NEW YORK, NY.- The
Garment District Alliance (GDA) announced the latest in its ongoing series of public art exhibits, unveiling False Awakenings, a whimsical collection of paintings accompanied by an edible cake sculpture by artists Madeleine Schachter and Grace “Grey” Pak.
The new exhibit is part of the Garment District Space for Public Art program, which showcases artists and has produced more than 200 installations, exhibits, and performances over the past 18 years. Located in a street-level window at 209 West 38th Street in the heart of the Garment District, the exhibit is free and will be accessible to the public through January 4th, 2024.
False Awakenings consists of six works, including one edible cake sculpture titled Cake Tulipiere and five paintings titled Spilled Sky, Galaxies in Chat, Glazed Seas, Swaying Seas and Hills, and Resplendent Pond. The installation explores the surreal feeling of experiencing the familiar and unfamiliar simultaneously and aims to transport viewers to a dream-like state where their minds can either wander or rest.
“Madeleine and Grey’s beautiful works bring a sense of calm to the Garment District,” said Barbara A. Blair, president of the Garment District Alliance. “We are proud to introduce False Awakenings to our diverse mix of public art and encourage all to stop at the window and take in these dreamy works of art this winter.”
With a Bachelor of Fine Arts from New York University and a Master of Science in neuroscience and education from Columbia University, Grace "Grey" Pak seamlessly merges her passion for art and science. With nine years of web design experience at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), Pak founded Duchess of Cameron, channeling her artistic prowess into cake design. Her formal training in Cake Techniques & Design, earning the prestigious Grand Diplôme with Distinction from the International Culinary Center, solidifies her status as a master cake artist.
Recognizing the positive impact of cake decorating on mental health, Pak established NY Cake Design Lab in 2019, inviting International Master Cake Artists to teach unique techniques to professional cake makers, hobby bakers, and first-timers. As a member of Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology, Pak collaborates with licensed therapists and nonprofits, using cake as a medium to enhance cognitive aspects in various programs, aiming to promote psychological well-being through multi-sensory experiences in cake decorating. For her unique artistic styles and techniques, Pak has appeared multiple times on the Food Network and the Cooking Channel and received New York Wedding Awards’ Manhattan Cake Designer of the Year in 2019, among other recognitions.
Madeleine Schachter, a versatile artist, combines subtle palettes and gilded tones in her artwork, creating pieces that exude movement, buoyancy, and hope. Using mixed media such as pastels, watercolors, acrylics, metal leaf, and unconventional materials like mascara, Schachter's suggestive abstractions invite contemplation and self-reflection. She has exhibited her work internationally, including in the United States, France, Austria, China, England, Portugal, Spain and Italy.
Beyond her artistic endeavors, Schachter empowers diverse communities, including survivors of domestic violence, refugees, hospital patients, and inmates, through art workshops worldwide. Schachter is the author of Creativity Connections: Wellness Through Artistic Expression, which explains how to use art to empower oneself and others. Schachter is a Phi Beta Kappa, Summa Cum Laude graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, from which she holds a Bachelor of Arts in medical ethics – a major she designed, the first of its kind in any higher academic institution – and political science. She received her Juris Doctor from the New York University School of Law, where she was a Root Tilden Scholar.
The Garment District is home to diverse business sectors from technology to hospitality and includes thousands of people working in the creative economy, including fine and performing artists, designers, architects, photographers, and more than a hundred theaters, galleries, performance spaces, and studios.
