'Hurly-Whirly,' new kinetic sculpture, adds color, creativity to Fourth Avenue median * Brooklyn Paper

"The massive, 11-foot-by-8-foot colorful kinetic sculpture titled "Hurly-Whirly" was designed by artist David Barthold and manufactured by a team of five young people who are part of the Beam Center's paid Art Production Apprenticeship program."

"The three-dimensional piece, which will be on view through fall 2026, is constructed of marine-grade plywood fins attached to a steel structure secured into the ground by threaded anchors. Rust-resistant, exterior-grade enamel paint protects the sculpture from the elements, and, depending on wind conditions, the painted plywood wings on top of the sculpture spin thanks to a rotating steel post."

"Barthold drew inspiration from whimsical roadside art along America's highways, when traffic and life moved more slowly and caught the curiosity of passing drivers. He said he hopes "Hurly-Whirly" invokes the same sense of wonder he felt during long family road trips through the South and Midwest in the 1960s and 1970s."

""I'm a native New Yorker, so I always feel like there's this undercurrent of crankiness in the city, and I'm thinking like I was worried about whether it would attract positive attention or negative attention, and it's been overwhelmingly positive. I think people really want to see, and they do see, wonderful public art around the city, especially in recent years," Barthold said, noting that it was "wonderful" to be a participant in the life of the city."

A new public art installation adds a spinning burst of color to the median at Fourth Avenue and Second Street near Park Slope and Gowanus. The 11-foot-by-8-foot kinetic sculpture, titled “Hurly-Whirly,” is built from marine-grade plywood fins mounted on a steel structure anchored into the ground with threaded anchors. Rust-resistant exterior-grade enamel paint protects the piece from weather. Wind conditions drive the painted plywood wings to spin via a rotating steel post. The work draws inspiration from whimsical roadside art and from the wonder felt during family road trips in the 1960s and 1970s. The goal is to make people smile as they pass a gray stretch of road and to contribute positive energy to the city.

Read at Brooklyn Paper