Last week, as New York City suffered through blistering cold temperatures, 43 street artists were secretly painting three entire floors of a soon-to-be-demolished apartment building. We got to visit during an exclusive, two-hour show on Friday night.
The show, called Surplus Candy, was the brainchild of street artist Hanksy. I spoke with Hanksy’s manager about how the show came to be. After a friend suggested throwing a party in an abandoned building, Hanksy saw the space and thought it would be a great opportunity to host a brief, and completely illegal, art show.
Over a period of six days, a multitude of artists from all over New York came in and out of the structure, covering each wall, staircase, toilet, and sink with their own brand of art. While walking through the building, it’s amazing to see how detailed some of the works are — especially considering the brief amount of time the artists had to do them.
The front of the building showcases a leftover mural done by an artist completely unrelated to the show. However, it was used as a way to guide street-art-savvy guests to the location.
So, how did we find the building? Hanksy’s manager, Brandon Rosenblatt, explained that they never gave the address out, as a way to avoid jeopardizing the project. Instead, in order for people to find the two-hour viewing, they had to know the building’s mural.
After the viewing, the building will be permanently closed, until it’s either gutted or completely demolished — but using an abandoned building as a blank canvas is a great way to utilise space in a city where street-artists are finding they have less and less room to play.
