Kiosk Exhibit Puts Upper West Sider's Acts Of Kindness On Display

UPPER WEST SIDE, MANHATTAN — A new kind of public art exhibit on West 83rd Street won't just be for Upper West Siders to look at as they walk by, it will invite them — and some of their most sentimental moments — to be the subjects on display.

Local artist Audrey Banks is getting ready to fill the "cylindrical art gallery" kiosk on the corner of West 83rd Street and Broadway next month with art inspired by "acts of kindness" stories she asked those who live near it to submit.

The result, Banks hopes, will be a meaningful display about the world of good in the neighborhood.

"I wanted to populate this outdoor gallery space with paintings that are relevant to the people who live near it," she said. "The subject is honoring the people that it's shared with — it's much more powerful that way."

So far, the 15 or so submissions Banks has gotten from neighbors have included everything from someone helping to pick up dog poop, to sentimental stories about lifelong relationships, she said.

The stories will mean a lot of time spent deciding how to capture the feeling of the story, not necessarily just the literal replication of it, in a piece of art, Banks said.

"You want to make sure when you're painting things that you do it justice and you're honoring the people...and the kindness that exists," she said.

This isn't Banks' first time interpreting stories of kindness into works of art, either.

The idea for the kiosk, which was first reported on in I Love The Upper West Side blog, in part, sprung from another project she and other artists worked on in the last year or so.

That project uses a character Banks created called "Popic," who acts out acts of kindness suggested by neighbors in real life.

(Caity Lee.) Rachelle Vinberg from the documentary 'Skate Kitchen' performing as Popic in the 'Skate Tulips' performance, skating around the park and handing out tulips to passersby.

The performance art piece brought to life ideas like giving away a free MetroCard, helping a struggling local cafe, or passing out tulips to New Yorkers, all in the name of elevating stories of good, Banks said.

Like the kiosk exhibit, the idea behind Popic is to promote kindness above what she says can sometimes be the artificial or materialistic stories that get attention in today's "social media influencer" world.

"Popic is supposed to be a new type of pop star or influencer that is only famous or only as good as all the good acts she does for the community," Banks said. "The goal is to make a new kind of role model."

Upper West Siders who want to be part of the West 83rd Street kiosk display can still send their acts of kindness stories to Banks through her email, abanksdev@gmail.com.

Her paintings will go on display March 21.

"This could be a really cool piece," Banks said. "[It's about people] who really want to see more kindness in the world. The more I can communicate with people who want to engage, the better."

(Caity Lee.) Rachelle Vinberg from the documentary 'Skate Kitchen' performing as Popic in the 'Skate Tulips' performance, skating around the park and handing out tulips to passersby.