A dollar still goes a long way. Early in 2003, the federal government returned Governors Island – 172 acres located a half-mile off the southern tip of Manhattan – to the people of New York for one dollar. The island, a Coast Guard base until 1997 and designated a National Monument in 2001, will be open to the public for guided tours beginning in mid-June. To help spark interest in the largely unknown island, the Municipal Art Society, in partnership with the Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation and the Public Art Fund, just opened a 29-photograph show that will run through July 8.
The exhibit showcases the work of two local photographers, Lisa Kereszi and Andrew Moore, both of whom spent time on the island in 2003.
Part of the coastal defense system since The War of 1812, the former home of New York’s royal governors was first used to cover Washington’s retreat from the city in 1776. The islands defenses were bolstered with two forts that, since their completion in the early 1800s, have seen Governors Island transformed from a military stockade to an Army headquarters to a U.S. Coast Guard base to a National Monument. Governors Island: Photographs, is open Monday-Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. The exhibit is on display at the Municipal Art Society’s Urban Center Gallery, 457 Madison Avenue. For details visit www.mas.org or call 212-935-3960.
WWW Downtown Express
