November 8, 2007 – September 7, 2008
MetroTech Center, Brooklyn

Tony Feher uses common, functional materials to create his works of art, drawing our attention to what he calls the "trick" in the material that sets it off or makes it noticeable. His signature elements have included an array of objects such as filled or partially filled plastic water bottles, tape, ropes, tacks, plastic bags, and plastic crates. Rather than adding more objects to the world, he makes art from what already exists. Feher carefully collects, sifts through and uncovers specific examples of his chosen materials, selecting items with the right color, shape and texture. Primary colors and geometric forms arranged in repetitive patterns dominate his work, but equally important to the artist is the site in which it appears: he typically plays off a given space and location, integrating his work into the existing landscape and using the setting to his advantage. In this new commission in the MetroTech Commons, Feher hangs groups of plastic bottles partially filled with pink liquid in seven trees in the park's central triangular grove. Placed ten to fifteen feet above the ground in the forks of the trees, the groupings are like jeweled nests that catch the light and create a glowing presence in the landscape.

Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Tony Feher attended The University of Texas at Austin, where he received a BA. He lives and works in New York, and has been actively exhibiting his work since 1984. Selected solo exhibitions have been held at Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis (2007); Chinati Foundation, Marfa, Texas (2005); and Center for Curatorial Studies, Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York (2001); and his work has been included in group exhibitions at numerous international venues, including Aspen Art Museum, Aspen (2007); Serpentine Gallery, London (2004); and Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (2003).

Ongoing at MetroTech: Tony Matelli's Stray Dog (1998), James Angus's Basketball Dropped from 35,000 feet at Moment of Impact (1999), and Tom Otterness's Alligator (1996) and Visionary (1997), all commissioned by Public Art Fund, continue to be exhibited within the MetroTech Commons.

MetroTech Center is located in Downtown Brooklyn between Jay Street and Flatbush Avenue at Myrtle Avenue. Viewing hours are dawn to dusk daily for outdoor works, Monday through Friday 8am to 6pm for Jedediah Caesar's and Paula Hayes's installations in the lobby of One MetroTech Center. Subway: A, C, F to Jay Street/Borough Hall, exit at Myrtle Promenade; R to Lawrence Street; Q to Dekalb Avenue. This exhibition is free.

Public Art Fund is New York's leading presenter of artists' projects, new commissions, installations and exhibitions in public spaces. For over 30 years, the Public Art Fund has been committed to working with emerging and established artists to produce innovative exhibitions of contemporary art throughout New York City. By bringing artworks outside the traditional context of museums and galleries, the Public Art Fund provides a unique platform for an unparalleled public encounter with the art of our time.

Recent critically acclaimed exhibitions and presentations include Anish Kapoor's Sky Mirror at Rockefeller Center; Sarah Sze's Corner Plot and Damien Ortega's Obelisco Transportable at Doris C. Freedman Plaza; Sarah Morris's Robert Towne at Lever House; and Alexander Calder in New York at City Hall Park.

Since 1993, Public Art Fund's program at MetroTech has exhibited new commissions and recent works by more than fifty emerging and established artists including Vito Acconci, Liz Craft, Jacob Dyrenforth, Roman de Salvo, Rachel Foullon, Amy Gartrell, Luis Gispert, Corin Hewitt, Matthew Day Jackson, Matt Johnson, Peter Kreider, Tony Matelli, Ryan McGuinness, Dave McKenzie, Franco Mondini-Ruiz, Mamiko Otsubo, Tom Otterness, Roxy Paine, Ester Partegàs, Peter Rostovsky, Valeska Soares, Do-Ho Suh, Marc Swanson and Ursula von Rydingsvard.

Sponsorship
Everyday Eden at MetroTech Center is part of an ongoing program organized by the Public Art Fund and sponsored by MetroTech Commons Associates, an organization that consists of MetroTech companies Bear Stearns & Company, Forest City Ratner Companies, JPMorganChase, National Grid, WellChoice and Polytechnic University. Special thanks to Forest City Ratner Companies and First New York Partners.

Robert Fischer's As Above, So Below is a project of the Public Art Fund program In the Public Realm, which is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts; the New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency; and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Public Art Fund is a non-profit arts organization supported by generous contributions from individuals, foundations, and corporations, and with public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts; New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency; and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.