Storm Tracking

Storm Tracking

I am of the vintage that can boast of working at Vogue Magazine under the directorial eye of Alexander Liberman who reigned artistically supreme over the entire Conde Nast group of “books” from Vogue to Brides and all the Glamours and Mademoiselles in between. I had seen his super-sized sculptures made out of reclaimed oil cans and painted orange only in coffee table books. That is until my recent trip to Storm King in New Windsor, NY.

I had dragged my daughter along to share in the Liberman sighting. We walked the grounds under the sweltering sun in awe of how magnificent each and every art installation looked in their unique settings… expansive fields; woodsy environs; even islands. I had left the map in the car of this area that included over 100 sculptures, so I asked a grounds guide, who appeared out of nowhere next to the “Three Legged Buddha”, where I might find the Libermans. Surprised, she responded, “No one’s ever asked me for him specifically”. Another Storm King visitor approached the Buddha and overheard the guide. “His stuff is the best work here”. I welled up with pride in front of my daughter, so grateful first of all that they hadn’t thrown out his oil cans in favor of a new installation…and because I suddenly felt like an insider.. like I was related to the man, and not just a Vogue staffer whose name he would have never remembered. Here are pictures of just some of the works we saw.

 

I don’t know what this is called, but I liked it.

 

I don’t know the name of this one either… that’s what we get for deciding to trudge through the King’s 500-acre property on foot instead of taking the guided tour tram.

 

Off in the distance, this is all we saw of this installation.

 

Then when we walked around the little hill we discovered Abakoniowitz’ three “Sarcophagi in Glass Houses”.

 

These were so beautifully constructed in tiny pieces of fitted wood that curved like an armadillo’s skin, I had to show you this closeup.

 

“Three Legged Buddha” by Zhang Huan. You can see a bike parked next to his head to get an idea of the scale of this piece.

 

Walking out of the woods behind the Buddha, we came to a beautiful field of grasses and flowers and a path leading to a series of concrete walls by Richard Serra, that actually made the landscape look even more impressive.

 

This remarkable “dry” wall by Andy Goldsworthy serpentines its way down the hill and into the water and then comes out to continue its path on the other side.

 

This one’s called “Suspended” and it truly does look like it’s floating just above the ground.

 

You’ll recognize the artist here. Lichtenstein painted this hull called “Mermaid”, which actually raced in the America’s Cup.

 

This one is called “Foci” by Booker. It appears to be impossibly “standing” on its curved base with no supports.

 

Louise Nevelson’s “City on the High Mountain”

 

A detail of John Bisbee’s “Squall”. Imagine putting that together!

 

And finally Alex Liberman’s oil-can mash up, “Illiad”

 

ps: If you visit Storm King (and you really must), don’t eat at the Storm King Cafe. Stop off in Newburgh (ten minutes away) and eat here!

 

Ixtapa Taco Truck