“What is Here is Open: Selections from the Treasures in the Trash Collection” Exhibition

Hunter College East Harlem Art Gallery

Curated by Alicia Grullón and Nelson Molina

For over 30 years, Nelson Molina worked for the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) as a sanitation worker. His regular pick up routes were in Manhattan 11, a district bordered by 96th Street to 106th Street between First and Fifth Avenues. While he worked, he found many objects; some that needed repair and others that were fully intact. As hundreds and hundreds of objects amassed, Molina created the Treasures in the Trash Collection inside DSNY’s garage.
New York, NY 10035What is Here is Open: Selections from the Treasures in the Trash Collection is an exhibition that places works by seven New York City-based contemporary artists alongside a selection of Molina’s found objects. Molina, along with curator Alicia Grullón, have chosen objects from the Treasures in the Trash Collection to accompany the contemporary artists’ works, creating unique, site-specific installations inside Hunter East Harlem Gallery.

Participating Artists: Tomie Arai, Dominique Duroseau, Maria Hupfield, Coronado Print Collective (with Pepe Coronado, Leslie Jiménez and Carlos Jesus Martinez Dominguez), Shellyne Rodríguez