The Gates Project – 20 Years Later February 9, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: 2005, Art exhibit, Art instalation, Central Park, Christo, Jeanne Claude, Mayor Bloomberg, NYC, photography, The Gates Project
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Twenty years ago, I was lucky to work at The Gates Project when Jeanne-Claude and Christo created their fabulous site-specific work of art in 2005. The artists installed 7,503 vinyl “gates” along 23 miles of pathways in Central Park. From each gate hung a panel of deep saffron-colored nylon fabric. The exhibit ran from February 12, 2005 through February 27, 2005. Even though the exhibit officially ran for two weeks the installation and deinstallation of the project stretched out this work for almost two months. I believe this community work of art, was the beginning of the recovery for our wounded City from the devastation of 9/11 (thanks to Mayor Bloomberg for his decision to go ahead with this project). As a Gate Watcher, I held a long pole with a tennis ball on the end of it so that I could unfurl the saffron curtains if the wind wrapped them around their stanchions. I had the good fortune of speaking to thousands of visitors from all around the world about the project, about New York City, about life, art and politics for two weeks. It was an experience I will never forget. Many of you who are reading this blog came to visit me at my Gates post to share the experience. Every morning that we worked we would meet Jeanne-Claude and Christo at the Boat House for free breakfast where they would talk to us, both individually and as a group.They also were generous enough to take the time to sign our souvenir posters, books or whatever – every Friday afternoon – with their signature orange crayons. I have my signed prints proudly hanging in my living room. May they rest in peace and may their memory be a blessing, dear Jeanne -Claude and Christo. I created all of the photo montages seen here 20 years ago as a way to remember that singular experience.
Groundhog Day February 2, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: animals, Audrey and Roberta, baby animals, giraffe, Groundhog Day, nature, NYC, photography, Sea Ducks, shadows, Snow Leopard cubs, wildlife, Zoos
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Yes, it is Groundhog Day (again). If Puxatawny Phil or Staten Island Chuck see their shadows we will have six more weeks of winter. I share some of my classic zoo shadow photos today where all of these amazing animals (including one of my own house cats) see their shadows.
Year of the Snake January 26, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: animals, Chinese New Year, Chinese Zodiac, Hiss, photography, Year of the Snake
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2025 is the Year of the Snake based on the Chinese Zodiac. The snake symbolizes wisdom, intuition, and transformation (since the snake sheds its skin), while offering opportunities for personal growth and change. If you were born in 1941,1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013 it just night be a transformative year for you. Hisssssss!
Edges of Ailey January 19, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: Alma Thomas, Alvin Ailey, art, Art exhibit, Basquiat, Dance, Faith Ringgold, Jacob Lawrence, Kara Walker, Kevin Beasley, photography, Rashid Johnson, Romare Bearden, Whitney Museum
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We had wanted to see this exhibition since it opened back in September but life sometimes interferes with art. We finally went last Sunday and we were wowed. Edges of Ailey is the first large-scale museum exhibition to celebrate the life, dances, influences, and enduring legacy of visionary artist and choreographer Alvin Ailey. It consists of an immersive exhibition in the Museum’s 18,000 square-foot fifth-floor galleries—featuring works by more than eighty artists and revelatory archival material—and performances in the Museum’s third-floor theater, including AILEY in residence for one week each month during the exhibition. Included are performance footage, recorded interviews, notebooks, letters, poems, short stories, choreographic notes, drawings, and performance programs and posters gathered from Ailey’s archives and others forge a vital through-line in the gallery. The artworks are arranged by themes that shaped Ailey’s life and dances. Sections span an expanded Black southern imaginary that enfolds histories of the American South with those of the Caribbean, Brazil, and West Africa; the enduring practices of Black spirituality; the profound conditions and effects of Black migration; the resilience for and necessity of an intersectional Black liberation; the prominence of Black women in Ailey’s life; and the robust histories and experiments of Black music; along with the myriad representations of Blackness in dance and meditations on dance after Ailey. Artists exhibited among Ailey include Basquiat, Romare Bearden (a personal favorite of mine,) Faith Ringgold, Alma Thomas, Jacob Lawrence, Rashid Johnson, Kevin Beasley, Kara Walker and many more. This wonderful exhibit is on through February 9th.
World Waterfowl Day January 17, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: animals, baby animals, ducks, nature, NYC, photography, Sea Ducks, waterfowl, wildlife, World Waterfowl Day, zoo babies, Zoos
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Today (January 17th) is the first World Waterfowl Day. The goal is to spread awareness, knowledge, and interest for waterfowl, as well as the conservation of these birds and their habitats.This group of birds is comprised of more than 170 species of ducks, geese, and swans found throughout the world’s wetlands. Sadly, one-third of all wild waterfowl are considered threatened or endangered. Habitat loss and human population growth are the primary causes of waterfowl declines. Water pollution from agricultural runoff, waste, and other contaminants destroy the food sources for waterfowl. As wetlands are destroyed, so are essential spots for breeding, nesting, and feeding. World Waterfowl Day presents an opportunity for all to work towards the protection, conservation and reproduction of all waterfowl species to stop them from being in danger of extinction. Waterfowl are incredibly adaptable and can be found on every continent except Antarctica. In fact, they thrive in almost any environment that is near water. Protecting waterfowl is crucial. The loss of one species from our ecosystem can have an effect on other species. By protecting waterfowl, we are not only safeguarding the natural world but also the habitats that many other living things rely on – including humans! Enjoy just a small photo sampling of some of these beautiful species.
Postcards from the Edge January 12, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: art, Art Deco, Art exhibit, Chrysler building, Coney Island, Empire State Building, Musuem of the City of NY, NYC, photography, Postcards, Rockefeller Center
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Remember writing postcards especially when you traveled? I used to send myself postcards at the end of a trip to see how long it took to get to my home. Once again the Museum of the City of NY has brought us an exhibit that makes one smile. During the 1920s and ’30s, the bold new look of Art Deco heralded New York’s arrival as a cosmopolitan metropolis: a center of architecture, design, fashion, and culture.The picture postcard, a form of modern communication, transmitted vibrant images and messages around the globe. Art Deco City: New York Postcards from the Leonard A. Lauder Collection illuminates the key role postcards played in transforming New York into an international capital during the years between World Wars. Featuring over 250 postcards as well as decorative arts, fashion, photography, drawings, and architectural models, Art Deco City immerses you into the dazzling style that defined the modern city. That said – I most certainly was underdressed. More than an aesthetic, Art Deco was the look that sold the city to the world. This exhibit is on through February 17, 2025. While visiting the museum please do not forget to experience the heart pulsing, fun, fast paced, colorful, “You Are Here” exhibit (which is right next to the postcards) and draws on the rich archive of movies set in New York, combining thousands of cinematic moments across 16 screens. That delightful movie experience is on through October of 2025. I have seen it multiple times and have enjoyed it over and over again. FYI – The MCNY is open every day.
Cut it Out! January 5, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: Art exhibit, Cut-outs, Henri Matisse, MoMA, Musuem of Modern Art, NYC, photography
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I confess that Henri Matisse (1869-1954) is my favorite artist. No one comes close to his talent in my eyes. How could we resist not taking in the latest MoMA exhibit of his inspiring cut-outs. These paper artistic treasures are light sensitive so MoMA only displays them every few years. This beautiful exhibit closes January 20, 2025. I encourage you to visit. In the late 1940s (after abdominal surgery left him in a wheelchair), Matisse turned almost exclusively to cut paper as his primary medium, and scissors as his chief implement, introducing a radically new operation that came to be called a cut-out. Matisse would cut painted sheets into forms of varying shapes and sizes—from the vegetal to the abstract—which he then arranged into lively compositions, striking for their play with color and contrast, their exploitation of decorative strategies, and their economy of means. Initially, these compositions were of modest size but, over time, their scale grew along with Matisse’s ambitions for them, expanding into mural or room-size works. A brilliant final chapter in Matisse’s long career, the cut-outs reflect both a renewed commitment to form and color and an inventiveness directed to the status of the work of art, whether as a unique object, environment, ornament, or a hybrid of all of these. FYI – MoMA has finally given its members their own entrance on West 54th Street. If you are a MoMA member I encourage your using this entrance to avoid the maddening crowds. 
Cheers thru the Years January 1, 2025
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: animals, Audrey and Roberta, baby animals, Benny the dog, Casa Lobo, Cheers, Happy new year, Jack the dog, Madison the cat, Mr. Pepe, photography
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Like most of you, many of my old New Year photos popped up this week. I enjoyed looking at the changing cast of characters these past 13 years. Thought you might like to smile at them too. Wishing everyone a very Happy and Healthy New Year. The cast of characters include: sister cats, Andrew and Roberta, Madison the elder cat, Sweet Benny the dog, One-eyed Jack the dog, Pete the newest cat and of course the very photogenic and charming Mr Pepe the dog.
It’s a Wrap! December 29, 2024
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: animals, End of Year, Happy new year, nature, NYC, photography, wildlife, zoo babies, Zoos
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Today’s montage completes 21 years of posting my Sunday photos. By my calculations (and I won the math award in eighth grade) that’s about 1052 Sunday photo montages. Yikes! Thanks for coming along for the ride. Some of you have been with me for the entire 21 years. I am very thankful for that and welcome all new subscribers. Hoping to do my best to keep posting on Sundays. I leave you as always, with no ‘ifs – just ends and butts.’ Wishing everyone a very happy and healthy New Year. 
A Joyous, Merry and Happy Holiday to All December 25, 2024
Posted by judylobo in Zoo.Tags: animals, Audrey and Roberta, baby animals, Benny the dog, Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Mr. Pepe, NYC, One-eyed Jack the Dog, photography
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Holiday time is always fun at our house. We celebrate most holidays (especially the ones that demand the wearing of a hat). My little present gang of critters, Mr. Pepe, Roberta, Audrey and Pete and our loved ones who no longer are here, Sweet Benny, Madison the elder cat and One-eyed Jack) are/were all good sports and since today is Christmas and the first night of Hanukkah we would like to share some of those fun moments with you. Wishing all of you and yours a very merry and a happy. Cheers!
While at the Zoo 