In 2002 Bloomberg told the media that now that it looked like the Board of Education was about to be moved into the Tweed Courthouse (named after the corrupt NY politician), it was also his goal to also have the famous building house a school. "Do you know why we're going to put a school in the Tweed Courthouse?" he asked. "So that all of the administrators every day get reminded why they have jobs, what they're supposed to focus on. And if every day they see children getting an education, that will remind them when they go upstairs what their mission is.''
Well, Bloomberg might not be my favorite man on the planet, but he did follow through on this one promise...
This is Anevay's second year at the Ross Global Academy, a charter school fueled by Courtney Ross, who also started the Ross School in East Hampton. Despite the fact that I have some problems with the school, I think it is very cool that the Public Art Fund installed Roy Lichtenstein's "Element E" from Five Brushstrokes in the foyer of the building. Mrs. Ross is known for her artistic vision for the school, and Lichtenstein's enormous piece couldn't be more appropriate...
Today I happened to have my camera on me, and so I decided to take a few shots of not only the building, but of Lichtenstein's sculpture.
Imagine my surprise when a security guard approached me, all bluster and vinegar, told me it is not permissible for me to take photos of the sculpture. Then he asked me what I was doing inside the building. Um, first of all, duh! I'm standing there in the middle of a school with my kid standing next to me... It should have been pretty obvious that I was a parent or guardian picking up my daughter! Second of all, whaaat the flock?! I can't take pictures of PUBLIC ART?! The guard kindly mentioned that because the building didn't belong to the school, that I would first have to get permission before I started snapping pics. I was in too much shock to ask, from whom ought I obtain permission?!
Hm... doesn't this seem to defeat the purpose of Lichtenstein's sculpture being placed by the Public Art Fund for the public, if the public isn't allowed to utilize it as a public piece?
I couldn't help but take one more clandestine photo...
When we arrived home, I immediately went to the Public Art Fund website to investigate...
I didn't find many answers, but I'm going to send off a couple of emails and get back to you. I'm not (usually) a rabble-rouser, but this was just a little too much... I want my kid to feel that her school belongs to her, not that she belongs to her school... If she can't utilize the contents of the school, then what is all of it doing there?!
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