Jason Woodside’s Kenmare Mural for New Museum CNNCTD+ Project

The flaking brick wall is somewhat of a no man’s land, but nevertheless retains its grimy past thanks in part to the parking lot adjacent. We’re talking, of course, about the south side of Kenmare Street between the Bowery and Elizabeth. For the longest time, this facade was partially obstructed by two large boards facilitating the perpetual scroll of wheat-paste advertising. Well, the tattered framework was chopped down and carted away a couple months ago, freeing the neighborhood from another barrage of consumerism.  In its place, some rainbow-like street art. But there’s still an agenda…

Just over a week ago, artist Jason Woodside painted this colorful wheel of patterns for the Lower East Side. The piece itself is actually part of an upcoming event at the New Museum on May 1 called CNNCTD+100, which aims to “showcase a cross-section of New York City culture that highlights the multidisciplinary connections of contemporary culture.”

Apparently these murals are in various locations citywide, each with a customized acrylic playbutton that, when engaged with headphones, broadcasts repetitive narrations from project participants. “Sound Graffiti” is what they’re calling it.  This particular button is a letdown – nothing more than a plug in his own words for the upcoming event.

Below is some babble from the press release:

On May 1, New York City-based creative agency CNNCTD+ will launch its special project “CNNCTD+100”at the New Museum Store.

CNNCTD+ founder and New York City native Roman Grandinetti (a.k.a. DJ Manero) and his team selected 100 heroes and creative leaders from various disciplines to participate in the project. Each participant in CNNCTD+100 is using a Playbutton—a wearable pin that doubles as an MP3 player—as the canvas for their audio and visual designs. Participants include world-renowned artists such as Mario Sorrenti, fashion designers like VPL, musicians such as Pharrell Williams, and iconic NYC personalities and companies including Katz’s Deli, FourSquare, and Ricky Powell.

Unlike real rainbows, this one seemingly has the proverbial pot of gold at the end. Hence the massive rush to upscale this section of the neighborhood.