It's Fleece Was White As Snow

Participants:

hortense_icon.gif jaiden_icon.gif raquelle_icon.gif remi_icon.gif savannah_icon.gif

Scene Title It's Fleece Was White As Snow
Synopsis Some of New Yorks citizens seek out or stumble upon a interactive art installation in Battery Park and ponder it's meaning.
Date March 5, 2011

Battery Park


They came in a flock.

Not a real flock, because really, sheep in New York? That'd be ridiculous right?

No, these were sheep, three times bigger than your traditional farm animals and a bit more… abstract one could say. All through Battery Park they were placed in the wee early hours, some art installation that would be up for the weekend by some enterprising artist. 24 strong, five feet high, composed of metal battered and shaped into plates then welded before being painted. Some with heads held high, as if they were looking around, others with their heads down making as if to graze the grass that lays beneath the snow of the park.

Already one has been vandalized, black sharpie that reads "John was here" and an arrow pointing to it's head. Children have been skipping around then, peering into their faces, climbing atop them where they are secured to their white metal moorings. People have been taking pictures, gathering around them scattered throughout the park. Even by one, someone seems to be looking around before surreptitiously drawing on some eye's and a coloring the head black. He has determined that that one needs to be an ewe. Battery Park, is home to an art installation it seems.

But what, did the artist intend 24 sheep in the park… to mean?

Art is interesting. So when Savannah heard about the installation, she decided it was worth a nice little walk through the park. Standing not too far from the sheep, she curiously watches them, as if somehow they would move or talk or express something. Her gaze occasionally drifts towards those nearby or messing with the art from time to time. Her fingers toy at the spine of a hard-covered notebook, idly seeming as if poised on the brink of getting out a pen and writing. Still, there's no movement for the pen, but instead she just watches.

Fascinting, really. Remi was simply passing through on her way to the mall when she spotted the 'flock' of sheep. Really, she should just continue on her way to the mall and get her shopping done for the day. But, this is interesting, and that cat-like curiousity of hers was rather easily piqued. So she wandered over here, her brows raised slightly as she examines the metal creatures. She looks, but she doesn't touch.

"….what the /fucking/ sheep?" Raquelle stands there, staring at this…artwork, having arrived by motorcyle…that beautiful purple and black kawasaki of his. Black leather pants, black leather jacket, purple helmet held under an arm and his hand on his hip, wedged under his messenger bag and he just stares at the artwork. Stare stare stare. "What happened? Baa Baa ran out of his fucking wool and some people needed help sleeping?!" Blink Blink.

The sheep doesn't answer back. Doesn't tell Raquelle the reason why it's been placed there. Doesn't blink or shift, stalwart! Upright! Ready to be counted. The one guy is still painting the head of the sheep black, surprised that no one seems to be stopping him. Hortense comes to a stand beside Savannah, having made her way over from the Marina which is her home, brows raised. "wow" She says, scratching at her temple. "How long do you think they'll all stay white?" That there's a curfew might help.

ut then it becomes pretty clear what the purpose is, as a painter suited man starts making his way from sheep to sheep, putting down buckets of spray cans. Colors of all kinds and printed on the bucket "Use me"

This… is a interactive installation.

"Not long, it looks like," Savannah replies to Hortense as she glances to the sheep carefully. There's a small tapping on her chin with her non-book-occupied hand. "I think I liked them better white, though. Felt like more of a statement, although I suppose each sheep being unique says something too."

Battery Park is not normally considered a center for art, but compared to places like Central Park, which require huge amounts of permits and the like, Battery Park is perfect. Not too many people care here, and the ones that do…

Jaiden was on his way to meet Remi at the mall - he needed to get out of his basement and she was quite insistent on meeting him somewhere that wasn't his garage - so after a bit he conceded and went along with. Now, here he stands, hands in his pockets, looking at giant foam sheep, spray cans, and the like. Wow. He grabs his phone and dials Remi's cell. "You wouldn't believe what i'm looking at."

Oooh. This is interesting. Remi is suddenly quite glad she decided to detour this way on her way to the mall. Maybe this will be more fun than shopping. She pulls out her iPhone, as it rings, blinking a few times. When she answers, she hears similar sounds, and sure enough, reaching out…she feels Jaiden, her gaze turning toward him. Her ability serves as a nice instant location device, when she's in range.

"I'm looking at you." This is the only thing she says into the phone, before hanging up and making her way toward the man. "Jaiden, we should paint a sheep together." She calls this out so he can hear her, stepping up to one of the white sheep and quietly regarding the color selection. And her clothes. She's wearing her cheaper mall clothes, today, so she should be okay.

"Oh c'mon now, is that /any/ way to tre-are ye serious? The paint's clashing with the emo wool!" Raquelle gestures towards the spray cans and the metal sheep. "If you seriously want to paint the sheep, at least -" He shakes his head and just watches his mess with a quirk of an eyebrow and a toss of his emo-fringe.

At least three sheep though, get no buckets, instead they get a sign, a request that they not be painted. Who knows why, but there it is. Hortense looks over at Raquelle, recognizing the punky salon ower. 'really Mr. Cambria? You of all people I would think wouldn't mind a bit of a color. I think it's some sort of art thing. I dunno, intentional grafitti. I like it." But Savannah's musings bring about a question. "What statement do you think it was making? What do you think it was supposed to make?"

"Well, sheep. That seems to me to be indicative of someone just following whatever blindly. If the sheep are unique… then it says a statement of people being different and unique but still blindly following some kind of goal. Maybe it's a political statement about people blindly following authority," Savannah suggests, pursing her lips. "Or maybe they're just sheep to decorate."

She's looking at him. Well, that's a bit disconcerting. Jaiden pops up on his toes, looking around and finally catching sight of Remi making her way toward him. Jaiden waves, tucking his phone back into his pocket and making his way over to where she is, next to one of the sheep. "Why not?" Jaiden's dressed in jeans and a button-down shirt - clean and pressed if not entirely fashionable. "Any particular color, or just throw stuff on and see what happens?"

Smiling up to Jaiden, Remi offers a faint shrug. A glance is spared toward the others gathered, before she turns back to the man with a faint smile. "Mmm, we should decide on a base color, oui? Could make it pink, or light blue, or grey." She giggles softly, offering a shrug as she dips down to rummage through one of the buckets thoughtfully. "It's a public art project!" She turns, smiling over to Raquelle.

"Ahhh…why not just do it in different colors. Make the gayest sheep in the state. Make gay pride parades around the world want a picture of it…in fact, make the sheep so rainbolicious that skittles pop out of its ass everytime somebody spanks it. That would be trust art." Raquelle is good with suggestions, shifting his helmet to his other arm.

Hortense can't tell whether Raquelle is joking or not - She's not quite used to him and his flamboyance just yet. A bucket is dropped in front of the sheep nearest them and the man walks off, off to keep doing what he's supposed to do with the sheep. Not that.

Savannah's words though, make one think and looking away from Raquelle, she bobs her head. "If they were all white. We are close to the governmetn buildings" She points out before striding forward, plucking up a can of green paint, shaking it vigerously, the little steel ball inside rattling around. "Then make it the gayest sheep Mr. Cambria I mean, how often do you get interactive art going on in the city, and right now, when there's like, police and military everywhere" She points to Remi and Jaiden, then to a small family who are deciding to get in on another sheep.

Savannah glances between Jaiden and Remi, the latter of whom she turns slightly away from. Well, the last time she saw the woman was… not so good. Her gaze moves next to Raquelle, a sly grin spreading as she contemplates his words. That'd make a statement. Her gaze shifts back to Hortense. "Well, yes, if they were all white… but there's the fact that there are so many different colored sheep and yet they still are sheep. Or maybe it's a statement on Evolved. There are so many different colored sheep, and a few white, but they're all still sheep."

Reading into art was always interesting - trying to determine what the artist had in store for you while trying to find your own meanings in something as simple as a landscape, a portrait, or, in this case, a giant foam sheep that you could cover with paint. Jaiden grabs a can of metallic silver from one of the buckets and gives it a good shake. "Any requests, M'lady, or should I just see where my muse takes me?" He grins and turns, popping the lid off of the can and thinking for a moment before he starts to 'sketch' with the paint, a circle, a slash across with lines going down to make it look like a smiling, if demented, face…

"Monsieur Cambria, zat is a wonderful idea! You should do it, oui? I bet zat if anyone could, it would be you." She flashes the man a bright grin, before pulling out blue paint. Savannah's strange look is either unnoticed, or ignored. "Let's just start doing things and see what 'appens, oui?" This is offered to Jaiden, the woman chuckling softly to herself. She then proceeds to shake up the can of blue paint, and remove the lid. She's not sure what she's going to make, but…perhaps the sheep could use a little blue butterfly on its neck. She promptly begins to do as much. She's not much of a painter, but she can certainly try.

Raquelle sighs and shakes his head, he makes his way towards a sheep, rummaging around in a bucket and pulling out spray cans as he sets his helmet aside. He takes a deep breath. "If I get arrested my boyfriend is so going to kill me…" He shakes a can of spray paint and starts to paint out an almost template where he is.

"Really? You think this about evolved people?" That makes Hortense wrinkle her nose. WHy is it always about the evolved?. She shakes her head but still. "Maybe, maybe the .. artist, or whomever it is that did this, didn't have a statement maybe, he just wanted to see some sheep in battery park, god my hands are going to be green" She's painting grass on the sheeps legs. She looks to Remi when she speaks up. 'What do you think it's about?" THe small family at the one sheep have decided on making it into a cow. A clown cow as the mother helps the youngest child depress the top and let the paint out, the teenager painting a red mouth. All around the park there's getting ot be small pockets of people, stopping to look or to breath in the fumes.

"I don't know, I just figure that regardless of what it means, it's getting attention. All they need is a little advertising and then they've got everything taken care of." Savannah says, staring at the sheep. She moves, grabbing a black can as she proceeds to make stripes on one of them. Zebra stripes.

The Australian steps back to look at his work - a little man with a grin walking, looking kind of playful as he goes off to do whatever he does on the back of a sheep…and no, not that, you dirty birds. It's kind of tall, but with a stretch Jaiden is able to spray around the sheep's eye, a shape that kind of looks like a security camera, and right below the words 'one nation under cctv.' A bit militant, for him it seems, but with the world as it is, it's an apt commentary. "Sometimes if you're given a canvas, you speak out." Jaiden explains to Remi with a grin.

Remi finishes her own — a blue butterfly, with pink and purple spots on its wings. Then, she turns, watching Jaiden work, brows raised. Brows raise, and she turns a smile over to the Australian. "Indeed!" So, a butterfly and a security camera. That's an interesting sheep! She turns, beginning to draw…a tutu, around the sheep's middle.

Raquelle is working on a series of very…well done peace signs. In different colors. Also some Elton John styled sunglasses in the shape of stars. Nicely done hooves. It is a fabulous sheep. Very fabulous.

The sheep that Hortense and Savannah work on will be zebra, munching on grass, with big red lips ready to pucker up and kiss, though Hortense backs up after she's done, looking to her watch with a wrinkle of her nose. "Eh, it's a way to kill five minutes' Or well more like fifteen, maybe twenty. She's looking ready to go, taking a moment to look over at Elton Sheep with raised brows before she turns on her heels, skinny jeans, jacket, scarves and hat, off to do whatever it is that tall jersey girls do in Battery Park.

But the sheep are still there, so is paint and the latino gentleman in the coveralls meanders around, protecting the pristine sheep that 'graze' and ensuring that there is more than enough paint for everyone to use.

Once Savannah has finished zebra sheep, she takes a few steps back, eyes studying the creation. She peers at some of the others before she makes sure she's not covered in any paint, stepping back further. "Well, whatever the purpose is… at least it's interesting." She glances towards the rest of the park, pondering leaving.

Jaiden works busily on his sheep, making it a bit of art. On the chest, a koala with a tattoo on his shoulder that says 'mom' in a big heart. On one side, an image of a man that looks like an anarchist throwing a bomb, but instead of a bomb, he's throwing a bouquet of flowers. Jaiden's copying a well-known graffiti artist named Banksy who still is unknown.

Remi finishes the pink tutu on the sheep she's working on with Jaiden, brinning over to him. After a moment, she leans over, and gently wraps an arm around his waist. Then, she's back to work, apparently quite intent on making the other side of the sheep's face look like it has been done up in ballet makeup. She's remarkably good at this, at least.

Raquelle takes a step back after putting the cans back in the bucket, studying his sheep with a small smirk and shaking his head. He picks his helmet back up and takes a few more steps back before nodding slowly, taking his phone out of his pocket and snapping a picture of his work. "Fucking Picasso's got nothing on me…"

what's drawn and painted here, will likely end up painted over, or maybe not. Maybe people will respect the colors of those that came before and color around. There's the rest of the weekend at least, these sheep idly and stoicly grazing through the hours, witness to the ongoings in the park. The buckets will be refreshed, families, individuals, friends, even those who aren't there for the nices of purposes will come on down and meander by when word further spreads of the mysterious sheep that populate the grounds of the park.

Their purpose, their meaning as yet unknown.


sheep.jpg

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