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People, We Need $250K to Save This Coney Island Mural!
By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 21, 2010
Modified Jan 21, 2010
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By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 21, 2010
Modified Jan 21, 2010
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On Tuesday, we considered the impending loss of Feltman's kitchen, the last remnant of what used to be a glorious hot dog empire on Coney Island. But the humble structure—where Nathan Handwerker slept on the floor before going on to open Nathan's Famous—isn't just noteworthy as the birthplace of hot dogs (as we know them). It is also the host of this mural, painted in 2004 by artist Rita Ackermann. The mural will presumably be lost when the city demolishes Feltman's kitchen as part of a major redo of the Coney Island amusement district. Which seems like a waste, because the mural's worth $250,000... according to a friend of Ackermann, artist Steve Powers. (He did the Bump Your Ass Off signs for the Eldorado bumper cars.)
Regardless of the exact appraisal price, the mural and the building are worth saving. After tearing down so much of the old Coney Island, can't the city just let this one little building stand and turn it into a mini hot dog museum? "[In 2004] Powers teamed up with Creative Time, the non-profit public art agency, to bring artists to Coney Island to create new signage for the stands along the Walk and the Bowery," reports Amusing the Zillion. "It’s ironic that public art which was created in response to real estate development changing the landscape and character of Coney Island is itself endangered by redevelopment."
Tagged
coney island
feltman's
hot dog
mural
nyc
Rita Ackermann
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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