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The Most Amazing Art Installation Ever ~ Part 2

Looking at these pictures, I am still awestruck by how much attention to detail went into creating such an installation, how many hours of research and collecting, and then assembly, went into its execution.
The soundtrack to the Broadway musical played in the background, Little Edie giving her staunch performance of the ‘Revolutionary Costume of the Day’ and blaring her defiance to convention. Andy arrived as she was finishing up, and was equally enthralled and impressed by the magic around us.
So many little objects elicited smiles and giddy recognition, so many little moments so lovingly re-created, captured and culled from the past, brought into the present reality. Perhaps my favorite scene was this excellent gathering of raccoons. They’ll have the whole house down soon…
And the binoculars and scale…
Good Lord…
The passing of time, the decay of an age, the faded ruined loss of youth – and still the vibrance and lush vitality of two women who let the world pass them by, who clung to each other when there was no one left.
At its heart, it was always a love story.
Congratulations and thanks to the artist who brought it back to life.
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The Most Amazing Art Installation Ever ~ Part 1

The gallery on Bradford Street was so unassuming and camouflaged in deliberate decay that I almost walked right by it. Yet something about the broken-down gates and dead brush called to me, as if I’d seen it somewhere before, arranged just like that. A moment of recognition flickered somewhere in the back of my brain… Little Edie? Is that you?
I looked above the door, and saw it written: Grey Gardens. It wasn’t just in my head. The door swung open and a jovial man welcomed me inside, asking if I had heard about ‘Grey Gardens’. Was he kidding?! A grin formed upon my face and I almost jumped up and down in joy. Inside was the most amazing art installation I have ever seen – an almost item-for-item recreation of the Beales’ run-down home in the Hamptons.
If you know me at all, you know my obsession with all things ‘Grey Gardens’, and this was the sort of thing that could only be crafted by one of their greatest fans. Painstakingly detailed in execution, down to the very minutiae that informed their surroundings, it was as if I stepped into that decrepit house forty years ago.
The artist responsible for this extravaganza got it all down perfectly – from the colors of the walls and the beds, to every sly reference in the movies. Here you can see Jerry’s corn – because Jerry likes the way Big Edie does her corn.
Note also the magnifying glass and the astrological book, for finding out the ways of the Libra Man.
As soon as I recovered from my excitement, I called Andy to make the trip down Bradford Street at once. It was the closing day of the exhibition, and it was not something that could be missed.
More of the artist’s passion for the Beales, and his artwork honoring them, can be found on his website at www.edithbeale.com.
Looking closer at the installation, I was struck by the poignant memory of these two remarkable ladies, and the love of one remarkable artist in creating such a tribute.
More to come…
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