It’s not a secret that I’m not an artistic person. The closest I come to being creative is sketching molecular diagrams for chemistry. So being on this trip was a time for me to develop skills that would allow me to learn with a sense of purpose in fields outside of my discipline, as well as develop methods of studying non-scientific fields. In order to do so, I chose one building, one monument, and one art piece to complete an on-site reflection for, research when I got back, and write a reflective essay on.
First, St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
I was absolutely floored by this building during our walking tour on the first day. The twin spires and intricate stonework on the outside gave the immediate impression that this was a cathedral to be reckoned with.
And, upon doing research, I found that it was. St. Patrick’s Cathedral, affiliated with the Roman Catholic church, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishopric of New York. The site was purchased in 1810, originally for a college. In 1850, however, it was proposed that a cathedral would be built on the land instead. The motion passed, and architects were hired to draft plans for the building. The plans were modeled after the Gothic style of architecture popular in European churches from the 1400s-1600s. During construction, roadblocks such as the Civil War impeded construction and meant the building was finished in 1879, with the spires finished in 1888. The interior features a multitude of altars with candles in front of them to pray for interventions from the saint featured in it. Included are Christ the Divine, Saint John, Saint Louis, and Saint Michael.
With the art piece, I feel like something I can truly reflect on is what I expected the class to center around; performance art, specifically, the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime. I knew this set was a cleverly designed masterpiece, as one of my friends from high school went over his fall break. But the part of me that lettered in technical theatre back home wasn’t ready for just how much of a work of art the set for this show was. The director of the show, Marianne Elliott, said she wanted the set to feel like the inside of Christopher’s mind.
The staging was deceptively simple; three black walls with white gridlines and the floor has the same pattern. But each and every inch of the set is used and transformed; the floors and walls have panels that reveal pits with set pieces, the projection cues follow Christopher’s drawings, and the floors had the capability to transform into a subway line. And with how many cues the stage manager had to call, I applaud them and all the work they had to do.
A monument that no one can go to New York without seeing is the Statue of Liberty. But because people are so caught up in the grandeur of the giant green statue, some fail to notice all the monuments that stand just
outside the boarding station for the ferry. One of them in particular, entitled “The Sphere”, is a sculpture that stood between the World Trade Center towers and was damaged during the attacks on September 11th, 2001. Today, it stands in Battery Park with an eternal flame that was ignited a year after the attacks as a testament to those who lost their lives in the attack.
The sculpture itself is a 25-foot bronze sphere and was crafted by German Fritz Koenig as a symbol of world peace. Following the attacks, the damaged sphere was placed in Battery Park on a temporary basis in March of 2002 and officially dedicated with the lighting of the eternal flame six months later.
Works Cited
- US Department of the Interior, National Parks Service. NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY – NOMINATION FORM: Saint Patricks Cathedral, Lady Chapel, Rectory And Cardinal’s Residence. 1976. Web. 22 Mar. 2016.
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“The Unadaptable ‘Curious Incident’ Gets A Stage Adaptation.” NPR. NPR. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.
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Shapiro, Julie. “9/11 Family Members Start Petition to Save World Trade Center Sphere.” DNAinfo New York. 28 Feb. 2011. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.
