The Public Utteration Machine Coming to Public Plazas in Queens, Brooklyn

NYC Parks is pleased to announce Rebecca Hackemann's public art installation The Public Utteraton Machine, an interactive sculpture that looks like a 19th century public telephone. The piece will be on view at the Greenstreet located at Jackson Avenue and 46th Avenue in Queens from April 18 through May 2, 2015 before it moves to Pvt. Sonsire Triangle in Brooklyn from May 2 through May 17, 2015.

The Public Utteraton Machine is an interactive work that aims to engage the local community in a discussion about public art in New York. The piece, created in part with an antique phone speaker and ear piece, is a no-dial phone that automatically connects to a conversation prompt that asks the user about the value of public art in the city and in their specific neighborhood. Do locals want it, need it, appreciate it? What role and purpose does public art play in public spaces and neighborhoods? The Utteraton Machine revives public utterances and will help examine this hotly debated topic discussed by art, design and public administrators around the world. This solar-powered device will use an innovative paper display screen to guide the conversation and will record responses, which will remain anonymous and will ultimately be publically available online at www.utteraton.com and possibly some public libraries.

Rebecca Hackemann is a conceptual artist based in New York City. She holds an MFA from Stanford University and is the recipient of the Whitney Museum Independent Study Program fellowship, as well as grants for public art projects from Asian Arts Initiative, Philadelphia, PA; New York City Department of Transportation; and Lower Manhattan Cultural Council among others. The Urban Field Glasses, her most recent project, consisted of viewing devices that looked like sightseeing binoculars containing past images of the site where they were located, as well as future renderings created by the community. Her work has been exhibited in The Netherlands, New York, San Francisco and London. Additional information can be found at www.rebeccahackemann.com.

NYC Parks & Recreation's Art in the Parks program has consistently fostered the creation and installation of temporary public art in parks throughout the five boroughs. Since 1967, collaborations with arts organizations and artists have produced hundreds of public art projects in New York City parks. For more information visit www.nyc.gov/parks/art.

Pictured: Rebecca Hackemann, The Public Utteraton Machine Rendering at PS1 Greenstreet, courtesy of the Artist.