Blue Dress Park 2000

Blue Dress Park 2000
Installation dimension: variable
naming rights ceremony, four-color invitation

Blue Dress Park represents a shift in Druecke’s work from material production to emphasizing the impact words and naming rights can carry when combined with social gatherings. On June 30th, 2000, an empty wedge of concrete located on the southwest corner of Holton and Reservoir in Milwaukee, WI was christened Blue Dress Park without alteration to the physical space. Official sanction was not sought but city officials were invited to the event including the Mayor of Milwaukee, the head of the Park’s Department along with other local officials, neighbors, friends, and art-world dignitaries.

Invitation, the full-page fold out image re-imagines the space as a conceptual playground

Selected images from Christening Celebration. Photo credits: Pete DiAntoni

Invitation to christening of Park depicting small concrete area enclosed by black fence with text “Blue Dress Park.”

Woman in long blue dress stands next to table, behind it are 2 men and a woman all in black and tall black chain link fence.

Woman with short blonde hair holding cup in foreground, large crowd of people conversing in groups in background.

Man in green shirt and black coat with blue flower in pocket and sunglasses drinking from cup, people conversing behind him.

Two violinists playing together, sheet music on stands in front of them.

People in formal attire gathered around table with black tablecloth refreshments on it. In foreground, woman hands man baby.

Woman with black hair tied back, red lipstick, and red dress smiles at camera, man stands behind her.

Group of 3 people stand in circle conversing, flash reflects off stop sign and other street signs in background.

Man sits on wooden chair playing guitar another guitar and table with amp on top sit next to him.

2 men standing next to each other exchange glance, blonde woman in pink dress next to them looks down.

Woman in blue floral print dress stands next to another woman in blue dress, both smiling.

2 men in brown pants and tan shirts lean over black railing while speaking to one another.

Man in black polo with red bow tie with glasses pushed on forehead smiles looking behind camera.

Woman with brown curly hair held back by sunglasses wearing black dress reads pamphlet.

Group of people gathered around table with refreshments on it. Woman puts money into jar on table.

Man in white shirt with dark tie, large round glasses, and brown hair smiles into camera.

2 men, one in black suit, one in baby blue suit converse in middle of concrete area. 2nd pair stands behind them.

Blue Dress Park has served as a space to explore grass roots potential to effect perception of shared resources, in this instance, public, if extra, space. On the ten-year anniversary of the christening, the Friends of Blue Dress Park came together as a collaborative experiment in board structure focused on the legacy of ephemeral art interventions. Blue Dress Park remains, 20 years later, a place without purpose and thereby a space comprise of pure potential.

The project was written about in Art in America and Roger White’s book, The Contemporaries.