This Artist is Using Monopoly Property Cards to Highlight Rents
In this town, nary is there an equivalent to the relative steal of Baltic Avenue.
To that end, the anonymous artist Symbol has repurposed the classic Monopoly property cards to highlight the exorbitant commercial rents around New York City. So far, there are wheat-paste treatments for Broadway, Bleecker Street, Lexington Avenue, and the Lower East Side.
This mockup of the title deeds shows the monthly rents for different lease intervals (i.e. 1 to 4 years). The fine print is a quote from Jane Jacobs – “There are only two ultimate public powers in shaping and running American cities: votes and control of the money. To sound nicer, we may call these ‘public opinion’ and ‘disbursement of funds,’ but they are still votes and money.”
We’re told that Symbol spent late Monday night gluing the bills to various street furniture around the Lower East Side.
“I’ve lived in New York City for many years and got tired of all the empty storefronts all over the city,” Symbol, who asked to remain anonymous, told us in a text. “It’s just a game between the landlords, tenants, and politicians, and we all lose. We’ve lost the vibrancy in Manhattan replaced with the hope of a pharmacy or a bank. The fun and character is gone.”
When asked about the choice of neighborhoods to lampoon, Symbol explained plans to include Monopoly cards “wherever the city died.” That’s a lot of pasters…
Recent Stories
Randall’s Barbecue Adds Signage on Grand Street Ahead of July Opening
Randall’s Barbecue is nearing the finish line on Grand Street, bringing traif to the onetime Kosher pizzeria. Contractors last week installed the new brown awning, signaling the end of another commercial vacancy in this low-rise stretch. As previously reported, proprietor Jared Male, a pit-master veteran of both Hill Country and Dinosaur BBQ in Harlem, plans to […]
‘Brooklyn Industries’ Ditches SoHo After 14 Years
Brooklyn Industries departed Lafayette Street within the last couple weeks. The exterior flag is gone, and the store is vacant with token butcher paper taped to the windows. The Brooklyn-based mini-chain was born in the late Nineties, and eventually opened the flagship in 2001. The second store at 290 Lafayette – Manhattan’s first – followed […]
CitizenM Unveils its ‘Citizens of the Bowery’ in Lights
CitizenM officially launched its “Citizens of the Bowery” project on Tuesday night with the illumination of their photo-stocked windows. As previously reported, artist Christelle de Castro transformed sixty-two of the hotel’s windows by inserting portraits of members from the community, including residents, workers, and small business owners. By nightfall, the twenty-story, out-of-context development resembles old […]
Former Home of TeaNY to Become ‘The Good Kind’ Danish Cafe
It appears the former home of Moby’s TeaNY on Rivington Street has finally nailed down a permanent tenant. Another cafe type. The Good Kind inked a ten-year lease on June 1 to take over the sub-grade commercial space at 90 Rivington. It’s a Danish-style cafe concept run by principal Anna Poulsen, and will serve Brownsville […]
‘Noodlelove’ will Open a Fast-Casual Spot in the Old L’asso Space
More noodles for Nolita, as the northeast corner of Kenmare and Mott Streets gets reactivated. Something called Noodlelove recently signed a lease for 192 Mott Street, and will soon impart a fast-casual restaurant built around “Asian noodle dishes with smartly sourced ingredients.” Opening date is likely toward the end of the summer or early fall. […]
