Following a lot of noisemaking by artist/activist Robert Lederman after his two recent arrests on the High Line, Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe has personally assured him there will be no more trouble. Quite the change of tune considering it had been reported that Benepe personally ordered his arrest earlier this month! more ›

Yesterday Robert Lederman and fellow ARTIST member Jack Nesbitt were both arrested on the High Line for hocking their art — specifically, they received 5 summonses for vending without a Parks permit. In 2001 they were both plaintiffs in a Federal lawsuit that overturned the Parks permit requirement for artists. Since then no permit has been needed to sell art in public parks. more ›

Artist and rabble rouser Robert Lederman sent us word that he was arrested this past Saturday afternoon on the 14th Street section of the High Line. He was issued 5 summonses, handcuffed and taken to the Precinct by Park Enforcement Patrol officers, after High Line staff called the NYPD. more ›

Robert Lederman has been very vocal about the rights of art vendors selling goods in SoHo. He founded A.R.T.I.S.T. (Artists' Response To Illegal State Tactics) in 1993 in order to fight the "legal and political struggle for full First Amendment protection involving the creation, display and sale of art on NYC streets and in Parks." They're currently continuing their battle against the Business Improvement District and council member Alan Gerson, which you can read more about here. more ›

Last year the police were hassling the art vendors in SoHo, something documented by Robert Lederman, president of A.R.T.I.S.T. (Artists’ Response to Illegal State Tactics). Around the same time, word of an Alan Gerson-proposed bill to "deal with the problem" was getting out, and now the City Council proposal has arrived, leaving the artists on the defense. more ›