Monday, November 3, 2008

Tree Huts

This is one of 10 tree houses (I think there are 10) built on tree tops at Madison Square Park. The project entitled, Tree Huts by Tadashi Kawamata is one of the many sponsored by Mad. Sq. Art, a free gallery without walls sponsored by the Madison Square Park Conservatory.

So have you ever lived inside a tree house?

21 comments:

Virginia said...

i have rewritten my reply 3 times. The other two sounded bitchy and insensitive to art. Last try..... No Ming I have never lived in a tree house. I think there is a fine line between art and con artist. That's as nice as I can get about this stuff. Thank you for exposing us to everything NYC has to offer. I love you.
V

Ming the Merciless said...

No worries, Virginia. Art is such a subjective form that it easily attracts debate over what is and what isn't.

I guess a tree house is just a tree house everywhere but in NYC. :-)

USelaine said...

I love treehouses. My brother and I had two, up at my grandfather's place, when we were kids. The first one was in an apple tree, so it wasn't too high up. The next one was up in a redwood tree. Now, THAT was a doozy! I always liked the Swiss Family Robinson fantasy, so I guess treehouse art is sort of evocative to me.

Olivier said...

vraiment très original, moi je ne pourrais pas vivre dans les arbres, car j'ai le vertige
very original, I could not live in trees, because I have vertigo

Babzy.B said...

I love tree huts(very surprising in town) ,as chidren do ,it's my child side ;)Never lived inside but who knows...In France there is some tree huts you can rent to spend your honey moon or whatever you like ,it's like a hotel!
http://www.chateaugauthie.com/treehouse_bedroom.htm

Guy D said...

We had lunch in Madison Square park during our honeymoon this past summer. Loved it tremendously. Thanks for sharing!!

Cheers!
Regina In Pictures

Jun said...

"a tree house is just a tree house everywhere but in NYC" LOL!!! yeah, tht got me crackin. sometimes i do find myself cynical towards art, esp when something as mundane as a pair of dirty worn-out sneakers is turned into a piece of "art" when they're mounted onto a pole (yup i've seen tht one).

but coming back to the tree house, no i've never lived in one, but i sure would love to!

Anonymous said...

As a matter of fact, I have built them and slept in them and smoked a cigarette in them and watched horse races from them. Mine were pretty simple.

marley said...

I bet this property cost tens of thousands in NYC! Location and ammenities! Lol

I don't think I've ever been in a tree house :(

PeterParis said...

I never did until now. To rent one of these would perhaps be expensive?

dianasfaria.com said...

I love art for arts sake, but I am an artist so I am completely biased! & I love your posts on the art in NYC. I can't imagine the city without it & I feel like we need even more of it. It's also great that people share their own opinions about it, either for or against it, that's what makes it even more interesting. Great post Ming!
Oh yeah, we had a tree house in my backyard, I spent a great deal of time there. We used to swing on a rope into our pool from it. I am grateful I survived.

Saretta said...

I've never lived in one, no. But I know of a special one at a special farm holiday place in central Italy, called L'aperegina. They have a tree house that seems to have magic powers...couples that have not been able to have children get pregnant while staying in it! Go figure!

Changes in the wind said...

Love this concept....great picture

Anonymous said...

Great photo, Ming. I grew up in a rural area of Maine on a farm and we had a tree house as kids. Didn't exactly live there-but spent hours playing in it with cousins.

Interesting that a tree house is now art! The picture does bring back wonderful childhood memories.

Doris

NormanTheDoxie said...

I've never been in a tree house, but I hear there are some resorts in which the accommodations are actually tree houses.

Fashion Schlub said...

Well, it's art to me!

I have never *lived* in a tree house, but I did HAVE a fabulous treehouse when I was little and lived in Delaware.

My father built it for me - it was two stories - sort of like an elevated bunk bed nestled between two trees, and had a tire swing.

One time a neighborhood boy, Charlie Brown (I kid you not, that was his name), was on the tire swing, and we spun him so much that he lost his balance while spinning out, fell out of the tire, and cracked his head open on one of the trees. It was the one and only time I ever saw my mother run (from the house).

Note: Charlie was fine after a few stitches. Amazing, today, his parents probably would have sued the pants off us.

Anonymous said...

There are two places in British Columbia in the frozen north that you can holiday in tree houses. One is in Monashees (mtns 4th to the left from the Rockies) at Cherryville and are "traditional" style tree houses. On Vancouver Island you can stay in ball shaped houses suspended by cables from the trees. Anyone know of anywhere else folks can wallow in childhood memories?
Winnie

teahouse said...

That's adorable!!

The last time I was in Madison Square Park, it was 4 years ago and I was telling this guy I'd just met, who was really interested in me, that I wasn't interested in him, and he seemed like a nice guy but really not my type. I was trying to let him down easy.

That guy is now my husband! So I'm glad that talk didn't go the way I wanted...

Chuck Pefley said...

Not sure about the art aspect of the tree house, though can't quibble over the photo of same being art :)

My first thought was this was an inventive form of homeless housing. Not such a bad idea perhaps ...

Missy,Mrs and Mum said...

Hi Ming! Thank you for your messages,i've only just got them. I did leave a couple of messages on your blog saying I would be in the city but you couldn't have seen them and now I've just got home :( I so hoped we could meet up but we will next time as I will definatly be back. We saw these tree houses on wednesday as we walked from the Washington Square Hotel up 5th to the flatiron then caught the subway to Macy's!

The park was lovely and we were really lucky with the weather and it was a great atmostphere on Wednesday after the Obama winning.

Anyway will have pictures on my blog soon but for now I need a nice bath and a lay down!

Take care love missy xxxx

Todd HellsKitchen said...

They always do such interesting public art in Madison Square Park.... When I first moved to NY, it was desolate and depressing and full of drug addicts... It's come a long way baby since the early 1980S.