Did you know that the New York City’s Department of Sanitation (DSNY) had an artist in residence for 40 years? Mierle Laderman Ukeles: Maintenance Art, the newest exhibition at the Queens Museum of Art is a celebration of Ukele’s tenure there documenting the seemingly mundane work of maintenance workers in provocative ways.
Halfway through the media preview tour, a woman trailing behind jokingly quipped about how much there was to see. Eyeing the sheer size of the exhibition, it’s understandable why someone would need more than a couple of minutes in each room.
Within the space, a survey of Ukeles’ 50-year long career is displayed: photographs are hung on the walls in a grid-like fashion; historic documents are kept behind glass display boxes and eye-catching sculptures stand center-stage. It is the first show that utilizes all the temporary exhibition space inside the Queens Museum of Art, and the most significant presentation of Ukeles’ work ever assembled in one location.
Prior to the start of the media preview, Ukeles, during a short, yet profound speech, pointed to a sanitation truck parked right in front of the entrance to the museum. It is fitted for the exhibition with mirrors and behind it, the world-famous Unisphere from the 1964 World’s Fair can be seen, spraying jets of water into the air.
It allows people – and most importantly, sanitation workers – to see the work they are doing; it suggests openness and inclusion. With her arms extended outwards, almost as if to embrace the press, Ukeles explained these themes and her intentions as an artist while standing behind a podium.
Since the 1960s, Mierle Laderman Ukeles’ artwork has addressed some of the most complex societal issues today, including feminism, environmental justice and cultures of work and labor. Not only does it encourage people to think critically and creatively, it also serves as a “guidestar” for the next generation of artists to work in a socially engaged way.
Openness as a theme can easily be felt throughout her pieces, as well as the physical space itself. Upon entering the Queens Museum of Art, visitors will walk into a wide expanse, lit up, in part, by natural sunlight flooding in from skylights on the ceiling – architectural elements part of the $68 million renovation, completed in 2013.
To read the full story, visit http://untappedcities.com/2016/09/14/exhibit-about-the-art-of-sanitation-and-city-maintenance-opens-at-queens-museum-in-nyc/.