We live and are immersed in an instant gratification society. A picture is taken and it is instantly beamed around the world via social media. The ongoing Message Delayed exhibit takes that idea and subverts it. The brainchild of Uptown’s own Mike Fitelson, the photos for the exhibit are taken every year during the annual Juan Pablo Duarte Festival and are displayed the following year. If you missed the show this past weekend, stop by the United Palace on Friday, June 6 from 6-8pm for the opening reception for the one-month exhibit during the Uptown Arts Stroll.
Message Delayed
For the past four years Mike Fitelson, UPCA’s executive director, has taken portraits of passersby during the Juan Pablo Duarte street festival in June. Each person holds up a sign upon which they have written what they were thinking about at the time. No one sees the photos until they are exhibited at the following year’s street festival when the participants are invited back to see the nearly life-size canvas prints. Then the cycle continues as new photos are made.
“Message Delayed,” which Fitelson imagines to be a 10-year project, has been called the “anti-Facebook” by the Village Voice.
The portraits taken in 2013 will be exhibited at the United Palace through June. The exhibit will be in the Palace annex. Enter through the green awning on Broadway in the middle of the block.
Check out: Another beautiful day on St. Nicholas Avenue | Mike Fitelson.
Related:
The Anti-Facebook: Photos Unveiled One Year Later in Washington Heights Art Project | Village Voice
North Manhattan as Muse: Q&A With Mike Fitelson
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