Walk through a trippy mirrored maze in Rockefeller Center this month
See if you can make find your way through this
Midtown maze
Thursday, July 10, 2025
TIMEOUT NEW YORK
Issue # 1481
Photograph: By Collin Hughes
Walking through Midtown can feel like a maze, but at this trippy mirrored art installation, that’s exactly the point. You’ll lose your bearings and find yourself again inside this immersive art installation where space feels endless and ever-changing.
Called Reflection Point, the piece by Brooklyn-based artist duo Wade and Leta (Wade Jeffree and Leta Sobierajski) is on view for free at Rockefeller Center until July 20. Take a moment to stroll through its shifting pathways and definitely snap a few photos while you’re there. As you walk through the colorful maze, you’ll spot bold, graphic shapes that function as doors, welcoming visitors to push through and uncover new routes for some playful exploration. Color guides the eye through certain passages, while reflection and refraction conceal others, inviting constant reevaluation of direction and experience.
“The piece is an immersive, kinetic environment of color and mirrored surfaces, inviting viewers to move, reflect, and participate in the iconic location,” artists Wade and Leda said in a statement. “It’s a work about perception, process, and the shifting relationship between technology and art.”
To create the larger-than-life installation, the artist duo used Whisk, a Google Labs AI experiment that enables fast, visual ideation and brainstorming. Then, they combined mirrored aluminum composite panel, plywood, stainless steel, vinyl, and rubber to take the ideas off the screen and into reality.
Though the artists have created participatory artwork in places like London, Tokyo and Beijing, this is their first large-scale outdoor artwork in NYC.
“The installation marks a personal milestone for us after 15 years of living and working in New York,” they said.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
CHECK OUT THE RIVERCROSS DISPLAY WINDOW WITH 2 MAPS SHOWING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ISLAND AS IT WAS IN 1969 AND HOW IT IS TODAY.
MAPPING BY DYLAN BROWN, GRADUATE STUDENT AT HUNTER SCHOOL OF URBAN PLANNING AND RIHS INTERN.
CREDITS
6 SQFT JUDITH BERDY
All image are copyrighted (c) Roosevelt Island Historical Society unless otherwise indicated THIS PUBLICATION FUNDED BY DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JULIE MENIN & ROOSEVELT ISLAND OPERATING CORPORATION PUBLIC PURPOSE FUNDS.
The Pergola at Wave Hill in the Bronx frames stunning views of the Hudson River and the Palisades. Photo courtesy of Wave Hill
When the sun comes out, so do the people. The energy of New York City is palpable on the warm days of late spring and early summer. After a long winter spent inside apartments, museums, and restaurants, New Yorkers crave sunshine and nature this time of year. And while that’s a beautiful thing, it can make it difficult to escape crowds. If you’re looking for a little relaxation in the great outdoors, we’ve rounded up 10 tranquil spots perfect for an afternoon with a book, a picnic, or just your thoughts.
1. The Met Cloisters
Fort Tryon Park, 99 Margaret Corbin Drive, Upper Manhattan Located in picturesque Fort Tryon Park with views of the Hudson, the Met Cloisters feels like stepping into Medieval Europe — not only because of the art and artifacts of that time but because of the beautiful architecture and gardens. Escape the bustle of city life and tour the museum grounds yourself, or take the Mindfulness at the Met Cloisters tour.
“Take a moment to tune into your senses and practice mindfulness in this guided session. Throughout the Middle Ages, people from all walks of life retreated to monasteries to contemplate the spiritual and experience inner calm. Taking inspiration from global contemplative practices, as well as the unique art, atmosphere, and gardens of The Met Cloisters, you are invited to take a break from the usual pace of life and connect with the beauty that surrounds us,” the description reads.
1233 5th Avenue, Manhattan On 105th Street in Central Park, you’ll find the park’s only formal garden. It’s a small gem that not too many people make their way to. While it does not have the sprawling fields and picnic areas that the rest of Central Park has, it’s the perfect quiet spot to sit and read, write, or do some sketching. The garden, constructed in 1937, recently underwent a restoration, so it’s in tip-top shape. Repairs included replacing pavements, upgrading the central fountain’s infrastructure, reconstructing the Vanderbilt steps, and replacing rows of 44 crabapple trees in the Italianate Center Garden.
3. Prospect Park Lake
101 East Drive, Brooklyn Prospect Park, in general, is not exactly an unpopular destination in the warm months, but you can find a little corner of the park by the lake for a quiet moment. The 55-acre lake allows fishing and is home to Largemouth bass, black crappie, yellow perch, chain pickerel, bluegill, pumpkinseed, common carp, and golden shiner, according to the Department of Environmental Conservation. There’s also plenty of birding to be done on the lake, and architecture buffs can feast their eyes on the beautiful Beaux-Arts boathouse, which is used for special events.
FDR Drive, Manhattan The John V. Lindsay East River Park spans lower Manhattan on the East Side. Though popular for runners, bikers, kids, and dogs, there’s always a quiet moment to be had along the river banks at this neighborhood park. Whether taking a morning stroll with the sun shining on the water or an evening jog lit up by the Williamsburg Bridge, it’s a magical corner of the city. In the spring and summer, steal away into the gardens and watch butterflies and bumble bees enjoy an oasis in the concrete jungle. The nearly 46-acre East River Park is currently undergoing a renovation to become more resilient to climate change, as part of the city’s East Side Coastal Resiliency project. The first new area of East River Park opened in 2024, and the second new section, including a sprawling public lawn, picnic area, and basketball and tennis courts, opened at the end of May.
990 Washington Avenue, Crown Heights, Brooklyn New York has two stunning botanical gardens, and both are an escape, but a trip to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden can be a two-for-one, as the Brooklyn Museum is right next door. June is the month of the rose, and the Cranford Rose Garden will be in full bloom with thousands of blossoms. According to the BBG, it’s one of the largest collections of roses in North America.
Photo by Jacki Maynard
Though worth a visit, the Rose Garden is popular and can get crowded. For a peaceful moment, the Japanese-Hill-and-Pond Garden can’t be beat. It’s one of the oldest Japanese-inspired gardens outside of Japan, according to the BBG.
Photo by Maike Schulz
6. Green-Wood Cemetery
500 25th Street, Greenwood Heights, Brooklyn Some people may associate a cemetery with the creepy or macabre. But on a lovely spring or summer day, cemeteries are beautiful, quiet spots for contemplation. At 478 acres, Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn is among the biggest and most well-known in the city. Founded in 1838, the historic landmark was one of the first rural cemeteries in America. According to the cemetery, by the early 1860s, “it had earned an international reputation for its magnificent beauty and became the prestigious place to be buried, attracting 500,000 visitors a year, second only to Niagara Falls as the nation’s greatest tourist attraction.” From flowering trees, rolling green hills, walking paths, and birding opportunities, it’s a lovely place to spend a tranquil afternoon
Photo by Joshua Bright
7. Wave Hill Public Garden & Cultural Center
4900 Independence Avenue, Riverdale, The Bronx “The most tranquil time to visit Wave Hill is weekdays right after it opens at 10 a.m.,” a spokesperson for the Bronx garden, which turns 60 this year, said. “Thursdays are free and tend to draw larger crowds, but it is never really hard to find a quiet spot.”
Photo courtesy of Wave Hill
Some suggested spots:
Wild Garden’s gazebo, at the highest point of the grounds
A hidden bench among the Conifer Slope
The Secret Garden
The Shade Border in Wave Hill’s northeast corner is considered a meditative garden
The American elm, one of the oldest trees in New York City
Photo by Don Riepe
8. Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
175-10 Cross Bay Boulevard, Broad Channel, Queens Without actually leaving the city, you can’t get much farther from the hustle and bustle of city life than Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. It feels like a world of its own with the distant skyline peeking over the horizon. The refuge includes 9,000 acres of open bay, salt marsh, mudflats, upland field, and woods, and two man-made brackish ponds. It’s an especially good spot for anyone into birding, with 332 bird species passing through.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
CHECK OUT THE RIVERCROSS DISPLAY WINDOW WITH 2 MAPS SHOWING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ISLAND AS IT WAS IN 1969 AND HOW IT IS TODAY.
MAPPING BY DYLAN BROWN, GRADUATE STUDENT AT HUNTER SCHOOL OF URBAN PLANNING AND RIHS INTERN.
CREDITS
6 SQFT JUDITH BERDY
All image are copyrighted (c) Roosevelt Island Historical Society unless otherwise indicated THIS PUBLICATION FUNDED BY DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JULIE MENIN & ROOSEVELT ISLAND OPERATING CORPORATION PUBLIC PURPOSE FUNDS.
The 1 Wall Street Banking Room interior of the Irving Trust and Bank Company is best known as the Red Room for the glorious and electrifying abstract mosaic decoration, designed by Hildreth Meiere, which defines the space. Meiere, who was recognized by her colleagues at the AIA as a Master of Murals, undertook over 100 such projects throughout her life.
The mosaic design is meant to mimic the curved stone facades of 1 Wall Street, one of the earliest Art Deco skyscrapers in New York City. According to the Landmarks Preservation Commission press release “The room’s walls, ceiling, and columns sparkle with mosaic tile in warm colors that fade from red to orange across the ceiling, and gilded tiles create web-like designs that glitter on the red background and draw the eye up – an elaborate style that presents a dramatic departure from more typical classically-inspired stone banking halls of the era.”
The Red Room, completed in 1931, stands out as one of Meiere’s only abstract designs, and also as her first collaborative project with Ralph Walker. The two would next work together on the ATT Long Distance Building at 32 6th Avenue, which has been both an individual and interior landmark since 1991, though the designation report for that interior does not mention Meiere’s work. We are thrilled that Meiere’s contribution is being recognized here.
After Irving Trust moved out of the building the developer of the condominums in the building had the Red Room restored to it’s original state. After being used as a sales salon for the condos the space was rented to Printemps as part of their store.
Upon entering the Broadway entrance is a petit cafe to enjoy refreshments before or after shopping. On the Main Floor there is a selection of small gift items including home decor, shoes and handbags. All the staff are welcoming and friendly
All the lighting in the store is unique and this salon is furnished all in pink
Even the ladies room was so unique that it was worth a photo.
Step up to the bar for a quick glass of Champagne while shoping, conveniently locate next to the jewelry showcases.
There is a large selection of designer vintage items. Was this Madonnas?
A passage of beauty products lead to an area for your makeover.
The Red Room is now the entrance from Wall Street. You may need a great Wall Street investment for some of these shoes on display. The wonderful floor is new but all the room is the original. Being an interior landmark, nothing is attached to the walls.
I could not tempt Gloria to bring home some new heels!!
PHOTO OF THE DAY
Sometimes the best plans go awry. Eager to see the new Printemps store last Thurday, I was heading across Broadway at Wall Street. Suddendly, I was face down on the pavement. I had tripped over the support for a lane divider. With a bleeding lip two wonderful women came to my aid. They called 911 and waited until the NYU Ambulance arrived. I had a cut lip bruised chin and sore shoulder. Luckily there was no damage to my new hip. Patched up, Gloria Herman and I ventured back to see the landmark Red Room and the new Paris based Printemps department store yesterday.
CREDIT TO
JUDITH BERDY
All image are copyrighted (c) Roosevelt Island Historical Society unless otherwise indicated THIS PUBLICATION FUNDED BY DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JULIE MENIN & ROOSEVELT ISLAND OPERATING CORPORATION PUBLIC PURPOSE FUNDS.
Alley Pond, Queens, June 15, 1927. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
Staff at the Municipal Archives continue to digitize the historical collections including paper records, books, motion pictures, maps, plans, and photographs. My current assignment is the Queens Borough President photograph collection. The thousands of fascinating pictures includes a series of panoramic images. They were taken mostly during the 1920s and 1930s by the Topographical Bureau in the Borough President’s office, under the direction of the Engineer in Charge, Charles Underhill Powell.
Powell’s tenure coincided with a time of rapid change in Queens. A borough that had long been mostly sparsely populated farmland was quickly becoming a diverse urban landscape. This required a drastic overhaul of the borough’s infrastructure, and engineers like Powell went out to survey, document, design, and plan.
Skaters on Alley Pond, Queens, February 8, 1930. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
The photographers generally used standard 8×10 inch sheet film, a format still popular for the high resolution it provides. Sometimes, though, an 8×10 negative just wasn’t good enough. In these situations, the photographers turned to what is known as a banquet camera. Originally intended for photographing large groups of people, the wide negatives (usually either 7×17″ or 12×20″) offered a lot of space to squeeze an entire crowd or banquet hall into one frame. Banquet cameras fell out of favor when medium format and other roll film formats were invented, allowing more flexibility and ease of use in event photography. But landscape and architectural photographers adopted the banquet camera for the precision, resolution, and wide angle of view it offered.
Nassau Boulevard, looking east from Main Street, Queens, August 20, 1928. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
The Queens panoramic negatives (which are all 7×17″) present a digitization challenge. Because of their width, they cannot be captured at high resolution in one shot with an overhead camera and they are too fragile for a flatbed scanner. There is an alternative: stitching. I photographed each negative in three shots, which partially overlap with each other. I then ran a Photoshop script to stitch them together. This has worked surprisingly well, even on the most deteriorated negatives. These advancing technologies and workflows allow us to make these beautiful images, which document an important period in New York City history, available to the pu
Little Neck Parkway, looking north at Union Turnpike, Queens, July 16, 1931. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
Under the elevated train, 31st Street, looking north at 23rd Avenue, Queens, August 28, 1935. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archive
Grand Central Parkway, looking west, Queens, October 27, 1938. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
Main Street, looking north at 72nd Avenue, Queens, May 27, 1937. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
Queens Boulevard, looking west, October 25, 1938. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives
P-856: Elevated view of Long Island City south of the Queensboro Bridge (visible at right), looking toward Manhattan, November 16, 1929. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
P-856-a: Elevated view of Long Island City, November 16, 1929. The Chrysler Building is at the center of the Manhattan skyline. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
P-856-b: Elevated view of Long Island City, looking north towards the Queensboro Bridge, November 16, 1929. The school that would later become MoMA PS1 is just beyond the rail yards. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
P-856-c: Elevated view of the Sunnyside train yards, November 16, 1929. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
P-918-b: Nassau River (Newtown Creek), July 10, 1930. The Chrysler Building is visible in the distant Manhattan skyline. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
P-987-c: View of Manhattan skyline from Long Island City, January 1, 1934. Borough President Queens Collection, NYC Municipal Archives.
Visible buildings include the Vanderbilt Hotel, Empire State, 10 East 40th Street, Daily News, Chanin, Lincoln, Chrysler, 500 Fifth Avenue, New York Central, Grand Central Palace, RCA, Waldorf Astoria, General Electric, River House, Savoy Plaza, Ritz Towers, Sherry Netherlands.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
Sitting at lunch on lower Broadway, I was able to see to top of the Municipal Building, with Civic Fame. It is a 25 foot gilded statue of a woman designed by Adolph Alexander Weinman.
CREDIT TO
NEW YORK MUNICIPAL ARCHIVES
JUDITH BERDY
All image are copyrighted (c) Roosevelt Island Historical Society unless otherwise indicated THIS PUBLICATION FUNDED BY DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JULIE MENIN & ROOSEVELT ISLAND OPERATING CORPORATION PUBLIC PURPOSE FUNDS.
In 1867 nineteen-year-old Brooklyn-born painter Edwin Blashfield traveled to Paris to study with Léon Bonnat whose studio attracted French and foreign students (John Singer Sargent was another American attendee).
The young painter enjoyed his apprenticeship and spent a considerable time exploring Europe and the Middle East before returning to the city of New York in 1881.
In 1893, he was commissioned to adorn the enormous Manufacturers and Liberal Arts Building at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago. He then created a set of murals for the dome of the Main Reading Room at the Library of Congress.
One of these, entitled “The Evolution of Civilization,” suggests a special bond between Egypt as the world’s first, and America as the latest, great civilization. The work was created during a period that the Orientalist vogue gripped the nation and belly dancers conquered Manhattan.
Anglo-French Rivalry
Starting in the seventeenth century, a Grand Tour was the aristocratic custom of making an educational trip to Italy with Rome, Venice and Florence as key stopping places. Some tourists continued their trip by visiting Constantinople and Cairo. The British passion for Egypt dated back to the early the eighteenth century.
Clergyman Richard Pococke made two separate trips to Egypt. On his second tour in 1736 he visited Cairo, Rosetta and the tombs of the Kings.
His travel account (published in 1743) was appreciated not just for its drawings of ancient monuments, but also for his discussion of more recent history. In 1740, Jean-Etiènne Liotard’s painted his portrait being dressed in eastern costume.
John Montagu, future Earl of Sandwich, was nineteen when he toured Turkey and Egypt. In 1741, he had his portrait painted by Joseph Highmore complete with turban and dagger. Back in London in December 1741, using the name “Sheikh Pyramidum,” he founded the Egyptian Society.
The zeal to learn about ancient Egypt was initiated in France. Preoccupation with the nation was driven by politics. In a memoir of February 13, 1798, Foreign Minister Talleyrand asserted that “Egypt was a province of the Roman Republic; she must become a province of the French Republic.”
In May that year, the French dispatched a force under command of General Napoleon Bonaparte. Some 35,000 soldiers invaded Egypt, the first incursion of a European power into a Muslim country.
The objective of the campaign was to claim pharaonic civilization for the glory of France. Lasting until 1801, French occupation may have been short-lived, but its impact was considerable. Some hundred and fifty scholars executed a study of the country.
Never before had a single nation inspired such a scientific effort. The monumental Description de l’Égypte (published between 1809 and 1829) captured its civilization from every vantage point. The research results made an impact in art and architecture, inciting a vogue for all things Egyptian.
Troubled by the prospect of Egypt becoming a French colony, the British government sent out an armada commanded by Rear-Admiral Horatio Nelson that destroyed Napoleon’s fleet at the Battle of the Nile in August 1798.
In June 1801, a British Expeditionary Force defeated demoralized French troops. The balance of power may have changed, but three years of French presence sparked an unprecedented interest in Egypt.
Forbidden Pleasures
After the fall of the Eastern Roman Empire in 1453 and the foundation of the Ottoman Muslim regime, European diplomats began arriving in Constantinople. These representatives tended to invite artists to join the Embassy and create visual records of the time spent in the Empire’s capital. The public was intrigued, although Orientalism in art did not become fashionable until the nineteenth century.
The inauguration in January 1852 of the “Ligne du Levant” line offering regular departures from Marseille to Constantinople; the completion of the Alexandria to Cairo railway line in 1856; the digging of the Suez Canal; Thomas Cook’s first “tourist” trip along the Nile in 1869; the building of grand hotels together with Anglo-French politico-commercial involvement in Ottoman affairs, intensified fascination with the Orient.
The 1867 Universal Exhibition in Paris determined the orientation of Orientalism. On display were precious objects retrieved in 1859 by the Egyptologist Auguste Mariette from Queen Aahotep’s tomb that captured the public’s imagination. By the end of the century pharaonic-inspired designs were the height of a vogue driven by sophisticated jewelers such as René Lalique and others.
Just as intriguing were the displays of Ottoman living quarters. Even though major efforts had been undertaken during the 1860s to regularize the network of streets, to create squares and public places, exhibition planners turned to outdated urban images of a “colorful” past which were presented as an actual external reality. In the Western mind, the Orient was conceived of as a cohesive, but unchanging whole. It was an “anachronistic space.”
Artists who traveled to the Orient were struck by the discrepancy between real experiences and the stock images of the “world-as-exhibition.” They nevertheless persisted in producing postcard pictures in the by then familiar manner, painting women in traditional robes or poor peasants posed with water jugs along the Nile as if they were frozen in time.
Other painters cherished a more sensual projection, perceiving of the East as a region of forbidden pleasures. As a geographical expanse the Orient was described in terms of femininity. A metaphor for her region, she passively accepted the dynamic authority of the colonial West and succumbed to her male counterpart.
The American Gérôme
France was the birthplace of Orientalist painting. The genre did not present itself as an artistic school, but it figured as a theme in existing academic styles and was integrated in Romanticism and subsequent movements. The revolt against the stifling dominance of the “Académie Royale” had shifted the attention from Rome towards Constantinople and Cairo.
What was the lure of these cities? Painters and poets were obsessed with an unhurried serenity that contrasted with the disquiet of Western society. Their impressions tended to suggest that sexual encounters were less guilt-ridden there than in “puritanical” Europe. The Orient was an oasis of lassitude and lowered inhibition, an alluring place where young women (and men) were open to a plethora of sexual experiences.
Jean-Léon Gérôme visited Constantinople in 1856, the first of many trips he would make throughout the Middle East. Mesmerized by its settings, he exhibited “La danse de l’almée” (The Dance of the Almeh) at the 1864 Salon, portraying a dancer accompanied by three musicians before a small audience of soldiers. The term almée (learned woman) originally applied to a singer engaged to teach dance and music to the women of a household harem.
As the harem was a domestic space restricted to women, no strangers (let alone foreign artists) would ever be allowed to enter the domain. The dancer’s nudity caused controversy. The outcry did the artist’s career no harm: notoriety guaranteed success. In the French press, the expression danse du ventre (literally: dance of the stomach or belly), was popularized as an alternate title for the painting.
The theme became popular. Painters depicted Oriental dancers in flowing fabrics barely covering their bodies. Although public performances were a small part of dance practices in Ottoman society, they were interpreted as representative of the whole, thus creating a spectrum of heated perceptions.
The “Orientalist female” was a fabrication. By placing her in an “exotic” setting, the Western artist escaped sanctions for exposing her nudity and seductive appearance. Orientalism was an escape, an erotic fantasy.
Alabama-born Frederick Arthur Bridgman (1847-1928) had studied in New York before settling in Paris in 1866. A year later he entered the studio of Jean-Léon Gérôme, an artist he admired for his skills and choice of exotic themes.
Having made Paris his headquarters, Bridgman first explored Northern Africa between 1872 and 1874, dividing his time between Algeria and Egypt. There he executed approximately three hundred sketches as source material for future work and amassed a collection of costumes and curiosities that often would appear in his paintings.
A prolific artist, Bridgman was known as the “American Gérôme.” Although living in France (five of his paintings were exhibited at the 1889 Exposition in Paris), his work was popular in America.
At his 1890 one-man show at Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue Art Galleries over four hundred pictures were on display, many of which were sold on the spot. Orientalism took hold of Manhattan.
By that time however the genre was tried and tired. Even dance or harem scenes had become domesticated and harmless. The theme had lost its steam.
Belly Dance of Politics
The fourth World Exhibition in 1889 was a prestigious one. Gustave Eiffel built his landmark tower in Paris for the occasion and there was ample room for “exotic cultures.” The creation of a Rue du Caire (Cairo Street) was popular with visitors for its camel rides and snake charmers.
The Fair was visited by an energetic and enterprising young American. Born in Pekin, Illinois, into a Jewish family of Polish immigrants, Sol Bloom had settled in San Francisco where he staged spectacular shows and boxing matches. The Exhibition in Paris was a defining moment in his career. He enjoyed the entertainment offered by a stage group introduced to the audience as the “Algerian Village,” a cast consisting of jugglers, sword dancers and danse du ventre performers.
Before leaving Paris, he contracted the group to perform in the United States. By the time his ship docked in New York Harbor, Bloom learned that Chicago had been chosen to stage the 1893 World Fair. The city was also preparing to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the New World. He was determined to become involved.
At the Fair, Bloom created a mile-long Midway Plaisance that offered not just amusement halls, but also the “street in Cairo” where American visitors first witnessed the danse du ventre. Performed by members of the Village group, the initial appeal was negative until Sol began using the term “Belly Dance” to promote the spectacle.
The show was soon swamped with curious visitors. Sol Bloom (1870-1949) composed a tune for his dancers as well: “The Snake Charmer Song,” also known as “The Streets of Cairo,” was emblematic of the dance.
Belly dancing became a craze and “Oriental theaters” were opened in various cities. Dancers dressed in loose-fitting costumes that were marketed to titillate audiences. Corseted Victorian ladies were alarmed.
It motivated US Postal Inspector Anthony Comstock to get involved. Author of an anti-smut law passed by Congress in March 1873 (the Comstock Act) and Secretary of the Society for the Suppression of Vice, he condemned the Belly Dance as immoral.
Comstock’s anger was aimed at Ida Craddock. At the Chicago Fair, the feminist had been charmed by the danse du ventre. She published a pamphlet promoting the “Dance of the Abdomen” as a means to increase sexual pleasure. In response, Comstock vowed to destroy her (which indeed he did: Craddock took her own life in October 1902 after relentless persecution by the Comstock lobby).
By the end of 1893 belly dancing had reached Manhattan. After a show at the newly built Grand Central Palace between 43rd and 44th Street, three Algerian performers were arrested for “barbarian indecency.” The trial was widely reported and publicity strengthened the vogue.
Thomas Edison shot numerous short dance films for his peep shows. New York City also produced the first celebrity practitioner of the danse du ventre. Known as Omene, she was a highly popular and publicized figure. Larger than life, her true identity and life story remain shrouded in mystery.Sol Bloom settled in New York City in 1903, a rich man who dabbled in real estate. Having entered the political arena, he allied with Tammany Hall and was selected as a candidate for Congress. From 1923 onward, he represented a Manhattan district of mainly Jewish immigrants until his death in 1949. Bloom was an outspoken critic of Nazism well before America entered the Second World War.In July 1939 he was chosen as Chair of the House Foreign Relations Committee in spite of isolationist opposition. Bloom was a member of the American delegation which, in June 1945, signed the Charter of the United Nations.In 1948, he supported the Zionist case by requesting the British government to allow Jewish refugees to settle in Mandatory Palestine. The former “Baron of Belly Dancers” turned into a mission-driven politician, lobbying President Harry Truman for recognition of the state of Israel.
The Coler Art Show celebrates the talents of many residents from professional artists, residents seeking new recreation to those in memory care whose work with Therapeutic Recreation staff bring out their talents.
HANDPAINTED CAPS GEORGE KRASSAS
PHOTO OF THE DAY
Jan and Eugenie Van Looh from the Netherlands visted the kiosk while on vacation and celebrating Eugenie’s birthday.
CREDITS
NEW YORK ALMANACK Illustrations, from above: Detail from Jean-Léon Gérôme’s “La danse de l’almée,” 1863 (Dayton Art Institute); Library of Congress Jefferson Building Main Reading Room, detail of Blashfield’s “Evolution of Civilization” mural (Library of Congress); Jean-Etiénne Liotard’s “Portrait of Richard Pococke,” 1740 (Musée d’Art et d’Histoire, Genève); Joseph Highwood’s “Portrait of Joseph Montagu,” 1741 (National Portrait Gallery, London); Pavilion of Tunisia and Morocco at the 1867 World’s Fair in Paris; Frederick Arthur Bridgman’s “The Harem,” 1894; Neurdein Frères, “Exposition Universelle de 1889 – Rue du Caire,” 1889 (Musée Carnavalet); and sheet music for “Omene Turkish Waltz” composed by Theo A. Metz, and featuring celebrity belly dancer Omene.
JUDITH BERDY
All image are copyrighted (c) Roosevelt Island Historical Society unless otherwise indicated THIS PUBLICATION FUNDED BY DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JULIE MENIN & ROOSEVELT ISLAND OPERATING CORPORATION PUBLIC PURPOSE FUNDS.
The Coler Art Show celebrates the talents of many residents from professional artists, residents seeking new recreation to those in memory care whose work with Therapeutic Recreation staff bring out their talents.
Enter the wonderful world of Coler Resident Art
The canteen was turned into a sun-filled gallery
A portait of MOMO, Coler’s s Healiong Hound is centerpiece of the exhibit. For 5 years MOMO brought smiles and friendship to all. She passed away recently after a long illness.
A cute pooch makes a great companion to MOMO’s painting
The multi-national population is represented by handprints of residents from 2 units.
Many residents discover their talents in one of the two art studios where they are guided by the Therapeutic Recreation staff.
Acrylic by Ramon Medina
Beaded Figures
FUN WITH FLOWERS Beauty Starts with You
Three Lighthouses
PEPPER POT TAKES ME BACK HOME Francine Benjamin
DIGITAL ART
MY WORLD IS COLORED
ANATOLY GAGLOEV
RAMON MEDINA
HANDPAINTED CAPS GEORGE KRASSAS
PHOTO OF THE DAY
SILVERCUP CELEBRATES PRIDE
CREDIT TO
THE STAFF OF COLER’S THERAPEUTIC RECREATION DEPARTMENT DIRECTOR: JOVEMAY SANTOS ANGELICA PATIENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM JUDITH BERDY
All image are copyrighted (c) Roosevelt Island Historical Society unless otherwise indicated THIS PUBLICATION FUNDED BY DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JULIE MENIN & ROOSEVELT ISLAND OPERATING CORPORATION PUBLIC PURPOSE FUNDS.
May means the bright-hued tulips are in full bloom on Manhattan’s Park Avenue. This year, however, New Yorkers will now find the colorful flowers accompanied by ten of Alma Allen’s sculptures, dotting the avenue’s lush malls between 53rd and 70th streets. Either in bronze or onyx, the sculptures, which are each titled Not Yet Titled, portray both humans—like a resting body with tightened limbs—or nature—tulips preparing to bloom.
“I am trying to see my own subconsciousness, because I am looking around the corners of reality,” Allen tells ELLE Decor.
Charlie Rubin, Courtesy of Kasmin, New York
The Utah-born artist drafts a smaller version of each sculpture in clay at his Tepoztlan studio, south of Mexico City. Each clay figurine—occasionally so fragile that Allen keeps it in the fridge—then goes through a 3D scanning process to render a template for its blown-up version. Allen then often wanders to his in-house bronze foundry to create the massive shiny replica of his miniatures. Occasionally, though, he leaves the task to a large robot which he programmed to precisely carve onyx while still maintaining the traits of his intimate hand gestures.
The Park Avenue sculptures, like much of Allen’s work, features ambitiously-scaled forms in allusive silhouettes and disarming colorations. The Fund for Park Avenue—the organization in charge of the street’s flowers every season—enlisted their Sculpture Committee to oversee the project in celebration of the organization’s 45th anniversary.
Charlie Rubin, Courtesy of Kasmin, New York
For The Fund’s President Emerita Barbara McLaughlin, the collaboration “emphasizes the power of contrast,” and, she tells ELLE Decor, “the boldness of sculpture and the delicate beauty of tulips.”
Allen’s other works have been exhibited in Kasmin Gallery’s roofgarden on the High Line and in the 2014 Whitney Biennial. From Brancusi to the Bronze Age, the self-taught artist looks beyond any time period to see the soul beneath. “I’ve never understood seeing a separation between the ancient and the modern,” he says. “The flow and the continuum in my work is about all of it being a sculpture.”
Charlie Rubin, Courtesy of Kasmin, New York
The presentation’s largest statement is a bronze uneven circle which comes together at its peak. There, a shiny sphere reflects the surrounding high-rise-dominated panorama, including the Seagram Building, as well as the flowers beneath it. At 119 inches high, the work traveled in its own flatbed truck from Mexico to New York. A trio of modest size onyx sculptures bookends the vertical lineup on 70th street—their spiraling pink-colored forms recall industrial tools and young buds.
Kasmin, New York The installation at night on Park Avenue.
He notices the nod to flowers in his sculptures. “Some of the works seem to be growing to reach for something… like the tulips.”
Alma Allen on Park Avenue is on view through September.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
THE MORGAN CHASE BUILDING NEARING COMPLETION ON PARK AVENUE
CREDITS
JUDITH BERDY ELLE DECOR OSMAN CAN YEREBAKAN
All image are copyrighted (c) Roosevelt Island Historical Society unless otherwise indicated THIS PUBLICATION FUNDED BY DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JULIE MENIN & ROOSEVELT ISLAND OPERATING CORPORATION PUBLIC PURPOSE FUNDS.
On Thursday, July 26th a retirement party was held for Armando Cordova, the Poma Leitner Tram Manager of the Tram since 2010.
Cordova was the technical engineer and specialist who was the boss at the tram for 15 years. Always ready to solve problems, assist riders, he handled all the events and crisis’ with professionalism.
The Tram staff and kiosk staff are great neighbors looking out for each others. Cordova was the go to person when the electric would fail the visitor center or one of our heaters failed in midwinter. The tram staff has always been here to keep with a helping hand. Armando and his successor have made live on the plaza easier when the unexpected occur.
Plaque presented representing a portion of tram cable and the technical drawing of the cable car system
This plaque will be at the Tram and at Leitner Poma Headquarters
Mary Cunneen, Armando Cordova and Daren Cole, President/CEO of Leitner Poma
John, Greg and Armando at the reunion of co-workers. Greg soon celebrates 50 years at the Tram.
Speaking to the group, and telling of the safety always in forefront of the Tram staff.
The Cordova family together. After a year of illness and tragedy they were together to celebrate Armando’s retirement.
Minnie, the long time staffer joined me on the Panorama Room terrace for a great reunion.
Tram staff, RIOC management, and family were celebrating the event.
CREDITS
Judith Berdy
All image are copyrighted (c) Roosevelt Island Historical Society unless otherwise indicated THIS PUBLICATION FUNDED BY DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JULIE MENIN & ROOSEVELT ISLAND OPERATING CORPORATION PUBLIC PURPOSE FUNDS.
When Washington Square Park Fountain Was Turned Into a Pool
Untapped New York
Thursday, June 25, 2025
Issue # 1473
Instead of a leisurely day around a cool swimming pool, I spent my day yesterday in the cafeteria of PS/IS 217. It was Primary Election Day and along with 23 other poll workers we were there to assist 591 residents to vote. Thanks to my great team, the PS 217 Principal Mandana we had a great day while the school was in session.
Aside from the voters, friends and families were there for the 8th grade graduation and th 5th grade moving up. It was quite a day at our neighborhood public school. As part of an earlier research, we worked with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation Archive to locate these photos from 1935, when the Washington Square Park fountain (in its earlier form and location) was converted into a wading pool!
Renovation of the fountain took place in 1934, on the initiative of Robert Moses, who is otherwise reviled for his plan to put a highway through Greenwich Village. Moses had steps installed around the inside of the stone rim to assist people in accessing the water.
Photo from NYC Department of Parks and Recreation. Photo taken July 17, 1935
The original Washington Square fountain was a circular bluestone fountain completed in 1852. Its designer is unknown. That first fountain was replaced in 1870 by a water fixture recycled from Central Park. Architect Jacob Wrey Mould is credited with the design. Mould, who was Architect-in-Chief for the Department of Public Works at the time, also designed the fountain in City Hall Park, the wooden loggia at Belvedere Castle, and the Bethesda Terrace carvings and fountain base in Central Park among other sites.
Mould’s fountain, relocated from the Fifty-Ninth Street and Fifth Avenue entrance of Central Park to the center of Washington Square, sat in the same spot for over 130 years.
In 2009, the fountain was restored, combining elements from all time periods of its existence. It was also shifted east more than twenty feet, ostensibly to align with the Washington Square Park arch, but this reason—and if the fountain is actually aligned with the arch—has been hotly debated.
To this day, it’s not technically illegal to jump into a New York City park fountain, but you aren’t allowed to use it to take a bath or for personal hygiene. The 32,000 gallons of water that flow through this fountain are filtered, like the roughly 50 other fountains in New York City parks. Would you take a dip?
CREDITS
Untapped New York
All image are copyrighted (c) Roosevelt Island Historical Society unless otherwise indicated THIS PUBLICATION FUNDED BY DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JULIE MENIN & ROOSEVELT ISLAND OPERATING CORPORATION PUBLIC PURPOSE FUNDS.
These photos from the 1890s – 1930s show Chatham Square’s elevated train lines. Just south of the entrance to the Manhattan Bridge, the tracks soared over the intersections of eight streets (Bowery, Doyers Street, East Broadway, St. James Place, Mott Street, Oliver Street, Worth Street, and Centre). The station connected the Second and Third Avenue lines on two levels, which would eventually be torn down in 1942 and 1955, with the anticipation of the Second Avenue Subway.
VACATION TIME
My own Cafe Aviva on the NCL Getaway. One advantage of being a solo traveler, great single cabins and a wonderful lounge with this great Espesso/Cappucino machine.
CREDITS
NYC URBANISM
All image are copyrighted (c) Roosevelt Island Historical Society unless otherwise indicated THIS PUBLICATION FUNDED BY DISCRETIONARY FUNDS FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBER JULIE MENIN & ROOSEVELT ISLAND OPERATING CORPORATION PUBLIC PURPOSE FUNDS.
