The Tile Project Articles / Announcement Date: Oct 25, 2004 - 09:43 PM What does Azerbaijan and the USA have in common? Nothing, you say? Not even sure where Azerbaijan is? Well you are not alone. Before yesterday I could not even spell Azerbaijan. I did know that it was formerly part of the Soviet Union. But what does Azerbaijan have in common with the USA? Artists! Yes, of course, the USA, Azerbaijan and, in fact, every country on the planet earth all have local artists. Azerbaijan and USA artists have joined with 120 artists from 38 other countries to create tiles that represent their home countries. These 120 artists are part of The Tile Project, Destination: The World. The goal of the Project is to create 21 temporary art installations; from Berlin to New York; Sarajevo to Seoul. Each of the 21 installations will display donated tiles made by the artists. These artists hope that their works will help unite the world by making us more tolerant of each other. Their hope is that the commonalities of art will offer a way for world citizens to unite in peace, regardless of nationality, race, gender or age. The New York City Department of Parks & Recreation and TransCultural Exchange, an international nonprofit arts organization, are sponsoring The Tile Project, Destination: The World, a one year temporary public art installation at Mercer Street Playground (Mercer Street between Bleecker and W. 3rd Streets). The New York City site is one of twenty-two global installations, a joint effort among 120 artists from forty countries. The 120 four-inch tile artworks will be mounted in linear panels hung in back-to-back sections on the unique fence surrounding the park, allowing viewing from both inside the park and from the street. The Tile Project expresses the participating artists’ shared belief that global cooperation is indeed possible and that the spirit of goodwill among people of all nations can prevail. As a group, the artists of TransCultural Exchange have exhibited their work at many international galleries, museums, and other venues, including Palais Tokyo, Paris; London Biennale; Trans Hudson Gallery, NYC; PS 122 Gallery, NYC; The Chicago Cultural Center; radio:on:studio, Tokyo; Ichon Art Center, Seoul; the Bar of the Museum of Modern Art, Berlin; and Inner Mongolian Museum of Fine Arts, Huhhot. Diversified in their media, the group has created a compelling assemblage of tiles running the gamut from traditional ceramics to glass, photography and digital imagery. In discussing The Tile Project’s evolution, TransCultural Exchange Director Mary Sherman asserts modern architect Stanley Tigerman’s view that tiles are “both democratic and accessible.” They are the essence of the potential of public art as “an art form that can be found anywhere in the world by anyone, no matter one’s class, race, age or gender; with a purpose and beauty transcending all differences between all people.” Co-organizers Enid Braun and Kim Sillen Gledhill, Sherman and the participating artists of TransCultural Exchange view The Tile Project as affirmation of the hope that people of the world can cross superficial boundaries and work in unison towards peace and cross-cultural understanding. Supporters of TransCultural’s The Tile Project include UNESCO, the Romanian Cultural Institute, Israeli Consulate’s Department of Cultural Affairs, Core Computer Group, The Puffin Foundation, the Bosnian-American Association, MIT’s Office for the Arts, Blue Space Contemporary Art Center (Ho Chi Minh City), Duggal , U.S. Department of State’s Arts and Embassies Program, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Boston and New York, the Consulate General of Turkey and the Open Society Institute. This article comes from Miles Smith Farm http://www.milessmithfarm.net/ The URL for this story is: http://www.milessmithfarm.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=198