Photo credit David Plakke Media.

Side by Side

Ellie Balk

Hudson Boulevard West between West 36th Street + West 37th Street

The Hudson Yards Hell’s Kitchen Alliance’s (HYHK) art program, HYHK Arts, announces the completion of a new 200 feet long mural on Hudson Boulevard West between W 36th St and W 37th Street, alongside Bella Abzug Park. The mural entitled Side by Side was designed by artist Ellie Balk and painted in collaboration with volunteers from Tishman Speyer through the NYC DOT Art program. 

Side by Side is a mural built from the responses of people who live, work, and move through the neighborhood surrounding the mural installation. Residents, workers, and visitors responded to a survey designed by the artist and answered a series of simple questions about routine, comfort, awareness, connection, and shared public space. Their responses were translated into color, patterns, and shapes that scale across the twenty panels stretching the length of the wall. For example, respondents were asked, “When you are waiting in a public place, you feel: relaxed or anxious,” and “What color do you think of when you think of the word comfort?.” Each survey question was developed to become one panel in a sequence of twenty panels running along the wall. The proportions of the shapes within each panel reflect the percentage of responses to the survey, while the colors come directly from a palette chosen by survey participants. The result is a visual translation of the community’s collective responses. 

“The mural reflects something quietly human about city life. We move beside strangers, adjust to one another, seek privacy and connection, and share space in ways we rarely stop to notice,” said Ellie Balk, artist. 

This mural collaboration is part of a decade-long annual partnership between HYHK and Tishman Speyer, through which Tishman Speyer sponsors and helps paint a new mural each year as part of its annual corporate volunteer day. 

"Public art has the power to bring people together and create a stronger sense of place," said Michelle Adams, Senior Managing Director at Tishman Speyer. "We're proud to continue our long-standing partnership with the Hudson Yards Hell's Kitchen Alliance and help bring community-inspired public art to the neighborhood." 

 Over the course of four days, more than 70 volunteers picked up a paint brush and joined in to help finish the mural. One resident, Simone, who lives in a building overlooking the mural site saw the volunteers painting and walked over to lend a hand. After the mural was completed, she shared, “I get to see it from my window and it makes me smile every time I see it! It not only looks beautiful, it makes such a big impact on the neighborhood." 

Commissioned by Debra Simon Art Consulting. Painted with community members, volunteers from Tishman Speyer, Hudson Yards Hell’s Kitchen Alliance staff, friends, and neighbors. This work is made possible through a generous gift from Tishman Speyer as part of their annual corporate volunteer day and the NYC DOT Art Partners initiative. 

https://elliebalk.com/