This week marked the official opening of Hank Willis Thomas's acclaimed public art installation on downtown Brooklyn's Metrotech Promenade and Commons. The exhibit, titled The Truth Is I See You, showcases personal truths collected by the artist in over 22 languages. A motif of speech and thought bubbles provides a signature shape for the artist's packaging of the truth, appearing on lampposts, benches, steel tree sculptures, and a traveling blow-up "Truth Booth."
"This project is an invitation to engage," said Willis Thomas, who was inspired to seek the truth across cultural boundaries after the tumultuous 2006 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. In addition to the sculptural work behind the show, the artist collaborated with members of the Cause Collective to write a multilingual poem that shows up in speech balloons along the promenade. He also cited Metrotech as an ideal venue for his work, noting the importance of Brooklyn's diversity and its history of cultural dialogue.
Contemplative loners, cutsie couples, precocious children, and even dogs lined up all day on August 4th at the foot of a giant blow-up speech bubble emblazoned "TRUTH," which contains a small video recording booth that allows everyone to try their hand at becoming a part of the ever changing exhibition. Willis Thomas personally views, selects, and edits the hours of footage recorded in the Truth Booth, creating a long video for display alongside his sculptural artworks, which can be seen in the middle of the Metrotech Promenade.
Though the booth only stays at each location for one day at a time, you can seize the next chance to sit down and confess your truth when the big speech bubble inflates outside Atlantic Terminal on September 26th or back in Metrotech Commons on October 15th. "You can be very generous in the booth by expressing yourself," the artist told the crowd amassed at an opening party for his Public Art Fund installation.
The sculpture and video installation at Metrotech will be up until next June, so you can even make return visits every few months for a seasonal dose of the truth.
