Arrival (II), a spatial installation at the Ellis Island Immigration Museum, broaches the issue of immigration in an artistic context.
In a building that has seen 12 million people passing through on their way to a new life, Arrival (II) reflects on the conflicting feelings of immigrants—feelings that have gained topicality due to the recent massive movements of emigrants from war-torn countries.
Through its layout, the installation in the Museum’s Temporary Gallery Rooms physically transmits the transitory and ambiguous state of immigrants. It immerses visitors in a de-composed domestic ambience, contrasting the bare, repudiating building space as the symbol of fear and uncertainty with alienating notions of shelter and prosperity.
By revealing the twofold character of the historic space, the exhibition aims to reconcile past and present. A weekly exhibition program with sessions presenting objects from the museum’s collection, letter readings and concerts evokes the presence of the past.