Times Square Arts Partners with Grotesk, Juxtapoz Magazine and Victory Journal to Bring the
T.SQ Newsstand to Times Square – October 9 - October 18, 2015
Photo by Shane Lyons
New York, NY – October 1, 2015 – Brooklyn-based and Swiss born artist Kimou “Grotesk” Meyer, Victory Journal, Juxtapoz Magazine, and Times Square Arts bring the T.SQ Newsstand, a new take on the iconic NYC newsstand of yesterday, to the Broadway plaza between 44th and 45th Street from October 9 - October 18, 2015. An unveiling will take place on Friday October 9th at 11:00 am.
The T.SQ Newsstand is an artful reminder of New York City’s support of artists and printed publications. It will offer a roster of hand-picked art and culture magazines, including Juxtapoz, Brooklyn’s own Victory Journal and a limited edition publication featuring Charlie Ahearn, Daniel Arnold, Barbara Kruger, and more.
In June 2009, Juxtapoz Magazine commissioned a cover illustration from Grotesk. The result was an idiosyncratic update of the newsstand, the New York staple that represented a classic version of the city we know and love. In 2014, Grotesk brought the illustration to life, designing, painting and constructing a pop-up installation at the SCOPE Miami Art Show.
The T.SQ Newsstand now arrives in Times Square with a fresh face: the 4 x 8 x 8.25 plywood and aluminum structure is now waterproof, all of the signs—as well as the marquee—are redone by classically trained sign painters Matt Wright and Mike Langley of Sky High Murals. Some of New York’s most respected graffiti writers were invited to add their own personal touch to the structure. To emulate the New York he idealized, Grotesk built wooden items, including fake cigarette packs, pigeons and more.
The T.SQ Newsstand will also feature surprise visits from some of the publication’s contributing artists, including Jason Polan, Jean Jullien, Cheryl Dunn and more. The artists will be on-hand to sign their work, sell limited edition prints, books, and rare pieces from their personal archives. Artist residency announcement will happen the day of their appearance.
Sherry Dobbin, Times Square Arts Director, said, “Once I saw the installation in Miami, I knew it could perfectly merge the gritty days of old New York with the contemporary edge of newly created works. Is it real? What can you buy? What is it when the artists seize back a piece of history?”
Artist Kimou “Grotesk” Meyer said, “When I arrived in New York from Switzerland in 1999, I was trying to find a French newspaper in Midtown. I found one in a very small newsstand on 23rd Street and was immediately fascinated by the raw beauty of the little shack; the feeling that it had been there for 50 years. To follow up on the 2009 Juxtapoz cover illustration of the urban relic, we built a fictionalized newsstand to scale and dropped in the middle of the SCOPE art fair. As a busy, vibrant structure with lots of color, it was a total anomaly in a gallery that normally featured a lot of white space. With the disappearance of the newsstands in NYC, it’s a great opportunity to bring the newsstand to the middle of Times Square, reminding people of the New York that existed not so long ago.”
Tim Tompkins, President of the Times Square Alliance, said, “Times Square has always been a center for media, news, and most especially the printed word, beginning with it being named after The New York Times in 1904. This is a brilliant way of reconnecting with that visceral analogue past. We welcome ink and print back to Times Square.”
Evan Pricco, Editor-in-Chief, Juxtapoz Magazine said, “Juxtapoz has always championed a special kind of relationship with art, one that involves interaction and inclusion on all levels. Thanks to Converse, the T.SQ Newsstand project will be the perfect symbiosis of all that we stand for; a way to transform the everyday object to a place where creativity is born. From the magazines in the newsstand to the actual art installation that it is, we want to build a lasting impression on the power of art.”
Chris Isenberg, Editor-in-Chief, Victory Journal, said, “I grew up in New York in the ’70s and ’80s and print—from the New York Post to Screw Magazine to Sports Illustrated—was a seminal part of that experience. When Kimou Meyer (Grotesk), Aaron Amaro and I came together to make Victory Journal, our shared love of print and interconnecting nexus of magazine influences were a big part of the glue. This installation is so magical because it offers a trip into Kimou’s transformative, imagined vision of an “Old New York” newsstand, but it also functions as a very real analog temple in a digital mecca, where we get to show people the magazine we love to make.”
The T.SQ Newsstand, backed by Converse, will be on view October 9 - October 18, 2015 on the Broadway Plaza between 43rd and 44th Streets. It will be up and running during Open House New York weekend (www.ohny.org).
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Times Square Arts, the public art program of the Times Square Alliance, collaborates with contemporary artists and cultural institutions to experiment and engage with one of the world's most iconic urban places. Through the Square's electronic billboards, public plazas, vacant areas and popular venues, and the Alliance's own online landscape, Times Square Arts invites leading contemporary creators to help the public see Times Square in new ways. Times Square has always been a place of risk, innovation and creativity, and the Arts Program ensures these qualities remain central to the district's unique identity. Generous support of Times Square Arts is provided by ArtPlace America and ArtWorks. Visit TimesSquareNYC.org/Arts for more information. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @TSqArts.
Grotesk
How does a Swiss born, Belgian trained graphic designer end up earning a PhD in vintage Americana, designing NBA uniforms, and collaborating with Bushwick graffiti vandals? Kimou Meyer (aka Grotesk) is a creative director of Victory Journal and a partner at Brooklyn-based agency Doubleday and Cartwright, all while saying true to his passion for illustration and sculpture, and drawing on his classical training to develop an iconic graphic language and style.
Victory Journal
Victory Journal is a large format print and digital magazine devoted to the intersection of sport and culture. It’s earned a gold medal from the Society of Publication Designers (SPD), praise from sources like GQ, It’s Nice That, and Harvard’s Nieman Lab as well as a cult, international following. It has featured work from Cheryl Dunn, Christopher Anderson, Thomas Hoepker and more.
Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine
Since 1994, Juxtapoz Magazine has covered the ever-changing landscape of contemporary art, culture and design in the pages of their monthly magazine and website. It has become the most widely circulated art magazine in the United States, and become a major staple covering the international art scene as well. Telling the stories behind works of art, murals, products, books, museum and gallery exhibitions, Juxtapoz has documented the history of the underground and its rise to dominate the language of popular culture.
Media Contacts:
For Times Square Arts:
TJ Witham (212) 452-5234│ TJWitham@TimesSquareNYC.org
Marisa Wayne (212) 843-9216│MWayne@rubenstein.com
For Grotesk & Victory Journal:
Jon Bier (646) 541-5256│jon@jacktaylorpr.com