The chillier it gets, the more New Yorkers are inclined to minimize their outdoors time as they rush frantically from one building to the next. But if you’re still after a good turtle-paced saunter to help you unwind, there are always places to be discovered. Like the Chashama Window Space (217 E 42nd St between Second and Third Aves; 212-304-1037, chashama.org), a free performance space that occupies a former storefront window near Port Authority. This week, the window hosts a collection of 100 steel nests, woven by NY-based sculptor and installation artist Alison Collins. And since nothing says “take a load off” like a window full of strangely shaped metallic roosts, we think it’s fortunate that the nests ended up in possibly the most frantic, congested spot in town. Collins made the piece in response to Metamorphoses, an epic fifteen-book poem about life, love and change, by the Roman poet Ovid. And the title of the work? In Statu Nascendi (”in the state of creation”), a possible reference to the sense of peace it creates—however momentary—for the viewer standing there. So take your time with it. There’s no rush.
Image courtesy of Providence Art Windows.
