Closing party, Tuesday June 23

As all good things must come to an end, we are having our CLOSING PARTY tomorrow night, Tuesday June 23rd, 8-9:30 pm. Wine and snacks will be on hand. Come and enjoy a beautiful night on the Gowanus Canal, and help send Gowanus HAVEN off into the sunset!

The best viewing time is at dusk, 8:45-9:00 pm.

Take the F-train to Carroll street, and walk down 2nd street two blocks to the canal.

thanks to everyone who has visited so far, and thanks to the Gowanus Dredgers and to Ken for being so supportive!

Schedule changes due to rain

It looks like we will be rained out tonight, Saturday June 20, unfortunately.

However, we will plan to show the project Sunday June 21, 8-9:30 pm,

and have our closing party Tuesday June 23, 8-9:30 pm with wine and snacks.

if you have any questions, call me at: 718 909 0808

thanks

Philip

Photos from the opening of HAVEN

Here are some photos from the opening night of HAVEN on Wednesday June 17. Katja and I were also on hand last night (Thursday June 18th) in spite of the drizzle to show the project.

We will definitely be there tonight, Friday June 19th, showing HAVEN. We will be at the canal from 5 pm-9:30pm. Best viewing time is 8:30-9pm. We hope to see you there.

Exhibition schedule for Gowanus Haven

We will be exhibiting the project every evening from now Thurday June 18 2009 until Tuesday June 23, 8pm-9:30 pm, so even if you missed the opening, you can still see the project! If it is raining, we won't be able to show it, unfortunately.

I will be posting pictures to the blog, from the opening of the exhibition in the next day, so check back soon.

Gowanus Haven opens tonight!, June 17, 2009

Last night we stayed at the canal after dark again, to work out the details of how to coordinate the video elements on the floating raft. You can see the results in the picture here. Come by and see us tonight on the canal, 7-10 pm at the end of 2nd Street near Bond Street.

Here are details about the exhibition:

GOWANUS HAVEN
Date:		Wednesday June 17, 2009
Time:		7:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Notes:		Gowanus HAVEN Opening Wednesday June 17, 7-10pm Local artist Philip Simmons has teamed up with 2 artists from Denmark, Hartmut Stockter and Katja Bjorn Jakobsen, to create a collaborative sculpture and video installation floating on the Gowanus canal in Brooklyn. They have constructed a raft with a large floating, water-powered machine that speaks to the life in and along the Gowanus Canal, a storied and reviled waterway currently enjoying a resurgence. The project captures the lush, libertine decay of the canal in its current state, and looks to the future of a cleaned-up, hopefully public, recreational space. HAVEN received financial support from the Danish Art Fund, and is hosted by the Gowanus Dredgers canoe club. The project is located at the end of 2nd street on the Gowanus Canal, at the Gowanus Dredgers boat landing. Take the F train to Carroll Street station, then walk 2 blocks downhill on 2nd Street to the canal. Exhibition hours are: Opening reception: Wednesday 7-10pm Exhibition hours: Thursday June 18-Tuesday June 23, 7:30-9:30 pm, or by appointment More information: simmonsphilip@gmail.com

We've been working steadily, rain or shine, and the cog wheels for the water powered "clock" have been mounted on the raft. Hopefully this precision mechanism won't be too adversely affected by the rain (plywood tends to warp in weather like this.) Things are looking good for our opening on Wednesday (June 17th, 7-10 pm on the Gowanus canal at 2nd street), though. Should be a beautiful evening.

Katja and I spent time in the Brooklyn Public Library's Brooklyn Collection yesterday researching more historic photos and information about the Gowanus canal, that will hopefully make it into the video component of the project. We're still testing the best way to project onto the raft and water at the canal.

The three of us have also made headway on the design and ideas for our upcoming project in Køge, Denmark, which we will create as part of a larger exhibition this fall.

People I have talked with the project have rightly asked what it means in a larger sense...I think each of the three of us has an individual perspective on this, but for me (Philip) the collaborative process has been where a lot of the creativity has happened. We conceived of the Haven project as a multi-part endeavor, happening in different parts of the world over time, where we, the artists, and others who want to spend time with us, can gather to celebrate creative activity, and a sense of freedom from the normal constraints of everyday life. For us, waterfront areas, harbors (and canals) are places where intercultural exchange, commerce, and activities outside the norm have always happened. Our quirky effort on the Gowanus canal is created in this spirit. It is a haven for us as artists, and for anyone who wants to hang out with us there. It has been great that neighborhood kids (some of whom have never seen anything like it), adult neighbors, gowanus dredgers and others have stopped by for repeated visits over the past week. 

more pictures from the building process

imitating bird calls

help from the kids

Gowanus water with dead squirrel

the water wheel after a day's work in the pouring rain

one of the first dredgers returns from a 

coast-to-coast motorcycle ride and dips

his foot in the water of the canal

cog-wheel-workshop