New renderings and details of The Shed at Hudson Yards have been revealed as the structure’s ETFE panels continue to be installed ahead of its Spring 2019 opening date.
The new images show how some of the cultural venue’s interior spaces will look, including the galleries and the vast event space created when the wheeled steel structure is rolled out to its furthest extents. This space will be known as “the McCourt,” named after businessman Frank McCourt Jr, who donated $45 million to the project.
Designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro in collaboration with Rockwell Group, the 200,000-square-foot cultural center was envisioned as a spiritual successor to Cedric Price’s visionary “Fun Palace,” a flexible framework that could transform to host different types of events.
The Shed also announced the first group of commissions that will occupy the building during its inaugural season. True to the center’s concept, the opening works will cover a wide range of topics and media forms, largely including those “informed by cutting-edge technologies.”
“The original idea for The Shed was relatively simple: provide a place for artists working in all disciplines to make and present work for audiences from all walks of life,” said The Shed’s Artistic Director and CEO Alex Poots. “Our opening programs begin to show how these artists, art forms and audiences can thrive together under one roof.”
The program includes:
- a new live production celebrating the unrivaled impact of African American music on art and popular culture over the past 100 years, conceived by acclaimed filmmaker and artist Steve McQueen, developed and produced with music industry legend Quincy Jones, respected NYU Professor Maureen Mahon, and preeminent hip-hop producer Dion ‘No I.D.’ Wilson
- a live performance/exhibition pairing works by master painter Gerhard Richter with a new composition by Steve Reich and extant composition by Arvo Pärt
- a reinvention of Euripides’ Helen by poet Anne Carson, starring Ben Whishaw and Renée Fleming
- an original live production co-conceived by Chen Shi-Zheng and Kung Fu Panda screenwriters Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, with songs by Sia and choreography by Akram Khan
- expansive exhibitions devoted to extant and newly commissioned work by trailblazing artists Trisha Donnelly and Agnes Denes
- An unprecedented opportunity for New York City-based, early-career artists of all disciplines to develop and showcase their work throughout The Shed’s spaces via an Open Call commissioning program
Poots also announced the appointment of Serpentine Galleries curator Hans Ulrich Obrist as The Shed’s Senior Program Advisor. In this role, Obrist will collaborate with the curatorial team to “develop and commission a wide range of new work in all disciplines.”
News via The Shed
