NEW YORK—Students from public schools in all five boroughs of New York City gathered at Union Square Park on Thursday to speak out on social issues through their art.
Ten colorful tables were displayed on the first sunny day of the week, one per school, and two from each borough. The event marks the fourth annual Learning through an Expanded Arts Program (LeAp) and NYC Parks & Recreation collaboration.
“You have made history,” said Adrian Benepe, commissioner for the NYC Parks & Recreation Department. “This is the largest student school exhibit in the history of New York City Parks Department, and the first to be in all five boroughs.”
“There is no better place to kick off this annual, socially minded exhibit than in Union Square Park, where New Yorkers have been broadcasting their ideas for over a century,” Benepe said. “The students’ thought provoking artwork is sure to enliven the city’s parks and raise awareness on the issues that are most important to them.”
The installation, titled “A View from the Lunchroom: Students Bringing Issues to the Table,” will be on display through August. Throughout the next month, the tables will be moved back to their respective boroughs, in 10 different community parks where anyone will be able to use them.
Each of the lunch tables—painted and lacquered—dealt with a different social issue. The Island School 188M in Manhattan took a stance against domestic violence in their “Choose Your Path” piece, and 53K portrayed good and evil in the world, urging their community to be positive.
Ten colorful tables were displayed on the first sunny day of the week, one per school, and two from each borough. The event marks the fourth annual Learning through an Expanded Arts Program (LeAp) and NYC Parks & Recreation collaboration.
“You have made history,” said Adrian Benepe, commissioner for the NYC Parks & Recreation Department. “This is the largest student school exhibit in the history of New York City Parks Department, and the first to be in all five boroughs.”
“There is no better place to kick off this annual, socially minded exhibit than in Union Square Park, where New Yorkers have been broadcasting their ideas for over a century,” Benepe said. “The students’ thought provoking artwork is sure to enliven the city’s parks and raise awareness on the issues that are most important to them.”
The installation, titled “A View from the Lunchroom: Students Bringing Issues to the Table,” will be on display through August. Throughout the next month, the tables will be moved back to their respective boroughs, in 10 different community parks where anyone will be able to use them.
Each of the lunch tables—painted and lacquered—dealt with a different social issue. The Island School 188M in Manhattan took a stance against domestic violence in their “Choose Your Path” piece, and 53K portrayed good and evil in the world, urging their community to be positive.
