Power to Art, Power to the People /  by Mirena Rhee

Memory Replacement Weapon Manual

Memory Replacement Weapon Manual photo by Jodi L. Roberts @jodi212nyc

Our superpower, the power to express ourselves and to exercise democracy

Love is Free /  by Mirena Rhee

I wanted to let you know that a few weeks prior to Memory Replacement I worked for the Census Bureau and I was sent to the wealthiest neighborhoods in Manhattan as well as to the housing towers, and then I was sent to rural Georgia. I spoke to people from all walks of life and means, ethnic backgrounds and languages, people in $30 million condos and penthouses with self cleaning nanotechnology on the elevator buttons, people in trailer parks and mansions on UES and apartments on Park avenue, and beautiful houses on the hills in rural Georgia. I went to interview the homeless at soup kitchens, I spoke to literally hundreds of fellow humans and discovered this one great thing.

We are the same people.

And those that were nice to me were rich in their demeanor, and those who were not nice to me were poor in their behavior, and this was the only way I could tell one person from another, from where I sat, on their doormats, on their porches, or with their doorman.

Memory Replacement Election Day 2020 /  by Mirena Rhee

Performance and Installation with Public Participation on Election Day 2020 at Union Square created and performed by American artist Mirena Rhee

Reality Check /  by Mirena Rhee


Well it's not that when I drink coffee in the morning I think about supernovas, or that I dislike wealth, or money, or material things per se. I used to love going into Victoria's secret stores for example and checking out all the fragrances - it was an experience like in a Salvador Dali world with lingerie.

I love the small pleasures but they have become a part of a really large large world.

I like physics and astronomy because they keep me grounded in a reality that's much larger than the small world we live on. I don't want to be a worm with my nose down in the dirt. I want to be a pair of eyes fixed on the stars.

I grew up with the Foundation novels of Isaac Asimov, I recently even re-listened to all seven Foundation series, although I have to say that some of the, well, gender issues were a little bit dated.

But I dream of the day when our descendants are going to cover the stars the way we just hop between the continents today, and they're going to think nothing of passing by a planet or a supernova.

But in order for this day to come we need to utilize the resources of our civilization and all human beings, the greatest resource of our planet. Unfortunately a lot of kids grow up in terror and darkness, just the way I grew up, if it wasn't for a little computer lab to give me an extensive and free time with computers so I could realize my potential... I would have been stuck cooking somewhere, sorry but that's the reality for a lot of creatures on this Earth. If you notice many Hollywood movies immediately show a female person, a female human with an apron doing dishes near a sink usually in the kitchen.

So we have to change the reality for huge segments of humanity - first and most importantly is kids who are currently stuck and unable to contribute and grow because of their environment, and of course freeing the brains of women to be used and work for the betterment of humanity.

Knowing of physics and astronomy grows my world to include the entire universe, and its entire lifespan, so I could measure my little life here against the entire reality of our world. When I get up in the morning I want to know that everything I do in the world is part of a very very large universe, so I don't want to worry about the little things. I want to worry about the little things very little.

I want my work not to be just objects but to answer the biggest questions as to what is it like to be a human being, what is a beautiful thing that a human being can do in their day, and breaking down as many walls and barriers without actually demolishing anything.

So we live in a world with a moon and many stars, and a can of paint is just a single wavelength of light entering our brains. Why do we like color?
I don't know but I'd like to give it to you freely.

It is Friday night and I am taking a break to think about the next State of The Material World /  by Mirena Rhee

It is Friday night and I am taking a break to think about the next State of The Material World essay or series of essays. I have been most exited recently to watch several lectures by a recent recipient of the Nobel prize in physics, and at the center of that Nobel prize is a black hole.

Enjoy Andrea Ghez from UCLA, she is so lovely and lively and down to earth. And absolutely brilliant. What is a brilliant person? A brilliant person shines light and shows us the people in the dark how awesome things are in the universe, brilliant people put light in our eyes.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvmOrIhmG8s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwhozRNE9gE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7HQ_JR5DzA

The most interesting thing is the fact that there's a black hole at the center of our small part of the Universe - this simple fact doesn't change anything for me or how I see the world, it only comes to reinforce my view that the material world is a veil, albeit very compelling.

If you have any doubts on what you do in the world or where you are going and the general confusion of things - refer to the black hole.

And don't worry about me not having fun on Friday night because maybe not this past winter but the winter before I literally lived several lifetimes worth of gallery openings drinking wine with my artist friends in and around Chelsea and sometimes getting blackout drunk so I definitely don't miss alcohol.

Going back to black holes, it really goes back to all my grumbles against handbags because I think handbags are just too little a task for humanity and we spend so much time on handbags and so much resources.

Now from these lectures it wasn't very clear to me if matter shoots out of the black hole or simply streams into it, or both, but I will rewatch the lectures when I have a little more time late next week.

The state of the material world 2 note from a while ago—>> I would walk on 5th avenue and look at all the handbags and then there would be people on 5th avenue carrying handbags in large satchels, they would open the satchels and there will be tons of handbags there. And they will sell them to the people. I really always wondered who makes all these handbags., And who wants these handbags. I really love beautiful things and I have to say I'm quite educated in beautiful things as I've seen the most beautiful and most prized items in the world with my eyes. There's nothing beautiful about handbags, in my opinion they are actually extremely ugly most of them. What prevents a person from simply caring a bag, even a simple plastic bag would do. You can go with a backpack and it's better because it could contain your laptop or other educational devices. Or your sketchbook, I have never in my life seen anyone taking out their sketchbook out of a handbag.

My general feelings is that I want to remove myself to a small village in Spain or wherever with great internet and write draw and paint uninterruptedly.

Summer Playfield /  by Mirena Rhee

Many thanks to Colin Lane for the great photo www.colinlane.com

A fairy tale of trees, leaves, color, green and the amazing wisteria pergola in @centralparknyc Thanks for coming to see this colorful incident and thank you, #CentralPark for not tearing me down although I worked illegally and without permission, I did it for the betterment of mankind and for all of us in #NewYorkCity just because no one else will do it. An #art #installation of #GiantHands created over 3 days and every day was a different arrangement of hands - one day the hands looked like Roots, another day they looked like flags and of course I created it randomly just putting #hands up as they came out of the bag. everyday I will come at noon and put the hands up and then I will take them down in the evening at dusk, like hands Cinderella

The #GiantHands have developed pretty serious patina, they've become experienced objects on their own. An incredible 3-day weekend working in #centralpark of course not sanctioned by #centralpark🗽 it's all about sharing the most beautiful spaces in #nyc and just being with each other -which is basically the human experience.

For the summer Playfield I used a very simple method of hanging the hands I would just wedge the wooden dowels in between the pergola beams and occasionally I would just tie the wooden dowel with a simple thread to the beam Imagine that for complicated structure And of course I brought my own ladder to the affair, I will not have been able to hang the hands without a ladder The park people came and I was sitting by the ladder and I saw them turn around and they oh so there is the ladder, so they understood that I'm committed to the hands. They sat there they never spoke to me they simply radioed someone I guess in headquarters or something and they just left afterwards

Featured
Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Featured
Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Featured
Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Summer Playfield
Summer Playfield

An installation with Giant Hands at the Wisteria Pergola in Central Park created illegally over the summer by American Artist Mirena Rhee. A series of Three One Day installations in Early September where the artist would hang the hands in the morning and take them down in the evening. Photographed by the Artist.

Mirena Rhee - Hands Summer Playfield - near the Summer Stage in Central Park. An Installation in Three acts - Saturday and Sunday /  by Mirena Rhee

I had such a blast working in Central Park over the Labor Day weekend, it is hard to come out of the fairy tale land of my hands forest and hands field and into the real world /  by Mirena Rhee

Thanks to all of you and you, New York, I am hands down convinced that the virus hasn’t taken the spirit of this great city. I found the people and the place so very exciting, it has made my life a great and beautiful adventure and coupled with my other life where i somehow ended up going to the tallest buildings and most beautiful newly built buildings in New York city. … i am still riding high on elation. Thank you, New York, for being so very awesome - i can’t imagine my life, my art life and my experience as a human on earth without you in it. Some people never get to experience the magnificence of New York city because of the malls - but now that we are out of the malls - we have each other and this amazing place.

I met so many people, critters, insects, squirrels. i had a conversation with a little girl whether what i do is decorating.

Hmmm. I had to think a while and I decided an answer - a decoration is a small addition, an improvement to a thing. Art is a thing by itself, it has transformed the thing into a new thing.

Saturday

………………….

Saturday was such a strange day at the beginning I was at the bow Bridge in Central Park and the bow Bridge has not been lucky for me and my hands. then I met a photographer who was kind to me and I think turned things around.

Well I was at the bow bridge I played with the hands dropping them over the railing playing with shadow and reflection. But I was really confused, I felt like I'm working through molasses.

I had strewn some hands over at the lawn but they started blowing in the wind and I was afraid the sticks of the hands will hit somebody. It was basically like herding wild animals. Afterwards I told people that the hands grow like this in the wild and now it's just the season. I only herd them.

I was having a pretty disappointing day, I walked by Strawberry Fields and I saw a little pathway and decided to check it out and then I discovered this walkway which was sheltered from the wind.

It was like a forest path so decided to strew the Hands in there

All kinds of things happens to the hands in there. Bicycles Rode over them, dogs, people, critters, birds, squirrels

Everything happened really quickly and when things happen quickly there's very little hesitation so it all worked out in the end.

Someone run their BICYCLE Through the HANDS twice

Trust your feelings

Sunday

………………..

The most amazing labor day weekend - I only now realized I had dressed like the strawberry fields, pictures by Brian Clark - I got it!. I dressed by accident, and made the installation by accident.

Was walking past dejected when I saw a path and decided to toss the hands out of the bag.

An Installation with Giant Hands at the Strawberry Fields in Central Park - New York City created by Mirena Rhee over the Labor Day weekend. Photos by Brian Clark.

hands-field-installation-central-park-mirena-rhee.jpg

Monday

art #installation in #CentralPark

On Monday I experimented with the pergola I have been eyeing for more than a year.. I had not come prepared and was a bit lazy and felt like just going with the music rather than focusing on the work. But the light was very beautiful and I will return to hang all 36.

Hands Field