Talk

Francis Alÿs’s artistic practice falls into many genres–drawing, painting, video, film, photography, and performance. Alÿs is particularly interested in creating gestures that are witnessed, discussed, experienced, and remembered by many. In 2002, in collaboration with the Public Art Fund and the Museum of Modern Art, Alÿs organized The Modern Procession, a celebratory march commemorating the temporary re-location of MoMA from Manhattan to Queens. A Peruvian band led over 150 participants from MoMA (53rd Street and 5th Avenue) through the streets of mid-town Manhattan and over the Queensboro Bridge to MoMA QNS (33rd Street at Queens Boulevard). Both festive and ceremonial, the procession made MoMA’s historic transition both visible and public, linking the boroughs of Manhattan and Queens in a spectacular and memorable way.

Presented by the Public Art Fund in association with the Vera List Center for Art and Politics at The New School.