Artist Paul Ramírez Jonas has created a work of art that encompasses all of New York City over several months, and Times Square is where it starts. I never thought I would make a trip to Times Square voluntarily, but on a sweltering late June afternoon I found myself waiting in line with a friend to get my “Key to the City”.
As described by CREATIVETIME, the public art organization that commissioned the piece called Key to the City, “One to one, one at a time, all of the time, thousands of keys will be bestowed by thousands of people on thousands of citizens for thousands of reasons that deserve to be recognized.”
The keys unlock doors that rest in various places throughout all 5 boroughs; a small book that you receive with the key provides pictures of the places and maps to help you locate them. One is in the Brooklyn Museum, another in a Buddhist garden in Staten Island, another in The Bronx County Courthouse (with the disclaimer: Relax, security and freedom of access have to coexist).
Bestowed is one of the operative word in that above sentence –after getting your key and booklet from a volunteer, you walk along a red carpet to a fenced off area called “The Commons” where you are greeted by another volunteer who directs you to present the key to your friend (don’t worry, if you’ve come alone, they pair you up with a stranger).
The ceremonial structure of this part of the work is very social, public, and welcoming. The reasons your friend has chosen to give you a key are written into a ledger to be kept for the annals of history, pronouncements are made, and much clapping and smiling ensues. The volunteers we met during this project were the most friendly and talkative group I’ve ever met at this kind of art function. I wanted to give them all keys (and could have, it was one of the volunteer’s first day and she hadn’t gotten a key yet).
The name of the project makes an obvious reference to the ceremonial gift bestowed upon celebrities, heroes and so forth, but here lends itself to the investigation of hidden places, encouraging people to visit places in New York they would not otherwise, to feel like they are welcomed in all places. Well, that’s what I think: having just picked up my key today, I haven’t had a chance to go unlock any of the doors yet.
The larger idea of the artwork seems to revolve around many questions, several of which are posted on signs that you read while waiting in line. These questions, such as (I’m paraphrasing) ‘who is the artist if thousands of people are participating’, and “Can you make something that’s for everyone but that’s really intimate at the same time?” are interesting to think about, but probably not as fun as the experience of presenting a Key to the City to one of your friends!
The artist has been creating work using the creative possibilities of keys for years and has a “longstanding interest in the key not so much as an object, but a vehicle for exploring social contracts as they pertain to trust, access, and belonging.”
To participate and get a key, visit the Key to the City kiosk in Times Square, on Broadway, between 43rd and 44th Streets before June 27, 2010!