Brooklyn 10 2009

Editor: So this is "Brooklyn 10" by Pietropoli Patrick, a mixed-media drawing from 2009. There's something incomplete about it, with areas left as bare sketching, but it lends the cityscape a sense of fragility. What strikes you when you look at this? Curator: The incompleteness, as you call it, is precisely what draws me in. It's a visual record of urban space, but also a testament to the transient nature of our experience within it. Think about the history of Brooklyn itself; it’s constantly evolving, being reshaped by economic forces, migration, and urban planning. Editor: How so? Curator: Well, the areas left as sketches suggest not just a physical incompleteness but also the fleeting quality of our perception. We never see a city as a fixed, finished entity, right? It's always in process, being built and unbuilt, remembered and forgotten. The use of mixed media, combining drawing with perhaps some collage or paint, speaks to the layered reality of urban life, different strata of history coexisting in one space. Editor: I hadn't thought about it like that. The roughness almost mirrors the realities of urban change, I suppose. Does the viewpoint matter, looking down on Brooklyn like this? Curator: Absolutely. From this vantage point, we're given a position of power, overseeing the urban landscape. However, that feeling is counteracted by the fragility of the drawing. It reminds us that even from a privileged viewpoint, our understanding is partial and incomplete. The drawing acknowledges its own limitations and invites us to fill in the gaps. Editor: I see what you mean. I guess that makes sense in terms of modernism, questioning objective reality. It seems even more relevant now, after over a decade. Curator: Precisely. The artwork engages directly with the power dynamics of viewing, making a political statement by admitting its subjectivity and the changing dynamics of urban environments. Editor: That really changes my understanding of the piece. It is not just a picture of buildings, it is a statement about our relationship to cities. Thanks.