Explosions of summer color are coming to New York City as San Francisco’s sold-out Color Factory pop-up installation is set to brighten Manhattan’s streets starting on August 20. A 20,000-square-foot interactive exhibition from artist collaborative Color Factory will open in SoHo and will be accompanied by 20 “secret” color installations hidden across Lower Manhattan.
The original Color Factory installation opened last August in San Francisco for a four-week run that eventually expanded to last nearly eight months. That show brought together a star-studded roster of local and international artists to create an exploration of color that went viral on Instagram, and Color Factory is looking to replicate that success in New York.
Instagram-friendly installations and pavilions have exploded in recent years, and lauded firms from AGENCY to Snarkitecture have all jumped on the bandwagon, delivering selfie walls and all-white takes on the form. Let’s not forget pop-ups like the Museum of Ice Cream, either, soon to be joined by its long-lost cousin the Museum of Pizza.
The California version of Color Factory involved multiple explorations of color in light works, several monochrome rooms (currently all the rage), rainbow decals, fabric, balloons, and technicolor plastic furniture. The New York version seems like it will keep to the same vein; visitors will be able to experience 16 rooms, including a bar filled with mocha in every color of the rainbow, a light-up dance floor, a room full of ombré balloons, a room where participants can walk through a guided experience to discover their own “personal color,” an enormous full-room ball pit, and custom illustrations from New York artists.
After guests are finished at the exhibition, they can pick up a map to the 20 “secret experiences” Color Factory has hidden across the island, and the group says that the installation will be inspired by the colors of New York.
Manhattan Color Walk from Color Factory on Vimeo.
Color Factory is no stranger to New York’s streets. Manhattan Color Walk, a survey of colors from 265 individual Manhattan blocks, recently wrapped up at the Cooper Hewitt. The free installation was on display through June and adorned the museum’s terrace, garden, and walkways with colored bands pulled from New York’s most unique and ubiquitous colors. Color Factory staff walked and biked from West 220th Street all the way down to Battery Park and translated one color per block into a stripe at the museum and released an accompanying guide.
General admission tickets for Color Factory are now on sale for $38, and the exhibition will be open at 251 Spring Street after August 20 from Thursday to Tuesday, 10:00 AM through 11:00 PM.
