Inside the Bushwick studio of artist Jen Lewin, a giant bear sculpture is wrapped up and ready for delivery.
It doesn’t like much on its side, but that will change when Ursa Minor, which is 13-feet-tall, joins the 26-foot-tall Ursa Major on the waterfront of the Gowanus Canal on Aug. 1.
What You Need To Know
The Ursas are large bear sculptures by artist Jen Lewin
They will have a permanent home along the Gowanus Canal in a public space that is part of the Nevins Landing Development
Other art will also be added to the space to join the Ursas
“It is very playful and joyful, but there is a message behind it, which is one that I hope can be reflective,” said Lewin, who is known around the world for her large-scale interactive light installations in public spaces.
This one is close to home.
The two bear sculptures, named for the constellations, will be permanently installed along the Gowanus in front of the two-building Nevins Landing in a public park area.
It’s part of the larger Gowanus Wharf Campus, being developed by Charney Companies and Tavros.
This is happening as the area continues to revitalize after a more industrial history along the famously polluted canal, which is undergoing a massive cleanup.
Meanwhile, development has been booming along the waterway.
“Rarely in the private sector of real estate do I get to place artwork that is going to be for the public, generally speaking its lobby art or art in amenity spaces that really my residents get to enjoy and no one else gets to enjoy, so to be able to place something in the public realm that is interactive was just too special an opportunity to pass up,” Sam Charney, the president and founder of Charney Companies, said.
The sculptures, which have been featured at Burning Man, not only differ in size, but folks can walk inside Ursa Major where there is a series of infinity mirrors and illustrations of creatures that have gone extinct over the last few years.
Ursa Minor is constructed from infinity mirrors and programmable LED lights.
Ursa Major is made from reclaimed ocean plastic sourced from Lewin’s 2022 work called The Last Ocean.
“Both sculptures really act together, one about hope and recalibration and like this potential for us to have vision and hope, but the other which is reminding us to be reflective of these losses and actually pay attention to them,” Lewin said.
The Nevins Landing project was designed by Fogart Fingers Architects and will feature 654 rental apartments with ground-floor retail across two towers. The public access area was designed by Field Operations, who were the lead on the High Line project.
The Ursas will not be alone. Other art pieces are on the way to the space, in what the developers will hope will become a destination for art lovers.