For the next 10 or so days, New Yorkers can travel the world — nay, the universe — without ever leaving the ground, courtesy of an Insta-ready art installation conceived in Israel.
Balloon Story, an exhibit of large-scale balloon art on view at the Park Avenue Armory through Aug. 24, is an interactive, “It’s a Small World”-style tour through various “lands” constructed entirely of inflated balloons — 700,000 in total. Among the many themed rooms in the massive 55,000-square-foot space is a jungle area with oversized animals and an interactive ball pit, an “under the sea” room, an outer-space area and a room dedicated to monuments around the world.
The purpose, according to Kobi Kalimian, the exhibit’s art director, is “to make families be happy,” he said, adding, “The real idea is to take the grown ups and make them be children again.”
It’s true that a visit to “Balloon Story” is a joyful experience even for the most jaded New Yorker — and a cool one, too. (That’s literal: The temperature is kept at 69 degrees in order to keep the balloons from deflating.) But the story behind Balloon Story may be its most compelling aspect of all: The first Balloon Story exhibit was conceived in Israel and mounted in Tel Aviv last summer, when much of the nation was deeply divided over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposed judicial overhaul.
One of the rooms at the exhibit is dedicated to global monuments — all made of balloons. (Lisa Keys)
Despite the palpable tensions on the street, that first Balloon Story was put together by a diverse group of fabricators. “Muslims with Christians [and Jews], the left side with the right side, ultra-Orthodox and non-religious at all,” Kalimian said. “We built the entire exhibition and we were completely united. That was amazing to see, all sides of the political map, the religious map, together.”
When Kalimian and producer Yonatan Eizik brought a new, larger Balloon Story to New York this summer, the plan was motivated in part by another crisis in Israel: the aftermath of Oct. 7, and the struggle of artists to find gainful employment.
By bringing Balloon Story to New York, along with 30 Israeli artists who served as “team leaders” for an international coalition of balloon artists, the exhibit will bring some much-needed revenue into Israel, said Eizik, an owner of Tel Aviv’s Hangar 11, an concert and event venue that mounts family-friendly exhibitions in the summer months.
Here, the vibe was a bit different from the Israeli installation last year. For the show at the Armory, Israeli artists collaborated with balloon artists from Spain, Brazil, Canada, the Netherlands, the United States and other countries. “The balloon community is a small community,” Kalimian explained. “We know all the best of the best, we know all the artists.”
When a reporter asked Eizik if he had encountered any balloon artists who didn’t want to collaborate with Israelis, a dynamic that creatives in many fields have described amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, he said no. Then he clarified: Several needed some convincing.
Kobi Kalimian, left, and Yonatan Eizik, right, are the creators of Balloon Story. (Lisa Keys)
“We had a few pushbacks on the way, just between people that were really afraid of working with us,” he said, explaining that they were worried about security, and not necessarily interested in boycotting Israeli creators. “We try to explain first that the show is not about politics. It’s about balloons, it’s about art.”
Local balloon artist Todd Neufeld, chief entertainment officer of the Red Hook, Brooklyn-based Twisted Balloon Company, is one of the hundreds of balloon artists who helped install the exhibition. Neufeld, who is Jewish, spent nearly two weeks at the beginning of the summer helping to design and build the sculptures in the outer-space area. “It was super fun,” he said.
Neufeld was aware of the Israeli connection when he signed on, “and I thought that was great,” he said.
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A veteran of other large-scale balloon productions before, Neufeld conceded that there was one thing different about Balloon Story: During the installation, “we broke for Shabbat on Saturday,” he said, noting that its creators are observant Jews. “Right in the middle, everybody had a day off on Saturday. Everybody appreciated a break, because working in it is definitely pretty intense.”
Eizik and Kalimian are onsite at the Armory nearly every day, just in case their expertise is needed. For the most part, though, Kalimian said of the balloon sculptures, “I don’t need to touch them.”
The pair have been enjoying their extended stay in New York this summer, where they are renting apartments close to the Armory and have spent several Shabbats with Chabad. Here in the city, “the Jewish community is hugging us,” Eizik said. “The [Jewish] community — communities — is very strong. It’s amazing how much love we get from people.”
One room inside the exhibit transports visitors to the bottom of the sea. (Lisa Keys)
Approximately 60,000 people have come through Balloon Story since it opened July 3, Eizik said — a solid number, but not quite what the company was hoping for. “We understand it’s not the right time of the year, maybe for the locals and tourists and stuff,” he said, mentioning July’s blistering heat waves as a possible deterrent, as well as New Yorkers’ tendencies to flee the city in August. “But we’re very happy and grateful for the people who arrived. We’re getting very good reviews.”
On Monday afternoon, a steady stream of visitors meandered about the exhibit; many appeared to be tourists from abroad while others were parents and caregivers of young children seeking something to do in the dog days of summer. Families squealed with delight over a large-scale Statue of Liberty sculpture, and took selfies in front of an oversized eagle mounted in front of an American flag, all made of balloons.
“This is what’s special with balloons,” Kalimian said, surveying the scene. “It’s making joy. It’s making people happy, right? And they forgot about all the problems, all the difficulties of life, right?”
Balloon Story is on view at the Park Avenue Armory (643 Park Ave.) through Aug. 24. Get tickets and information here.
