Carl Skelton Pays Tribute To History On The Manhattan Bridge

In a surprising and compelling convergence of rich architectural history and modern art, a temporary installation developed by Carl Skelton, NYU-Poly’s Brooklyn Experimental Media Center director and assistant professor of digital media, is projecting—onto the Manhattan Bridge—the name, date of birth and birthplace of some of the everyday people who helped shape New York City. The installation, Ultratope 1: Real City, will continue from dawn to dusk until March 31 and pays particular attention the community members who left their mark on the Lower East Side and Downtown Manhattan. The photo above captures a tribute to Rabbi Avrohom Aharon Yudelovitch, rabbi at Eldridge Street Synagogue from 1918 until his death in 1930. The public is encouraged to submit names of living or deceased (provide the person's full name, place and year of birth) for inclusion in the project by emailing Skelton at cskelton@poly.edu or calling 718-260-4018.

Real City will also stand as the provisional outline of a tribute at another level: to the “soft infrastructure” of local organizations that have formed and re-formed over the years: churches, community associations, museums... each is invited to contribute names and other information about a member of their community, past or present, for the project. Individuals may also submit information for a community member remembered with admiration, gratitude, or love.

Tribute to Asser (Levy) Recife...

The initial list of over 50 people celebrated thus far was derived from a combination of traditional research, web browsing, and indirect personal inquiries through local community organizations, with help from the Chinatown Partnership, the Little Italy Merchants Association and the Eldridge Street Museum.

Tribute to Anna "Annie" Moore, the first immigrant to the United States to pass through the Ellis Island facility in New York Harbor...

Ultratope 1: Real City is part of the Department of Transportation’s Urban Art Program. See more photos on NYC The Blog's Facebook page.

Previously: The Final Hours Of Chinatown Fair, The Last Arcade In Chinatown

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