Sunday in the park with the arts: Washington Square Park features a day of music, poetry and body-painters

Members of the New York Yo-Yo Club letting it all hang out

Photo by Bob Krasner

Take a gander at Washington Square Park on any given Sunday and you’ll find anything and everything involving music, art, poetry and comedy — but last Sunday, there were also 50 or so naked people covered head-to-toe in body paint.

Such a spectacle may not happen again anytime soon, as the group shot that took place under the arch culminated the 10th annual Body Painting Day in what was the end of the run, according to organizer Andy Golub.

“After 10 years, it’s time to find new ways to bring people together, to empower and encourage people to be open to others.” Golub stated.

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Meanwhile, the CantDanceCrew was busy shooting a video in front of the fountain to the sounds of the NewJeans “Super Shy.” They describe themselves as “just a group of friends that want to dance!”

It’s an unofficial collective with different members showing up in various videos which have been filmed in Times Square and Hudson River Park, among other places. Most of them met in college, dancing together in a collegiate K-Pop Dance Cover Club and they continue to stick with that genre, occasionally branching out to J-Pop as well.

The resulting video, an impressive one-take shot, is already up on YouTube and Instagram.

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In various spots one could find poets for hire, but Alexis Manzano seemed to be getting most of that action. Maybe it was his dapper style or possibly the flair with which he hit the keys on his manual Smith Corona (that’s a typewriter, kids … it’s what we used before computers).

On a good day, he kicks out around 20 poems for people based on the subject matter of their choosing, taking a tip after handing over the composition typed on apple-shaped cardstock. The topic requests run the gamut, with one of the odder ones coming from a customer who wanted an ode to his male genitalia.