vip in the city

P.S. 1 Warm Up

The first P.S. 1 Warm Up of the 2007 season drew the entire hipster population of Brooklyn, along with some brand new iPhones, and quite a few European expats, into Long Island City. As if to prove the point, while on line for beer tickets, I actually ran into a couple I met at MC’s birthday party at Williamsburg’s Soft Spot a couple of weeks ago.

This afternoon was our first glimpse at the winning installation of this year’s MoMA/P.S.1 Young Architects Program: “Liquid Sky” by Los Angeles-based Ball-Nogues, which three of us had seen as a work in progress over Memorial Day weekend.

The crowds were crushing on this sweltering summer afternoon, and underneath the kaleidoscopic crimson canopies, a few skirmishes were inevitable. While on the endless queue with our Brits for Magic Hats, a couple of bold weasels attempted to take advantage of our cheerful distraction to squeeze in line ahead of us. We all noticed their encroaching movements at the same moment; I felt my dander rise, but before I could call them out on it, TH stepped in with a quick smile and a sly remark that completely disarmed the would-be infiltrators. Within seconds, they were chuckling ruefully and apologizing — actually apologizing! – to us for the “misunderstanding.” I stood by agog during the round of good-natured backslaps and handshakes — we’re all friends now?! — after which they cheerfully left us to take their rightful places at the back of the line.

Despite having witnessed the entire exchange firsthand, I could hardly believe that this potentially explosive situation played out the way it did. Mr. Charming, indeed!

For more, check out my full PS1 Warm Up 2007 flickr set — which includes photos of our subsequent (less insanely crowded) visit.

There's 1 comment so far ... P.S. 1 Warm Up

Qsoz
July 24, 2007

It makes me queasy to see all those hipsters at once.

Go for it ...