The Big Draw; Review #1
The Big Draw, part of the River to River Festival, is a free annual art event in Lower Manhattan that is sure to interest both young and old. Spread out over several locations, all accessible by foot or provided bus, The Big Draw offers five unique artistic experiences ranging from traditional observational drawing to even laser tag. Although attending as many events as possible was on my agenda, I was only able to attend two of the five events, but had fantastic time nevertheless. Upon arriving at an event, stalls set up along the sides provide you with a sketchbook, which features the locations conveniently marked off on a map, a schedule of when they take place and descriptions of the activities.
My first event for the day was located at the South Street Seaport. There, thick poster boards had been set up along the boardwalk and visitors were provided with calligraphy brushes (re: hollow bamboo brushes with branches inserted to provide length) and sheets of Chinese calligraphy, which they could copy onto the boards in water. However, one could always opt for not following the sheets and simply doodle instead. While the decision to use water instead of ink was smart, it also had the negative effect of drying up before one could really take a look, much less take a picture, of their creation. On the other hand, the stalls also provided tracing paper and black and white historical images of New York’s waterside. Finished tracings could be put up on a clothesline to “flutter in the breeze like flags or keep as memorabilia,” remarked one staff member.
My second event was a few blocks away at the World Financial Center where two small buses had been anchored to the railing and by the time I arrived, were covered in yarn, shoelaces and unfinished knitting work. Along the sidelines, tables and chairs had been set up where adults and children alike were learning how to knit and crochet. The staff was friendly and more than willing to provide visitors with yarn to throw around the buses. However, the real fun came when you had the chance to climb through existing weave work and thread your choice of yarn through whatever nooks and crannies were left.
All in all, the experience at the two events was fantastic although the artist featured at the first event seemed reluctant to interact with the visitors. Rather, he simply looked over people’s shoulder and spent most of the time making his own drawings. However, drawing alongside the impressive ships at the seaport is an amazing experience that is really worth experiencing. I had a lot of fun at the second event and was only slightly disappointed that because a lot of the events were scheduled at the same time, after fully enjoying one event, grabbing lunch and making your way to the next – it was really all you had time for in one day. There was also strangely, a lack of signs noting an event or arrows to point out where the actual location was. Yet, the event was really fantastic and enjoyable. I’m actually looking forward to attending again next year and squeezing in some of the other activities.
September 22nd, 2007 at 5:18 pm
It’s great to get a different viewpoint about an event. Most people thought the Big Draw event was a terrible waste of time, but you actually want to go again next year. lol The yarn thing sounds exciting the way you described it, but it doesn’t look too good. I think it looks too messy to be art. And it was probably a nuisance to have to clean up too.