Art Project Memorializing Shuttered Mom-And-Pops To Open In LES

LOWER EAST SIDE, NY — A new art installation memorializing mom-and-pop stores that have shuttered in the Lower East Side is coming to the neighborhood this summer.

The wood sculpture will be installed in Seward Park in June as part of a partnership between Uniqlo and the NYC Parks Department to bring more art to city parks.

The sculpture, from the artists Karla and James Murray, will include "near life-size photographs of four mom-and-pop neighborhood stores of the Lower East Side, which are no longer in business and have disappeared from the streetscape."

Included in the four stores is the Cup & Saucer, a longtime diner and coffee shop that closed last year after 70 years in the neighborhood.

In total, 10 new art projects will be installed throughout the city thanks to the partnership with Uniqlo, with each artist getting a $10,000 grant to complete their work. This is the project's second year bringing art to city parks.

Karla and James Murray are known for their photographs of shuttered New York City stores, which they've documented in two books, "Store Front: The Disappearing Face of New York" and its sequel "Store Front II - A History Preserved."

Here's a look at some of the other art projects that will be funded through the program in parks in Fort Greene and in East Harlem.

Image credit: Courtesy of the NYC Parks Department