88 Lilac was a public art installation created to attract public attention and celebrate the life and history of an iconic but almost forgotten ship in New York City.
If historic ships could talk, what would they say? 88 Lilac was created to celebrate the historical significance of lighthouse tender LILAC with a 30-foot bouquet of historic images as an homage to the ship dynamic life — while she remained closed to the public in the summer of 2021. This installation was meant to be visible from afar, explored at one’s own pace, to attract public attention to the LILAC and help celebrate her 88 anniversary of existence and operation.
“…it’s easy to overlook aging objects as remnants of something that once was or of something that no longer is…but there is great experience, richness, and wisdom in our histories that we can still benefit from…and taking a moment to appreciate these histories and honoring our past, can help us all continue to move towards a more inspired future…”
88 Lilac consisted of a series of black and white photos collected from various photographic archives — and pasted onto LILACs historic stack — to create a visual homage to the ships illustrious past. Up close, the installation melded historic photography and interactive audio together, inviting visitors to more closely experience the historic images displayed on boat, while listening to a dramatic account of LILACs history, entitled Aids to Navigation — written by Justin Rivers.
88 Lilac was was developed in partnership with the Lilac Preservation Project — Spring 2021.
For more information see 88 Lilac press coverage in Untapped New York.
