Good news for anyone who enjoys people-watching, dog-watching, or generally just observing the delightful chaos of Central Park: things are about to get delightfully weirder.
This fall, artist Camille Henrot is planting a dozen larger-than-life dog sculptures in Doris C. Freedman Plaza, right at the park's southwest corner. Because apparently, the actual dogs of New York weren't enough to capture our collective attention.
This isn't a pop-up, either. The Public Art Fund project will be lounging around for an entire year, from September 9th through August 29th, 2027. Plenty of time to decide which one is your favorite, or which one you'd most like to have a philosophical conversation with.
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Start Your News DetoxHenrot's Pack of Pups
These aren't your average bronze poodles. Henrot's "Dogs" will be crafted from a mix of bronze, stone, steel, and concrete, each with its own distinct personality. They're based on her earlier works, like the steel pup Noé or Francesco, a wooden French bulldog who probably has very strong opinions on croissants. There's also Helix, a dog with stroller wheels for back legs, which, if you think about it, is both impressive and slightly terrifying. Margaret, Sammy, and Richelieu round out this motley crew.
Melanie Kress, a senior curator at the Public Art Fund, noted that each sculpture will have a unique vibe, reflecting the glorious, often absurd, variety of dogs Henrot encounters in her Upper West Side neighborhood. Because every neighborhood needs its own monumental, sculptural canine representation, naturally.
Henrot herself is known for work that's often described as "pleasantly strange." She delves into themes like the body, nature, and the increasingly complex art of caretaking in our modern world. While she's a sculptor at heart, she also dabbles in paintings, videos, and even flower arrangements. A true renaissance artist, with a penchant for the peculiar.
She once won the Silver Lion at the Venice Biennale for a video called Grosse Fatigue (which sounds like how we all feel on a Monday morning). More recently, her video In the Veins tackled caretaking during the climate crisis, because who said art can't make you think about existential threats while also admiring a giant metal dog?
Henrot has pondered aloud why we humans lavish affection on dogs and cats, but not, say, a particularly charming beetle. Her take? Dogs, much like small children, can be "messy and kind of punk." And honestly, isn't that why we love them?
