The World Cup of 2026 began on June 11, but in New York and New Jersey the tournament can be seen and lived away from the stadium. The New York New Jersey Stadium, the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, will host eight games, including the July 19 final. The World Championship is, of course, one of the most watched sports events in the world: the 2022 final in Qatar was followed by almost one and a half billion people. For a region that will have to host teams, fans, televisions and fans zones, the World Championship is not only about the ninety minutes of the games, but also the way the city itself prepares for the event.
The Art of the Game, an artistic project created by ARTS 14C, a non-profit organization based in Jersey City, together with the New York New Jersey 2026 organizing committee. The Art of Game consists of taking the shape of the football and turning it into a series of sculptures about two meters high, installed between New York and New Jersey throughout the summer. The works are 23, such as the 23rd edition of the World Championship, and are distributed in different public spaces: squares, parks, places of passage, transport hubs and areas where events will be organized to follow the matches.
The structure of the sculptures resumes the classic design of the ball, with 12 pentagons and 20 hexagons. Below is a stainless steel frame, above 32 panels made of aluminum composite material, designed to be painted, printed or processed with different techniques. The names involved include Katherine Bernhardt, Hank Willis Thomas, Futura 2000, Eddie Martinez, Fred Wilson, Tomokazu Matsuyama, Kevin Beasley, Bony Ramirez and Nyugen E. Smith.
The project is also linked to Agnes Gund, one of the most important figures of American artistic patronage, who died in September 2025. Gund, former chairman of the board of directors of MoMA and founder of Studio in a School, supported the initiative and helped connect ARTS 14C with some of the main cultural institutions of the area. The sculptures will remain exposed until September 7. After the exhibition, a part can be permanently placed in public spaces, while five works will be auctioned by Christie’s. The proceeds will also support ARTS 14C and Studio in a School, that is, two organisations working on access to art outside the most closed circuits of museums.
L’articolo The twenty-three giant balloons between New York and New Jersey proviene da IlNewyorkese.
