Back on the Map: Revisiting the New York State Pavilion, a Queens Museum of Art Exhibit

Opening Reception: Sunday, January 27, 2008, 3:00 – 6:00 pm

3:00 Valerie Smith, Director of Exhibitions at QMA, will give a brief "gallery talk"

4:00 Demonstration of conservation techniques (UPenn)

4:30-6:00 Refreshments and music (music will be records of bands that played at the Pavilion)

*The event is free and open to the public.


PHILIP JOHNSON’S TERRAZZO ROAD MAP GETS A FACELIFT IN 2008
The Queens Museum of Art collaborates with UPENN conservation team and Parks Department to refurbish a historic gem from the 1964/65 World’s Fair.

Queens, NY (January 18, 2008) - Also known as “The Tent of Tomorrow,” the New York State Pavilion was considered one of the best architectural monuments at the 1964/65 World’s Fair and certainly one of the most iconic of structures to survive. The Queens Museum of Art is pleased to help revitalize this historic monument with its new exhibition, Back on the Map: Revisiting the New York State Pavilion at the 1964/65 World’s Fair on view from January 27-May 4, 2008 in conjunction with Anthony Auerbach, Empire State Pavilion. Back on the Map seeks to inform and engage the public about architect Philip Johnson’s New York State Pavilion and its main exhibit: a large-scale, terrazzo floor replica of the Texaco Road Map of New York State. A fusion of Pop Art imagery and traditional craft techniques, the map pavement was a crucial component of “The Tent of Tomorrow.” In addition to the works of Pop Artists Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol and others displayed on the exterior of the adjoining Theaterama, the Road Map helped solidify the Pavilion’s status as a landmark of 60s avant-garde culture.
Built as a temporary structure for the Fair, the Texaco Road Map along with the Pavilion has suffered from over 30 years of weather exposure and vandalism. This year, however, the Map returns to the spotlight for a long-overdue comeback. A culmination of conservation activities by the City of New York Department of Parks & Recreation in collaboration with The Architectural Conservation Laboratory at the School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania, the exhibition at the Queens Museum of Art will feature restored sections of the Texaco Road Map and elaborate the project findings through text panels and an interactive Web site. The exhibit will also allow visitors the opportunity to witness the restoration process up close as conservators restore portions of the Road Map in the Museum’s galleries.
Please join us for the opening of Back on the Map: Revisiting the New York State Pavilion at the 1964/65 World’s Fair and the companion exhibition, Anthony Auerbach: Empire State Pavilion on Sunday, January 27 from 3-6 pm.

FAMILY WORKSHOP
Please join us for the next installation of the MetLife Foundation Presents First Sundays for Families at QMA on Sunday, February 3 from 1-4pm. The Museum will host a dynamic family workshop inspired by the Back on the Map exhibition. Families of all ages can join an interactive tour of the Museum’s galleries followed by a demonstration with on-site conservation experts. Participants will then map their own neighborhoods in mosaic as part of an artist-led workshop. A dance workshop, led by dancer Susan Thomasson of City Center, will encourage families to participate in an interactive movement program based on the spaces and rhythms of New York City.


ORGANIZATION AND SUPPORT
Back on the Map is supported by The National Endowment for the Arts, The Samuel H. Kress Foundation, New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, and the School of Design, University of Pennsylvania.

Anthony Auerbach is supported in part by the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs and New York State Council on the Arts.

The MetLife Foundation Presents First Sundays for Families at QMA

DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY
Available upon request. Please contact Krista Saunders 718.592.9700 x221 or ksaunders@queensmuseum.org.

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The Queens Museum of Art was established in 1972 to provide a vital cultural center in Flushing Meadows Corona Park for the borough’s unique, international population. Today it is home to the Panorama of the City of New York, a 9,335 square foot scale model of the five boroughs, and features temporary exhibitions of modern and contemporary art that reflect the cultural diversity of Queens, as well as a collection of Tiffany glass from the Neustadt Museum of Tiffany Art. The Museum provides valuable educational outreach through a number of programs geared toward schoolchildren, teens, families, seniors and individuals with physical and mental disabilities.

The Museum’s hours are: Wednesday – Friday: 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Saturday and Sunday: 12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Admission to the Museum is by suggested donation: $5 for adults, $2.50 for seniors, students and children, and free for member and children under 5. For general visitor information, please visit the Museum’s website www.queensmuseum.org or call 718.592.9700.