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Sneak Peek At Kara Walker's "Monumental" Domino Installation
By
Jen Carlson
Published May 6, 2014
Modified May 6, 2014
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By
Jen Carlson
Published May 6, 2014
Modified May 6, 2014
Share
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This Saturday Kara Walker's impressive installation at the former Domino Sugar Refinery in Williamsburg will open to the public, and yesterday we got inside for a little sneak peek. The work—her first major public project, commissioned by Creative Time—is still in progress, but mostly complete.
The pieces have been created out of "unconventional materials and in monumental scale to examine the history of the sugar trade and its many implications past and present." The massive, site-specific installation is a bit of a departure from the legendary artist's previous works.
The centerpiece of the show, called A Subtlety, is a sugar-coated sphinx-like figure that dominates the 30,000-square foot space—the piece is 75.5-feet long, 35.5 feet high, and 26 feet wide. Nearby stand fifteen 5-foot-tall sugar sculptures of young boys "arrayed in a procession leading to" the sphinx.
The show will open Saturday, May 10th, and will be open and free to the public through its closing date of July 6th. Hours are Fridays 4 to 8 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays 12 to 6 p.m.
Parts of the massive refinery complex, which closed in 2004, are currently being demolished as part of a massive mixed-use development on the waterfront.
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Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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