Gawking at those Nipper statues that now dot downtown Albany
One of the things you notice when seeing the Nippers out and about is the way each artist designed the eyes gives the dogs a different expression.
We got a chance during the past week to check out the new "Downtown is Pawsome" statues in downtown Albany as they sit in their new sidewalk habitats.
The three-foot-tall statues -- inspired by Nipper and decorated by local artists -- are part of the annual public art program coordinated by the Downtown Albany BID. Eight are already in place, two more will be out this week, and another ten are on their way.
Here's a quick photo gawk at the statues, along with a clickable map that we'll update as the statues appear. The pieces are all within walking distance of each other, so you could definitely string them together as part of your own walking tour some day this summer -- with, you know, maybe a stop for a drink or donut along the way.
Map
Look up, it's at the top in large format -- click or scroll all the way up.
Statues
"Almos"
Diane Cubit
S. Pearl and Howard streets
"Bright Side"
Melanie Lucia Clarke
Albany Capital Center, Eagle and Howard streets
"City Lines"
Mitchell Biernacki
Broadway, between Beaver Street and Hudson Avenue
"Een grote delft blauwe doggo"
Jessica Mansmith
Albany Heritage Area Visitors Center, 25 Quackenbush Square
"Mark"
Sarah Bassett and Hannah McGrath
Tricentennial Park, Broadway between Steuben and Columbia streets
"New Neighbor Ned"
Tim Fealey
Madison Avenue, between Grand Street and Trinity Place
"Second Chances"
Bob Anderson
Wallenburg Park entrance, N. Pearl between Clinton Avenue and Orange Street
"Tulip Festival"
Myers Middle School
Albany Coliseum, 153 S. Pearl Street
Still to come
"Steampunk Nipper"
Elaine Wilson
80 State Street
Scooby Doodle
Upside Collective
Hudson River Way Pedestrian Bridge, Broadway & Maiden Lane
And more statues by:
Matthew Bartik
Kit Collins
Kristen Dahms
Sandra Dwileski
First Church in Albany
John "Gianni" Gaudet
Gretchen Geser
Betsy Gorman
Ali Herrmann
Scotty Somerville
Hi there. Comments have been closed for this item. Still have something to say? Contact us.
Comments
Took my kids for a drive downtown and had them try to find the dogs... They had a blast!
... said Jeff W on Jun 26, 2017 at 5:29 PM | link
Can't wait to come home and check out this awesome public art! Good on ya, 518!
... said Nicky C on Jun 29, 2017 at 3:15 AM | link
All 20 artists were the winners so I don't understand you not releasing them all at the same time. The first 10 received lots of publicity and prime spots in downtown. Can you guarantee the same for the next 10?
... said Elizabeth on Jun 29, 2017 at 8:56 PM | link
@Elizabeth, I don't believe they are being rolled out per ranking, but that some artists required more time, so they are slowly being rolled out as they are completed (aka, the BID didn't put out a firm deadline on this). I pretty sure I read that somewhere recently, maybe in the article about the Albany School District kids working hard to get their's out nice and early this summer, and think the article mentioned other "Nippers" would roll out as completed.
I love busing downtown on the weekends to walk around, enjoy an early lunch or brunch, so this just gives me an excuse to pop down again and see something new every few weekends (maybe that was the BID's attempt, repeat attendance with a staggered release of Nippers :) )
... said Rich on Jun 30, 2017 at 8:48 AM | link