The Wooden Walls Initiative proudly presents an original installation by world renowned artist HOTTEA at the Asbury Park Boardwalk for the summer of 2019. Artist Eric Regier, recognized for his larger than life, site-specific installations, has generously donated this work entitled “One Last Moment Under the Sky” to the Wooden Walls Project, a non-profit art initiative based in Asbury Park, NJ.
Visitors to the destination city can experience the largest work of the artist’s career, an emotionally powerful 20’ x 120’ installation painstakingly created from hundreds of individual strands of yarn. HOTTEA specifically chose the pre-development Casino Building site after meeting Wooden Walls curator Jenn Hampton at the SCOPE Art fair in Miami Beach. Hampton, of Parlor Gallery, is a major advocate for the arts in Asbury Park, and spearheads the project.
HOTTEA’s work is deliberately created to evoke a sentimental and sometimes even enchanted feeling in those who experience it. The three-dimensional planes of color have beguiled audiences in such varied locations and events as New York Fashion Week, the Mall of America, and concerts, festivals, and museums all over the world. From Sesame Street to the Superbowl, for over a decade HOTTEA has been making an impression in public spaces for a diverse audience to enjoy.
Originally a graffiti street artist, Eric traded in an anonymous life when he made the decision to move onto “non-destructive” street art – string installations, and moveable graffiti style pieces that he now gives away to fans by posting the locations, and leaving them up for grabs. The emotional component of Regier’s work is easily spotted in the artist himself. The Emmy award winning artist has quietly dedicated a large portion of his efforts and time to charitable causes such as the Minnesota Assistant Council for Veterans and other extremely worthy organizations.
HOTTEA’s installation is housed in the Casino Building, a striking 1929 beaux arts structure designed by architect Whitney Warren and partner Charles Wetmore (designers of Grand Central Terminal in New York). This iconic building is currently in pre-development and part of the highly successful reimaging of the Asbury Park Boardwalk by national developer Madison Marquette.
The Casino complex also currently houses the Wooden Walls public arts initiative in its three-quarter, ornate Carousel House during the months of June through October. The Wooden Walls Mural Project is a collaborative initiative that brings art to Asbury Park to enrich the socio-cultural and socio-economic landscape in a thoughtful way.
Since 2015, Wooden Walls has been successful in gaining international attention from news outlets such as the Guardian UK, The New York Times, Juxtapoz, Conde Nast Traveler and others due to mindful curation of place married with content. The completed project has emerged as an undisputed destination for connoisseurs of the art world as well as every-day visitors to Asbury Park.
Wooden Walls is a visually engaging endeavor that is immediately palatable to the demographic who consume Asbury Park. As a testament to the power of the work, thousands of guests have captured images of the Wooden Walls project, now aggregated on through social media platforms as an indelible part of the community’s identity.
