious architect types to those who are just passersby and add a single brick or two. Me? I found myself somewhere in the middle. I wanted to make my mark on the project – to be a contributor – but, I didn’t feel the need to impress anyone with my superior LEGO® building skills!

If you should visit, you may not see what is pictured here since the piece is constantly being reconfigured by those who visit and contribute to its ever-progressing contour.

Visit the High Line now through September 30th and you will get the chance to make your mark on two tons of white LEGOS® at no charge! How cool is that?! Thanks for stopping by for Friday field trip! I will post some additional photos from this great installation on Facebook this weekend.

Have a wonderful weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

P.S. Click here to read more about The High Line.

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fleet week nyc and other excitement

May

field trip friday

I am one lucky girl! I toured Food Network! There aren’t many things that would get me as excited. Not since meeting Khaled Hosseini, has my heart beat so fast. Even more exciting was that a friend and I were given a personal tour by a high school classmate who I would have enjoyed spending time with no matter where I was….the combination of the two sent my happiness through the roof :) Adding to the excitement of the day…it was Fleet Week! Fleet Week is a United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, and United States Coast Guard tradition – active military ships recently deployed in overseas operations dock in a variety of major cities for one week. On the walk to Food Network, we were able to witness the Parade of Ships that signaled the start of Fleet Week NYC 2012. Check it out:

A picture taken while walking along the Hudson River on the way to Chelsea, we got a great view, even with the overcast day, of the Parade of Ships marking the start of Fleet Week – a tradition in New York City since the early 1980’s.

Another photo of the NYC Parade of Ships for Fleet Week 2012.

Watching the Parade of Ships signaling the start of Fleet Week creates such a patriotic spirit!

Three of the 6,000 men in uniform descending on NYC for Fleet Week. Does this remind you of a particular Sex and the City Episode :) ?

(See pleasureinsimplethings facebook page for more Fleet Week photos – click the facebook icon on the homepage)

How cool! Now, off to Food Network!

A photo of a view of the Food Network set from ‘behind the scenes.’

I got the chance to not only see the inner workings of the network, but so much more. My former classmate is a senior executive and his insight into, not only the Food Network (and some cool history about the buildings in Chelsea), but the industry and the future of media, was totally fascinating. The technical aspect of the station is overwhelming, the physical space is visually interesting, and the people that work at the network were all so fun to talk to…all happy to explain their roles and answer questions posed by a ‘groupie.’ I think that is probably what I am…a Food Network ‘groupie’ (some may say ‘junkie’)…or maybe they just call me crazy?

The Food Network kitchens sign really got me breathing heavy :)

A photo of the Food Network kitchens.

A photo of the Food Network set. Standing on this set, where so many I have admired have stood before, was definitely a highlight for me!

On the visit to Food Network, Melissa d’Arabian was filming a promo for Ten Dollar Dinners.

The Food Network is located above Chelsea Market, an enclosed urban food court and shopping mall located in the Chelsea neighborhood of the borough of Manhattan in New York City.

The Chelsea Market has so much history surrounding it – dating back to the 1890’s and the National Biscuit Company complex.

A photo of the salad I had for lunch in a little organic restaurant located in Chelsea Market.

After the walk TO Food Network from Grand Central Station and witnessing the ship parade, I never expected the walk BACK to be as interesting, but I was wrong – my Food Network friend suggested we check out The High Line as we were leaving the Network building and it ended up be a really cool walk back as well. It was reminiscent of visiting a botanical garden.

The High Line is basically the recycling of the former elevated New York Central Railroad into an urban park. It was redesigned and planted as an aerial greenway. It runs from three blocks below West 14^th Street in the Meatpacking District, up to 30^th Street, through the neighborhood of Chelsea to the West Side Yard, near the Javits Convention Center.