Uptown developer steps in to save endangered pieces by Harlem’s Picasso Franco (The Great) Gaskin
These endangered Harlem masterpieces may have a new home.
Forest City Ratner plans to showcase several murals painted by Franco (The Great) Gaskin at East River Plaza or somewhere nearby, a rep for the developer told the Daily News.
“Franco and his gates have a huge place in the culture of Harlem,” said Elizabeth Canela, project manager for Forest City Ratner, one of the developers seeking permission to build three residential towers atop the mall. “As the neighborhood is shifting, we want to pay homage to what came before.”
Gaskin came to the Big Apple in 1958. Decades later, the Panama-born artist started painting eye-popping murals on the dark-colored steel gates along Harlem’s 125th St. Most of the works featured African-American themes and helped make the bustling strip into an international tourist destination.
The renowned murals disappeared as the neighborhood evolved and corporate retailers moved in. Gaskin managed to save a about two dozen of the gates, which once numbered in the hundreds.
Gaskin came to the Big Apple in 1958. Decades later, the Panama-born artist started painting eye-popping murals on the dark-colored steel gates along Harlem’s 125th St. Most of the works featured African-American themes and helped make the bustling strip into an international tourist destination.
The renowned murals disappeared as the neighborhood evolved and corporate retailers moved in. Gaskin managed to save a about two dozen of the gates, which once numbered in the hundreds.
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