By Lisa Kitchens
The Eco-History of Socrates Sculpture Park
Where you are right now is part of Lenapehoking, which is the Lenape name for the Lenape homeland (this includes all of NYC). Socrates Sculpture Park sits on the original homelands of the Munsee Lenape Nation and the Matinecock Nation. They have lived on and stewarded this land for thousands of years. In the 17th century during the colonization of America, European settlers inhumanely forced them out of their homeland leaving them displaced across the country. While reparations are still needed, over the years people from the Lenape Nation and Matinecock Nation have moved back to their homeland and live here in NYC.
This park sits where the Harlem and East River merge, and in the late 1700s was considered a dangerous channel for ships to navigate because of its powerful tides and rocky shores. In 1876, the dangerous rocky outcroppings were blasted away, making way for ease of navigation. Over the next century, sadly, this waterfront land became an illegal dumping site and an abandoned landfill. It wasn’t until 1985 that local sculptor Mark di Suervo, along with a coalition of other local artists and community members, founded an outdoor sculpture laboratory known as Socrates Sculpture Park. The park, named for the Greek philosopher as well as a tribute to Astoria’s large Greek community, underwent years of restoration with the support of community members. It became a new model for engagement with the arts and place. This public park–an outdoor laboratory, an art gallery, and a community space–is truly a one-of-a-kind treasure in NYC!
Socrates Sculpture Park : NYC Parks. (2025). Nycgovparks.Org. https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/socrates-sculpture-park
Socrates Sculpture Park. (n.d.). Socrates Sculpture Park. Retrieved August 28, 2026, from https://socratessculpturepark.org/