NEW YORK, NY.- Times Square Arts is presenting the final weeks of Soft-Firm’s Love Letters. On view through March 10, 2021, Love Letters is the winning sculpture of the 2021 Love in Times Square Design Competition, curated by Reddymade. Over the last several weeks, Love Letters has invited the public to participate in the installation by leaving their own love letters attached to the sculpture, creating a heartfelt public artwork in celebration of loved ones, lost ones, essential workers, New York City pride, and more in the heart of Times Square. Soft-Firm is represented by Lexi Tsien and Talitha Liu.

To celebrate the closing of Love Letters, dancer Marielis Garcia will share a special sunset dance performance entitled Encantó on March 5th and 6th at 5:45pm. Inspired by the ways we convey care for ourselves and others, Garcia will incorporate Love Letters into her choreography, moving within and among the installation to original music in a costume inspired by the artwork.

Love Letters riffs off of the building facades of New York City, using plywood as a material of public engagement to mimic a scrolling storefront. The installation winds across Duffy Square in the heart of Times Square to create four integrated spaces—the soapbox, loveseat, chapel, and wishing well—in one folding surface, forming the shape of two interlocked hearts. Love Letters reflects its context throughout the day and has already become an amphitheater for public engagement with photoshoots, impromptu proposals, birthday parties, protests, or quiet moments of reflection.

Continuing the ancient custom of votive offerings — the ritual of tying a ribbon to a wishing tree, or a love lock to a bridge — visitors are invited to tie a wish, a memento, or an artifact onto the netted underlay, such as letters of protest, a letter to a lost loved one, or a message of appreciation to essential workers. The public can layer on their own meanings to the plywood storefront, each an author of the installation. Over time, Love Letters will become a memorial and a beacon: a symbol of solidarity and hope. For those that cannot attend, they are invited to submit a love letter online to be added to the sculpture at www.TSQ.org/LoveLetters.