The Post Gallery

This past week when I was in New York City one goal for my trip was to explore a few art galleries around the city. A visit to NYC is not complete unless you visit at least one of the five Dia art galleries / installations around the city. The main gallery in NYC is the Dia Chelsea gallery located at 537 West 22nd Street New York, New York 10011, which has various temporary exhibits. The other Dia installations are permanent exhibits around the city.

I will list the permanent installations here, but really to do them justice, I highly recommend Googling each installation to read and learn more.

1. The New York Earth Room is an interior sculpture by the artist Walter De Maria that has been installed in a loft at 141 Wooster Street in New York City since 1977. The sculpture is a permanent installation of earth in 3,600 square feet of floor space, and 22 inch depth of material. It is essentially a huge room of 3600 square feet with the ground covered (nearly 2 feet deep) with dirt.
2. The Broken Kilometer is a permanent art installation also created by Walter De Maria inside a storefront in the SoHo neighborhood of NYC. The piece consists of 500 round solid brass rods, 2 meters (6 ft 7 in) long by 2 inches (51 mm) in diameter, laid on the floor in 5 rows of 100 rods each. Location: 393 W Broadway, New York, NY 10012. (See photo of this installation at the start of this post.)
3. 7000 Oaks The 1988 Dia installed five basalt stone columns paired with five trees outside 548 West 22nd Street in NYC. The installation was expanded twice. The first was in 1996 with the addition of twenty-five new trees paired with a basalt stone column between 10th and 11th Avenues as well as the addition of seven columns paired to already existing trees. This brought the installation to thirty-seven trees and basalt columns. As a part of the 2021 renovation and consolidation of Dia Chelsea an additional tree and stone were added. There are currently Thirty-Eight pairs of trees and basalt stone columns stretching down the city block.
4. Times Square, often referred to as the hum or the Times Square Hum, is a permanent sound art installation created by Max Neuhaus in Times Square in NYC. Originally installed in 1977, it was removed in 1992 and reinstalled in 2002. Times Square is located in Times Square, by the intersection of Broadway and Seventh Avenue, between 45th and 46th Streets. There is no signage or marking to denote the piece as a work of art per Neuhaus’s request. The sound simply emanates from a grate over a steam vent. Neuhaus stated it is intended for the sound to be “plausible”, dismissed as an “unusual machinery sound from below ground” and to be overlooked repeatedly until it is discovered by the viewer in a serendipitous way. The sound itself is described by Neuhaus as “resembling the after ring of large bells,” but has also been described as a “deep and slightly pulsating drone” by Dia.

The Dia Art Foundation is a nonprofit organization that focuses on supporting and promoting contemporary art, particularly large-scale and site-specific artworks. It was founded in 1974 by Philippa de Menil, Heiner Friedrich, and Helen Winkler.

Dia’s mission is to commission, support, and present long-term installations and exhibitions by a diverse range of artists. They often work closely with artists to realize ambitious projects that might not be possible in traditional gallery or museum settings. Dia is known for its commitment to preserving and presenting these artworks in locations that are integral to the work itself, often in unconventional spaces such as former industrial buildings, rural sites, and urban centers.

Some of Dia’s other famous installations include Walter De Maria’s “The Lightning Field” in New Mexico, Robert Smithson’s “Spiral Jetty” in Utah, and Dan Flavin’s fluorescent light installations. Through its exhibitions, programs, and collection, Dia seeks to foster a deeper understanding and appreciation of contemporary art and its relationship to society and the environment.

If you find yourself in NYC, you should definitely explore the Dia gallery and installations mentioned above. They are truly a unique art foundation with super interesting installations.