Culture Chronicle

New York City Seeks Limits on Art Vendors in Popular Parks Artdaily.org - April 23, 2010 By Sara Kugler, Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK, NY (AP).- Manhattan's most famous parks are lined with artists selling their sculptures, paintings and photographs -- often of quintessential New York scenes -- but city officials say the vendors have grown out of control and are trying to force many of them off the streets.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg's administration wants to shrink the vendor population by up to 80 percent in some areas -- dramatically altering a colorful part of the cityscape that has for decades served as an outdoor gallery popular among tourists in a city known worldwide for its arts.

"If they do this, it will be war in the city because so many people will lose money and a place to show their work," said Alex Basansky, a photographer who sells his prints of city scenes at the southeast entrance of Central Park.

The regulations would also severely limit the number of vendors in parts of Central Park, plus all of Union Square and Battery Park in downtown Manhattan and the High Line Park, a new elevated park along Manhattan's far West Side.

The Bloomberg administration says street art has outgrown its space in the city's most popular parks, dominating sidewalks and interfering with pedestrian traffic. Vendors say the rules violate their First Amendment guarantee of free expression. For the full article, click here