Art pieces by urban realist Edward Hopper brought to life in Manhattan's Meatpacking District
MEATPACKING DISTRICT, Manhattan (WABC) -- When Oscar Wilde said life imitates art far more than art imitates life, he meant it figuratively. But if you wanted to interpret it literally, now you can.
An interactive, life-size art exhibit dedicated to the works of Edward Hopper is now on display this weekend in Manhattan's Meatpacking District.
With the sounds of Louis Armstrong swirling through the summer air, and an iconic American diner plopped in the middle of Gansevoort Plaza, you can live inside art history.
Take a seat at the counter of the diner of "Nighthawks," the masterpiece by urban realist Edward Hopper.
There's even a real-life barista playing the part.
"Just interacting but not in a too happy way," actor Lucas Sefcik said. "In the painting, everybody is just kind of somber and to themselves."
It's called "Step Into Hopper," part of a birthday celebration for the artist who was born 142 years ago.
"It's like being right in the middle of Nighthawks, it's so cool," Mary Juedes said. "Because that's the famous photo that's been reproduced and stolen or whatever over the years, appropriated with James Dean and Marilyn Monroe and all that. It gives you a really nice feeling of old New York and what it used to feel like and some of them are a bit lonely feeling but they're still genuine New York."
Or you could find yourself in a Parisian nightclub in Hopper's "Soir Bleu." Or step into the calm of "Early Sunday Morning."
"The colors are spot on," Bob Petrie said. "It was cool to step inside the painting for once. You know. We're always on the outside looking in and then all of sudden we're sitting at the bar. It was kind of cool."
The life-size installations are a collaboration between The Whitney Museum of American Art, right down the street, and the Meatpacking Business Improvement District.
With over 3,000 Hopper works, The Whitney is home to the largest Hopper collection in the world.
"If you look up close, there's brush stroke. And so there's the emulation of brush stroke in a Hopper painting," said Meatpacking BID Exec. Director Jeffrey LeFrancois. "Hopper was iconic New York. Iconic American painter and you know, given the Whitney show that took place last year and how popular that was, like really anchoring him here and sort of showcasing how you can have Hopper up today is what we are all about."
The installation runs through Tuesday.
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