Artist Florent Morellet, whose eponymous Meatpacking District restaurant served as a destination for artists, celebrities, drag queens and drug addicts alike, from its opening in 1985, when the area was still a no man’s land, through to its close in 2008, will be commemorated on the High Line with a monument designed by sculptor John Ahearn. The sculpture will be on view from this September through April 2014, joining the nine sculptures currently included in the “Busted” exhibition gracing the elevated park.
Mr. Morellet was selected via online vote, beating out the other four finalists for the sculpture (Peter Obletz, Dorothy Parker, Daniel Reddan and Magda Sawon) with more than 1,500 votes. The monument was commissioned by Friends of the High Line, the nonprofit conservancy that maintains the park and presents High Line Art, which is curated by Cecilia Alemani.
“Both Florent Morellet and John Ahearn share a strong faith in the power of art, culture and creativity to bring people together and transform our cities with public spaces enjoyed by people from diverse communities,” Ms. Alemani stated in a news release. “John Ahearn embodies not only the qualities of a great artist but also the very spirit of this project. For over four decades, he has devoted himself to capturing the wonderful energies that animate a city like New York.”
