CANstruction 2025 November 2, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: Art exhibit, Brookfiled Place, Canstruction, City Harvest, Food, Food as Art, NYC, photography
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Canstruction is back at Brookfield Place! The clever and fun annual design competition challenges teams of architects, engineers, and contractors to build sculptures made entirely out of unopened cans of food. The large-scale sculptures are displayed in an exhibition space free and open to the public and later donated to City Harvest to help feed those in need. Canstruction® New York has donated over 2 million pounds of food to local food banks since 1993, and over 1.2 million pounds to City Harvest since 2006. Since 1992, Canstruction® has raised nearly 82 million pounds of food for hunger relief organizations around the world with its signature, trademarked CanArt. It is a very short exhibition and closes November 10th. Perhaps you CAN put it on your list for this year. 
‘Tis the Season (for Pumpkins) October 26, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: animals, banded mongoose, Central Park Zoo, kookaburra, nature, NYC, photography, Pumpkin enrichment, pumpkins, Red Panda, snow leopard, Snow Monkey, wildlife, zebu, Zoos
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My October obsession with bats and pumpkins has come to an end with today’s photo montage. Enjoy some of the Central Park Zoo animals diving into their seasonal treat. 
Feast for the Senses October 19, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: Audrey and Roberta, harvest, Mr. Pepe, NYC, photography, pumpkins, Union Square Greenmarket
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It is no secret that I love this time of year. I enjoy the amazing colors of the changing leaves and the fullness of the fall harvest. My love of pumpkins is well known. I went to the Union Square Green Market yesterday to feast on all of the fabulous colors and textures. I admit to not knowing what some of that produce was…but I enjoyed it fully. And yes, I added some of my pets to show you how much they too, enjoy this season. Enjoy!
City Spires October 12, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: architecture, NYC, photography, spires
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I walk the streets of Manhattan daily. Unlike people who are lots younger than me, I do not hold my phone as if I were clutching onto my beating heart. I enjoy my surroundings. I explore the architecture, reflections, and diversity of our buildings. I started taking photos of different spires as they related to one another either complimentary or clashing. It seems to me that over the last 20 years our zoning code has gone out the window.The NYC Zoning code determines the allowable size and use of buildings, where they are located and the densities of the city’s neighborhoods. The City is divided into three basic zoning districts: Residential (R), Commercial (C), and Manufacturing (M), which are then further divided into low, medium, and high density districts. I know that sounds good on paper but in reality it no longer works. The city is always changing – sometimes for the good and sometimes not so good. Enjoy today’s spires and next time you are walking in your own city, put down your phone and enjoy the architecture. 
Dear New York October 8, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: Art exhibit, Brandon Stanton, Grand Central Station, humansofny, Julliard, NYC, photography
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Another October Surprise! I walked to Grand Central Station yesterday to see this unique exhibition of photos of New Yorkers, by New Yorkers, including 600 students. It is a delight for the eyes. The 750,000 people that travel through Grand Central each day have a wonderful opportunity to stop, look and read about some of their neighbors. Humans of New York (HONY- ) is a photoblog and book of street portraits and interviews collected on the streets of NYC by photographer Brandon Stanton. For the next two weeks Grand Central Station will undergo the biggest transformation in its 112-year history, as it becomes a living, breathing celebration of the people of New York. All advertising has been removed from the building and replaced with portraits and stories from Humans of New York. There is also continuous music from the students at Julliard. When I was passing through I heard a wonderful pianist. Stop and smell the roses, as they say. You can follow him on Instagram at humansofny. This exhibition will only be on view until October 19, 2025. 
October Surprises October 5, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: animals, art, Bats, Flying mamals, Halloween, nature, NYC, October, photography, wildlife, zoo babies, Zoos
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I love October. I love pumpkins, the crisp fall air, the changing leaves, bats and Halloween. Since I always love art, I decided to combine art and bats for this Sunday’s photo montage. Enjoy! 
Bully! September 28, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: art, Art exhibit, Bully, Mt Rushmore, National Historic Site, NYC, photography, President of the US, Teddy bear, Teddy Roosevelt
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I live two blocks from Teddy Roosevelt’s birthplace which is part of the National Park Service and a National historic site. I must have passed by this house 1,000 times and told myself ‘you should go visit.’ Well, after 28 years of saying that we finally did visit this very special place. Wikipedia tells the complicated story best. This is a replica of his boyhood home. Teddy Roosevelt was the first U.S. president born in New York City. Raised in a townhouse at 28 E. 20th St., Theodore Roosevelt would grow up to be our 26th President and become immortalized on Mount Rushmore. We learn on the one hour, fact-filled tour that he started life as a sickly yet bright boy who exercised to improve his health and began a lifelong passion for the “strenuous life.” There is a separate room with loads of photos, artifacts and even the original ‘Teddy’ bear. We thoroughly enjoyed this tour but I must say that the house needs a real sprucing, dusting and a general upgrade. Pretty sure that in this political time there will not be any funding for this much needed work. Go visit. It is free.
June Leaf: Shooting from the Heart September 21, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: art, Art exhibit, June Leaf, New Bauhaus, NYC, NYU's Grey Gallery, photography
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Every once in awhile while arting we come across a major talent that nether of us had ever heard about. How does this happen? Well, for too many years art history books, museum retrospectives, articles, etc have focused on either European white males or white males in general. We have been enriched in recent times by museums and galleries opening their eyes, minds, hearts and doors to all. June Leaf if one of those major talent who was blessed with a 75 year career and a long rich life (1929–2024). NYU’s Grey Gallery is now exhibiting a remarkable body of work that revels in the human experience in all its banality and sublimity. Armed with indefatigable energy, an inventive mind, and a wry, closely observing eye, Leaf nimbly navigated the planes of the real and the imagined, holding a mirror up to essential truths while reminding us of our shared humanity. Born in Chicago and trained at the New Bauhaus, Leaf experienced two formative stints in Paris before relocating to New York. The artist’s career took off here in 1968 with her carnivalesque, breakout exhibition Street Dreams at Allan Frumkin Gallery. In the 1970s, living part time in a remote fishing village in Nova Scotia, Canada, Leaf began creating the densely layered drawings and paintings and the expressive tin and wire figurative sculptures for which she is best known. I encourage you to experience her work which is on exhibit thru December 13, 2025.
More Birding While Arting September 14, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: animals, art, Art exhibit, Arting, birding, nature, NYC, photography
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As I said in a Sunday post about two months ago ” My friend Donald and I have been ‘arting’ about once a week in the museums and galleries of NYC for the past 18 months. I thought I had made up the word ‘arting’ but recently searched its roots. It turns out the term ‘arting’ is not a standard English word, but it is sometimes used to refer to the act of creating art, or the process of using art to understand oneself and the world. Anyhow, it’s a good word and serves our purposes. From the beginning, whenever I saw a bird in a work of art, I would text that photo to one of my bird nerd friends. There is never any context in the text – I just send it to her. Sometimes she responds and other times she laughingly asks if I can buy it for her”. So today’s montage once again features a number of these past texts. This was a fun montage to put together. Hope you enjoy today’s beautiful birds.
Dogs of the New Yorker September 7, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: AKC, animals, art, Art exhibit, Cover art, Museum of the Dog, New Yorker Magazine, NYC, photography
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We are lucky New Yorkers as we now have another Museum dedicating an exhibition to the celebration of the New Yorker magazine’s 100th anniversary. The AKC Museum of the Dog is now exhibiting a private collection of 44 covers of The New Yorker related to dogs. The collection spans nearly the entire run of the magazine with covers featuring the work of New Yorker notables such as Peter Arno, James Thurber, Charles Addams, and Mark Ulriksen.The exhibition includes commentary on the specific covers with additional background material supplied by the staff and archives of The New Yorker. In addition to the role of dogs in the City, other themes include dog shows, grooming, country life and sports. There is also be a section of covers produced around the Westminster Kennel Club’s annual dog show. This is a fun exhibit (as is the whole museum) and will be running thru December 7th. Woof!
While at the Zoo 