Artist Lost Studio, Frends in Attack
debby
By Michael Biesecker
JOURNAL REPORTER
Kara Hammond will always remember that
the morning of Sept.
11 was unusually crisp and clear, the
promise of autumn in the
air.
"It was a truly spectacular day," said
Hammond, 38, an artist
from Winston-Salem who has lived in New
York City for more
than 10years. "There literally wasn't a
cloud in the sky."
A little before 9, she was riding her bicycle across
the George Washington Bridge
toward Manhattan when she noticed a plume of smoke
rising from the north tower of
the World Trade Center.
"I just felt ill in the pit of my stomach," Hammond
said. "I knew my studio was on
fire."
Hammond had felt lucky when she was selected for World
Views, a residency
program that gave artists free studio space on the 92nd
floor of the north tower of the
trade center.
She moved much of her artwork and supplies to the
skyscraper last May, shortly
before returning to Winston-Salem for the summer to
teach drawing at the N.C.
School of the Arts.
She went back to New York last month and set about
working with 14 other artists in
the unusual environment of the city's tallest building,
a utilitarian place designed for
and dedicated to commerce.
About 10,000 square feet of vacant office space high in
the tower had been donated
to the World View program, which drew a diverse group
of artists from all over the
world.
It didn't look much like a studio, but the
floor-to-ceiling windows offered an
unparalleled view of the city intended to inspire and
influence the artists.
"It wasn't a comfortable place," Hammond said in a
telephone interview last week.
"The space itself was very raw. You could see the
girders and how the building was
made. It was all about the view. We were looking down
on airplanes and helicopters."
On the morning of the terrorist attack, she had left
her apartment in Brooklyn and
gone riding with a friend. After seeing the smoke from
the impact of the first jetliner,
they wove through rush-hour traffic toward the scene,
learning what had happened
along the way.
"We would hear snippets of information from the radios
of cars we passed,"
Hammond said. "We'd hear words like 'airplane' and
'crash.' You could see the
smoke for miles."
Peddling through the city, they didn't see the second
plane hit, but every now and
then they could catch a view of the stricken twin
towers. By the time they made their
way to the friend's store on Canal Street, just blocks
from the trade center, the
enormity of the disaster was starting to sink in.
Hammond called her parents in
Pfafftown to let them know she was OK.
"They were watching television," she said. "My mother
was pretty hysterical."
After hanging up, she thought about going to the
buildings to see the damage
close-up. Her friend talked her out of it and urged her
to stay inside. She says she
could barely make out the specks of people jumping from
the flaming building. Not
able to watch, she went into the shop, sat with her
head in her hands and tried to
wrap her mind around what was happening.
The transmitters for the city's main television
stations were on top of the north tower,
so Hammond couldn't see the images broadcast around the
world. She couldn't
believe it when she heard on the radio that the first
building had collapsed.
"No one had any idea those towers would come down. It
was just inconceivable,"
Hammond said. "I went outside and insisted it was still
there, lost behind all the
smoke.... Then the second tower fell."
The streets were clogged with people, many of them
bloodied and covered with soot.
"Nobody was really screaming or crying, just walking
away," Hammond said.
"Nobody said anything. Everyone was walking north, away
from the trade center."
In the long days since the collapse, Hammond learned
that one of her fellow artists
died in the attack.
Michael Richards, 38, was born in New York and raised
in Jamaica. He was known
for his life-size sculptures and had been working on a
series inspired by the
Tuskegee Airmen in the months before the attack. His
body was among the first to
be pulled from the rubble and identified.
The other artists weren't at the trade center during
the attack.
"Nine a.m. is pretty early for an artist," she said.
"If it had been in the afternoon, we'd
all have been there."
Still missing are the oil paintings and drawings that
Hammond spent years creating.
She said she mourns the loss of her artwork, but that
it pales in comparison with the
human toll.
"I lost my life's work," she said. "But then I really
don't care. I'm fortunate. Everybody
in New York knows of somebody who died."
Hammond said she has been unable to paint since the
attack, though she has made
some notes to help her remember the studio and quick
sketches of what she recalls
of Richards' sculptures.
She has spent much of the past two weeks visiting the
makeshift shrines at the
city's firehouses, leaving thank-you notes for the
firemen who died trying to save
victims of the attack. She hasn't been able to bring
herself to go near what has
become known as Ground Zero.
Yesterday, Hammond and the other surviving artists of
the World View program went
to a memorial service for Richards.
The group has kept in nearly constant touch since the
attack, an assortment of
acquaintances that Hammond says have become lifelong
friends. Several
foundations have stepped in with promises of cash and
art supplies, and studio
space will be made available so they can continue to
work together.
But nobody will be able to replace all that has been
lost.
"I still find it hard to accept that the World Trade
Center is gone," Hammond said. "It
was a target for a reason, and there's no place like it
in the world.... Everyone in New
York witnessed this. It will affect us forever."
• Michael Biesecker can be reached at 727-7338 or at
mbies...@wsjournal.com
Email this Story | Printer-Friendly
Version
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as described in our Privacy Policy.
© Winston-Salem Journal. The Winston-Salem Journal
is a MeSad Sight: NCSA artist lost studio, friend in attack
By Michael Biesecker
JOURNAL REPORTER
Kara Hammond will always remember that
the morning of Sept.
11 was unusually crisp and clear, the
promise of autumn in the
air.
"It was a truly spectacular day," said
Hammond, 38, an artist
from Winston-Salem who has lived in New
York City for more
than 10years. "There literally wasn't a
cloud in the sky."
A little before 9, she was riding her bicycle across
the George Washington Bridge
toward Manhattan when she noticed a plume of smoke
rising from the north tower of
the World Trade Center.
"I just felt ill in the pit of my stomach," Hammond
said. "I knew my studio was on
fire."
Hammond had felt lucky when she was selected for World
Views, a residency
program that gave artists free studio space on the 92nd
floor of the north tower of the
trade center.
She moved much of her artwork and supplies to the
skyscraper last May, shortly
before returning to Winston-Salem for the summer to
teach drawing at the N.C.
School of the Arts.
She went back to New York last month and set about
working with 14 other artists in
the unusual environment of the city's tallest building,
a utilitarian place designed for
and dedicated to commerce.
About 10,000 square feet of vacant office space high in
the tower had been donated
to the World View program, which drew a diverse group
of artists from all over the
world.
It didn't look much like a studio, but the
floor-to-ceiling windows offered an
unparalleled view of the city intended to inspire and
influence the artists.
"It wasn't a comfortable place," Hammond said in a
telephone interview last week.
"The space itself was very raw. You could see the
girders and how the building was
made. It was all about the view. We were looking down
on airplanes and helicopters."
On the morning of the terrorist attack, she had left
her apartment in Brooklyn and
gone riding with a friend. After seeing the smoke from
the impact of the first jetliner,
they wove through rush-hour traffic toward the scene,
learning what had happened
along the way.
"We would hear snippets of information from the radios
of cars we passed,"
Hammond said. "We'd hear words like 'airplane' and
'crash.' You could see the
smoke for miles."
Peddling through the city, they didn't see the second
plane hit, but every now and
then they could catch a view of the stricken twin
towers. By the time they made their
way to the friend's store on Canal Street, just blocks
from the trade center, the
enormity of the disaster was starting to sink in.
Hammond called her parents in
Pfafftown to let them know she was OK.
"They were watching television," she said. "My mother
was pretty hysterical."
After hanging up, she thought about going to the
buildings to see the damage
close-up. Her friend talked her out of it and urged her
to stay inside. She says she
could barely make out the specks of people jumping from
the flaming building. Not
able to watch, she went into the shop, sat with her
head in her hands and tried to
wrap her mind around what was happening.
The transmitters for the city's main television
stations were on top of the north tower,
so Hammond couldn't see the images broadcast around the
world. She couldn't
believe it when she heard on the radio that the first
building had collapsed.
"No one had any idea those towers would come down. It
was just inconceivable,"
Hammond said. "I went outside and insisted it was still
there, lost behind all the
smoke.... Then the second tower fell."
The streets were clogged with people, many of them
bloodied and covered with soot.
"Nobody was really screaming or crying, just walking
away," Hammond said.
"Nobody said anything. Everyone was walking north, away
from the trade center."
In the long days since the collapse, Hammond learned
that one of her fellow artists
died in the attack.
Michael Richards, 38, was born in New York and raised
in Jamaica. He was known
for his life-size sculptures and had been working on a
series inspired by the
Tuskegee Airmen in the months before the attack. His
body was among the first to
be pulled from the rubble and identified.
The other artists weren't at the trade center during
the attack.
"Nine a.m. is pretty early for an artist," she said.
"If it had been in the afternoon, we'd
all have been there."
Still missing are the oil paintings and drawings that
Hammond spent years creating.
She said she mourns the loss of her artwork, but that
it pales in comparison with the
human toll.
"I lost my life's work," she said. "But then I really
don't care. I'm fortunate. Everybody
in New York knows of somebody who died."
Hammond said she has been unable to paint since the
attack, though she has made
some notes to help her remember the studio and quick
sketches of what she recalls
of Richards' sculptures.
She has spent much of the past two weeks visiting the
makeshift shrines at the
city's firehouses, leaving thank-you notes for the
firemen who died trying to save
victims of the attack. She hasn't been able to bring
herself to go near what has
become known as Ground Zero.
Yesterday, Hammond and the other surviving artists of
the World View program went
to a memorial service for Richards.
The group has kept in nearly constant touch since the
attack, an assortment of
acquaintances that Hammond says have become lifelong
friends. Several
foundations have stepped in with promises of cash and
art supplies, and studio
space will be made available so they can continue to
work together.
But nobody will be able to replace all that has been
lost.
"I still find it hard to accept that the World Trade
Center is gone," Hammond said. "It
was a target for a reason, and there's no place like it
in the world.... Everyone in New
York witnessed this. It will affect us forever."
• Michael Biesecker can be reached at 727-7338 or at
mbies...@wsjournal.com
Email this Story | Printer-Friendly
Version
Have Your Say
E-The People | Got a News Tip? | Join our
Panel | Letters to the Editor
Setting It Straight | SpeakOut
BACK TO TOP
Archives | Business | Corrections | Entertainment
| Front Page | Living | Local News
Obituaries | Opinion | Search | Site Map |
Special Reports | Sports | Weather
NOTICE: Use of this Web site is subject to
certain Terms and Conditions.
We may collect personal information on this site,
as described in our Privacy Policy.
© Winston-Salem Journal. The Winston-Salem Journal
is a MeSad Sight: NCSA artist lost studio, friend in attack
By Michael Biesecker
JOURNAL REPORTER
Kara Hammond will always remember that
the morning of Sept.
11 was unusually crisp and clear, the
promise of autumn in the
air.
"It was a truly spectacular day," said
Hammond, 38, an artist
from Winston-Salem who has lived in New
York City for more
than 10years. "There literally wasn't a
cloud in the sky."
A little before 9, she was riding her bicycle across
the George Washington Bridge
toward Manhattan when she noticed a plume of smoke
rising from the north tower of
the World Trade Center.
"I just felt ill in the pit of my stomach," Hammond
said. "I knew my studio was on
fire."
Hammond had felt lucky when she was selected for World
Views, a residency
program that gave artists free studio space on the 92nd
floor of the north tower of the
trade center.
She moved much of her artwork and supplies to the
skyscraper last May, shortly
before returning to Winston-Salem for the summer to
teach drawing at the N.C.
School of the Arts.
She went back to New York last month and set about
working with 14 other artists in
the unusual environment of the city's tallest building,
a utilitarian place designed for
and dedicated to commerce.
About 10,000 square feet of vacant office space high in
the tower had been donated
to the World View program, which drew a diverse group
of artists from all over the
world.
It didn't look much like a studio, but the
floor-to-ceiling windows offered an
unparalleled view of the city intended to inspire and
influence the artists.
"It wasn't a comfortable place," Hammond said in a
telephone interview last week.
"The space itself was very raw. You could see the
girders and how the building was
made. It was all about the view. We were looking down
on airplanes and helicopters."
On the morning of the terrorist attack, she had left
her apartment in Brooklyn and
gone riding with a friend. After seeing the smoke from
the impact of the first jetliner,
they wove through rush-hour traffic toward the scene,
learning what had happened
along the way.
"We would hear snippets of information from the radios
of cars we passed,"
Hammond said. "We'd hear words like 'airplane' and
'crash.' You could see the
smoke for miles."
Peddling through the city, they didn't see the second
plane hit, but every now and
then they could catch a view of the stricken twin
towers. By the time they made their
way to the friend's store on Canal Street, just blocks
from the trade center, the
enormity of the disaster was starting to sink in.
Hammond called her parents in
Pfafftown to let them know she was OK.
"They were watching television," she said. "My mother
was pretty hysterical."
After hanging up, she thought about going to the
buildings to see the damage
close-up. Her friend talked her out of it and urged her
to stay inside. She says she
could barely make out the specks of people jumping from
the flaming building. Not
able to watch, she went into the shop, sat with her
head in her hands and tried to
wrap her mind around what was happening.
The transmitters for the city's main television
stations were on top of the north tower,
so Hammond couldn't see the images broadcast around the
world. She couldn't
believe it when she heard on the radio that the first
building had collapsed.
"No one had any idea those towers would come down. It
was just inconceivable,"
Hammond said. "I went outside and insisted it was still
there, lost behind all the
smoke.... Then the second tower fell."
The streets were clogged with people, many of them
bloodied and covered with soot.
"Nobody was really screaming or crying, just walking
away," Hammond said.
"Nobody said anything. Everyone was walking north, away
from the trade center."
In the long days since the collapse, Hammond learned
that one of her fellow artists
died in the attack.
Michael Richards, 38, was born in New York and raised
in Jamaica. He was known
for his life-size sculptures and had been working on a
series inspired by the
Tuskegee Airmen in the months before the attack. His
body was among the first to
be pulled from the rubble and identified.
The other artists weren't at the trade center during
the attack.
"Nine a.m. is pretty early for an artist," she said.
"If it had been in the afternoon, we'd
all have been there."
Still missing are the oil paintings and drawings that
Hammond spent years creating.
She said she mourns the loss of her artwork, but that
it pales in comparison with the
human toll.
"I lost my life's work," she said. "But then I really
don't care. I'm fortunate. Everybody
in New York knows of somebody who died."
Hammond said she has been unable to paint since the
attack, though she has made
some notes to help her remember the studio and quick
sketches of what she recalls
of Richards' sculptures.
She has spent much of the past two weeks visiting the
makeshift shrines at the
city's firehouses, leaving thank-you notes for the
firemen who died trying to save
victims of the attack. She hasn't been able to bring
herself to go near what has
become known as Ground Zero.
Yesterday, Hammond and the other surviving artists of
the World View program went
to a memorial service for Richards.
The group has kept in nearly constant touch since the
attack, an assortment of
acquaintances that Hammond says have become lifelong
friends. Several
foundations have stepped in with promises of cash and
art supplies, and studio
space will be made available so they can continue to
work together.
But nobody will be able to replace all that has been
lost.
"I still find it hard to accept that the World Trade
Center is gone," Hammond said. "It
was a target for a reason, and there's no place like it
in the world.... Everyone in New
York witnessed this. It will affect us forever."
crosem
trivial, to the newspapers and the TV and radio. Do they feel this helps
someone or makes them important or what? I would never be interviewed by a
TV, radio or newspaper reporter. Too much opportunity to twist what you
say, etc.
debby <sarg...@infi.net> wrote in message
news:3BAD29A7...@infi.net...
> . Michael Biesecker can be reached at 727-7338 or at
> . Michael Biesecker can be reached at 727-7338 or at
DedNdogYrs
trivial, to the newspapers and the TV and radio. Do they feel this helps
someone or makes them important or what? I would never be interviewed by a TV,
radio or newspaper reporter. Too much opportunity to twist what you
say, etc.>
I don't understand a post like this. People are interested in the stories and
many people want to talk about their losses instead of keeping them inside.
How can a WTC victim's story be twisted? This isn't a death row criminal being
discussed here.
Dogs & children first.
asbest...@deja.com
>Sad Sight: NCSA artist lost studio, friend in attack
>
> By Michael Biesecker
> JOURNAL REPORTER
>
> Kara Hammond will always remember thatthe morning of Sept.
>11 was unusually crisp and clear, the promise of autumn in the air.
I understand these stories... people telling how they feel... what
they lost.. friends/coworkers/jobs in this case, the art of her life.
The numbers are soo big... I can't comprehend. When I read one
person's story, I can see their pain. I can feel who they were.. not
ocmpletely, but a glimpse of what is important to them, what they
love(d).
I've bookmarked many of these stories, and intend to put them on
disk... so I can remember. Many of the people who died were wonderful
people (okay... we all seem good in eulogies..). Part of the
sadness was mentioned in another article... the pictures are of happy
people on vacation, with family, etc.
It is important to talk after a tragedy like this. Listening to their
stories is an important service... letting them know we are praying
for them. -- because I don't know what else to do... donating blood,
food, money... doesn't start to help heal the pain..
da boss
debby
> I wonder why some people feel compelled to tell their story, not matter how
> trivial, to the newspapers and the TV and radio. Do they feel this helps
> someone or makes them important or what? I would never be interviewed by a
> TV, radio or newspaper reporter. Too much opportunity to twist what you
> say, etc.
>
>
>
>
> I think what she had to say was very important. She had a loss of opportunity
> and a loss of will to do her art because she was depressed. She also lost her
> friends. If I were in the WTC attack, no matter how trivial I would want to
> tell my story. If anything else it is therapudic, so give her respect for
> that. Debby S.<sarg...@infi.net>
debby
That is a wonderful idea! We should have a history so that no one forgets. Debby
S.<sarg...@infi.net>
Jason Pope
Just the act of talking about their problem/experience can help the
healing process.
The counselling system in America is a multi million dollar business!
ciao
Jason
crosem
their moment in the sun. Some people like to spew their feelings all over
the airwaves, I think that trivializes the events. I find it difficult to
feel sorry for her losing her artwork and will to create art when they are
so many suffering so much more than she.
debby <sarg...@infi.net> wrote in message
news:3BADE093...@infi.net...
Anne Warfield
>I am very cynical. I think most people speak to reporters so they can have
>their moment in the sun. Some people like to spew their feelings all over
>the airwaves, I think that trivializes the events. I find it difficult to
>feel sorry for her losing her artwork and will to create art when they are
>so many suffering so much more than she.
::shrug:: Pain is pain. Just because you broke your leg doesn't
make my stubbed toe hurt any less.
--
Anne Warfield
indigoace at goodsol period com
http://www.goodsol.com/cats/
Ms_Gandolfini
indi...@aolxxx.com wrote on 9/23/01 1:12 PM:
> On Sun, 23 Sep 2001 16:26:23 GMT, "crosem" <cro...@flash.net> wrote:
>
>> I am very cynical. I think most people speak to reporters so they can have
>> their moment in the sun. Some people like to spew their feelings all over
>> the airwaves, I think that trivializes the events. I find it difficult to
>> feel sorry for her losing her artwork and will to create art when they are
>> so many suffering so much more than she.
>
> ::shrug:: Pain is pain. Just because you broke your leg doesn't
> make my stubbed toe hurt any less.
Actually, I find these people's stories a hell of a lot more interesting
than stories about celebrities and professional athletes.
asbest...@deja.com
wrote:
I know I read these stories and ask myself.... "Would I have the
stamina, courage and balls to keep going?" or " Would I have followed
the rules? -- and gone back to my desk?"
It scares me... I'd probably go back to my desk...
da boss
Dan Hartung
cro...@flash.net says...
> I wonder why some people feel compelled to tell their story, not matter how
> trivial, to the newspapers and the TV and radio. Do they feel this helps
> someone or makes them important or what? I would never be interviewed by a
> TV, radio or newspaper reporter. Too much opportunity to twist what you
> say, etc.
I dunno ... why do people post to newsgroups?
People want to tell their stories, and other people want to hear them.
This is as old as humanity.
--
Dan Hartung * dan [at] dhartung [dot] com
Lake Effect weblog: http://www.lakefx.nu/
CHICAGOSTORIES: post yours @ chicagostories.org
Dan Hartung
cro...@flash.net says...
> I am very cynical. I think most people speak to reporters so they can have
> their moment in the sun. Some people like to spew their feelings all over
> the airwaves, I think that trivializes the events. I find it difficult to
> feel sorry for her losing her artwork and will to create art when they are
> so many suffering so much more than she.
I am appalled by your insensitivity. Every person's loss is legitimate.
What kind of person are you to start placing a yardstick against people's
pain?
I am alive. I know no one who died. I know no one who even lost anyone in
the attack. Yet I feel pain because of the attack, and my pain is
legitimate. I talk about my pain with other people. This is legitimate.
I would suggest you keep your cynicism to yourself at a time like this.
It's like criticizing people at a funeral.
crosem
time. I said her suffering is minimal as compared to others' ill fortune.
Perhaps reading more carefully would be of some assistance to you, and
putting words into other people's mouths is never a sign of well-thought out
analysis.
Dan Hartung <dhar...@spamcop.NOT> wrote in message
news:MPG.161842cf7...@netnews.worldnet.att.net...
Dan Hartung
cro...@flash.net says...
> nonsense. I never said I did not feel pain or suffer during this horrid
> time. I said her suffering is minimal as compared to others' ill fortune.
> Perhaps reading more carefully would be of some assistance to you, and
> putting words into other people's mouths is never a sign of well-thought out
> analysis.
What words did I put into your mouth? YOU should re-read what YOU wrote.
It was insensitive, and I feel no need to elaborate.
crosem
Since you have no argument, you fling accusations! Welcome to the killfile,
double digit IQ boy!
Dan Hartung <dhar...@spamcop.NOT> wrote in message
news:MPG.1619d8c53...@netnews.worldnet.att.net...
Dan Hartung
cro...@flash.net says...
> Nice comeback, empty and shallow, with no discernible reasoning included.
> Since you have no argument, you fling accusations! Welcome to the killfile,
> double digit IQ boy!
Keep it up. I'm loving the comedy.
asbest...@deja.com
wrote:
We sit around the fire, telling stories... some true- some not.
This helps us learn about others... who they are, what they believe.
Just like in the cave dwelling days...
da boss
F L
general newsgroup and find out.
asbest...@deja.com wrote in message news:<3bb18984....@netnews.worldnet.att.net>...