Art, social justice, and promotional statements; a softball interview with BSE Global's Clara Wu Tsai

CULTURED, "a leading voice for inspiration and a trusted vehicle for discovery at the intersection of art, design, and style," offers a July 15 interview with "philanthropist and businesswoman" Clara Wu Tsai, bannered as "New York Liberty Owner." (h/t NetsDaily)

It offers both insight and myopia toward the tricky melding of sports venues and art.

In New York Liberty Owner Clara Wu Tsai on What the Art World Can Learn From Women’s Basketball, Sophia Cohen, daughter of New York Mets owner Steve Cohen, leads off with a fat pitch to herself--and then Tsai, who with her husband Joe Tsai owns most of BSE Global, parent of the arena company, Brooklyn Nets, and New York Liberty:

I’ve spent my fair share of time in sports stadiums and arenas. Like museums, they are special places where a wide variety of people come together with a common goal to witness excellence.  

The businesswoman and philanthropist Clara Wu Tsai—who owns the Brooklyn Nets, Barclays Center, and, as of 2019, the New York Liberty—is working to bring the worlds of art and sports closer together. A noted collector, she has been collaborating with artists including LaToya Ruby Frazier, Sarah Sze, and Rashid Johnson to develop ambitious art for the Brooklyn stadium.

I tried my hand at combining these two sectors last year, when I helped develop a line of artist-designed tote bags and hats for the New York Mets. 

(Emphases added) 

Well, sports venues are generally a little more profit-focused than museums, which typically have a mission, and a code of ethics--though they have become more commercial.

Notice how "You belong here" lines up with "Barclays Center" from this angle, and the Liberty
Portraits form a corridor to the entrance. Photos: Norman Oder

Asked about the Social Justice Fund, Tsai responded:

The Social Justice Fund started in 2020, and one of our first projects was a public art commission: the neon art installation by Tavares [Strachan] that states, “We Belong Here” in Tavares’s own cursive script. This phrase is somewhat of an anthem of the Social Justice Fund. It is a message that we hoped could instill a sense of agency and a belief that all people in Brooklyn can coexist in beautiful ways. We have a belief that art is a powerful tool for fostering empathy and community. We believe that art should be accessible to all. These themes form the basis for why we want to commission more public art at the Barclays Center.

That's just a wee bit self-serving. Does she not recognize--has no one told her?--that the neon signage that says "You Belong Here," pointing people to the arena entrance, can easily be interpreted as encouraging people to buy tickets to arena events?

And that "We Belong Here," which greets arena attendees entering the transit hub, is an affirmation to them above all?

About the Liberty Portraits

Asked about the new Liberty Portraits installation, Wu Tsai responded:

I met [artist] LaToya [Ruby Frazier] through the Gordon Parks Foundation in 2023, the year that I was honored at their gala. In my remarks, I talked about how I was motivated to follow Parks’s example in using art and storytelling to bring visibility to the WNBA. That resonated with LaToya because she is a former basketball player and has always wanted to tell their stories. When we met, we quickly discovered our shared passion for basketball and uplifting women athletes.

Yes, it's more than photojournalism, as Wu Tsai says, with family portraits.

But--duh--the "shared passion for basketball and uplifting women athletes" makes the project not merely eleemosynary. Consider, as I wrote, Art, Promotion, or Both? The "Liberty Portraits" Are a BSE Global Power Move.

Indeed, Wu Tsai says Frazier "was interested in the sightlines of the portraits and how they will be experienced by visitors and fans as they move through the plaza and into the arena." 

Yup, fans, and future arena visitors are the key audience.

What's next?

Coming to Barclays is a big sculptural installation in the atrium by Sarah Sze, similar but "more ambitious" than what's been installed at LaGuardia Airport.

Also, Rashid Johnson's “Anxious Audience” painting, currently on view at the Guggenheim Museum, will come to Barclays. (Note: there are a couple of versions of his work titled "Anxious Audience" out there.)

According to Cohen, it's a popular backdrop for photos. "When it gets to Barclays Center, we hope people will recognize it and want to photograph themselves in front of it, too," Wu Tsai said.

There's lots of extra money for art when you have a tax-exempt site, pay off construction bonds with tax-exempt financing and just raised big money when selling a minority share in BSE Global to the Koch family.