“The Legs,” as they are euphemistically called,
have become something of a news darling. The debate is over side yard variances, art verses
architecture, and local predilection from respective vantages points.
A curious feeding frenzy of news gluttony which results in
endless articles appearing in rapid succession in Newsday, The Wall Street Journal, Curbed Hamptons, a cadre of local
web outlets and most recently ArtNewsWorldwide.com, speaks to the nature of how local news becomes a bigger story. Let it be said the hometown
media have amply
constructed the crux of the debate and laid out the matters of precedence and zoning
mandates which entangle Larry River's 'Legs' in their controversy. Yet, the further out from the debate, the more
myopic the controversy appears. One can
almost imagine a New Yorker cover
drawing of the Atlantic Ocean, The Legs, the Manhattan skyline and the Hollywood
sign looming in the distance in a Saul Steinberg drawing. Any good news person worth their salt knows
all news is local if you can just connect the dots.
In this curious case of social climbing, the much larger
issue of freedom of expression as it relates to home ownership comes to light.
It is one thing to gain news prominence on the merits of local zoning
restrictions and altogether another thing to gain news prominence on the merits
of social and cultural association, ie:
The Legs to The Hamptons, Larry Rivers to The Contemporary Art Scene,
Manhattan press to national news. In one fell swoop, Sag Harbor is now indelibly
linked to the question of freedom of expression, which would have pleased Larry
Rivers to no end.
