Hundreds of nude models are taking over Times Square Friday as part of a public art project.
Nude and semi-nude people in Times Square, no big deal.
Two hundred nude people in Times Square ... that's a little less ordinary.
Non-profit Human Connection Arts is holding a "public art project" called Body Notes on Friday. The event draws hundreds of fully nude male and female models to the Crossroads of the World, where each is "painted with a personal message of his or her choosing," the group said in announcing the event last month.
Andy Golub, the artist behind the project, is also the founder of NYC Bodypainting Day. In 2011, he and one of his models were arrested during a bodypainting project in Times Square; the city was ultimately forced to pay the model a settlement and Golub was allowed to continue his work.
As for the backers, an outfit calling itself the Outdoor Co-Ed Topless Pulp Fiction Appreciation Society said it is co-sponsoring the event. The group stages topless group readings at parks, mostly recently in Central Park earlier this month.
Local
A spokeswoman for the society said they had obtained all the necessary permits to hold the event, which will be on Broadway between 43rd and 44th streets.
