Everyone Lives In Their Own Reality

The exhibition space, beneath Fort Jay, once housed munitions.  Oysters shells and other environment-themed art had replaced ammo.  That's a good thing, no?

Tim had never been to Governors Island.  I had visited only once before, also to see some contemporary art.  Jenny Kendler's "Other of Pearl," was the draw this time.  She "grew" pearl sculptures (above) inside these display cases and auctioned them off after the exhibit closed to benefit the Billion Oyster Project.

Kendler and her collaborator used fossilized whale bone as clappers to fabricate these bells.  They're intended to draw attention to species extinction but only a careful read of the exhibit label apprises you of the artists' intentions.  

"Whale Bells" by Andrew Bearnot & Jenny Kendler (2023)

Kendler maps her nervous system in this one, using thousands of freshwater pearls.  Too bad it reminded me more of Halloween than our interdependence with the environment and women's traditional work.

"Mother, of Pearl (Nervous System)" (2024)

Here the artist creates the inside of a sperm whale's head, fashioning the organs that give it voice and enable its echolocation from a variety of materials, include antique whale oil. No sperm whales were harmed in this unusual work's creation!

"Sperm Whale Instrument (Part I)" (2024)

Eye-rolling was even more characteristic of Tim's reaction to this exhibit than mine.  He works in the musical instruments department of the Met, and is an artist in his own right. "You've got to open your heart more," I teased.  "Or close my eyes!" he retorted.

He found Governor's Island itself more interesting.  A National Park Service ranger on autopilot told us it's shaped like an ice cream cone, with landfill from the construction of the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel forming the scoop.

A moat surrounds Fort Jay.  It's always been dry.

Housing for Army officers who once served at Fort Jay and their families has been turned into art galleries.

You would not have believed the number of bees buzzing around these flowers.

Tim had as little patience for art exhibited inside one building as he had for "Other of Pearl."  I didn't get the name of the artist who created this ironic sculpture from a school notebook.

Another building displayed the work of the formerly incarcerated.

"The Republikklan Supreme KKKourt" by Karen L. Thomas

"Verdict" by Jairo Pastoressa

Tim took a picture of my eye before asserting that photos aren't reality because they capture only a moment in time and a single person's point of view.  I argued that's exactly what makes them "real."  The photos I took reflect what I saw on a glorious Sunday afternoon with a friend on an island in the middle of New York harbor.