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A vivid, richly illustrated portrait of Governors Island, exploring the people, history, art, and natural world that have shaped one of New York City’s most remarkable public spaces, and the changes transforming its future
Just minutes by ferry from Lower Manhattan, Governors Island can feel a world away. Part of the unceded Lenape lands and a longtime military base, the 172-acre island has been transformed into a beloved public park, arts destination, high school campus, and proving ground for environmental initiatives. Ferried Away captures this singular New York place at a moment when its identity is changing once again.
This lively anthology brings together the many communities that have shaped and continue to animate Governors Island. Artists, historians, architects, ecologists, writers, students, former military residents, a ferry deckhand, a beekeeper, and other island regulars offer essays, poems, interviews, micro-memoirs, and observations that move between past and present. Their contributions explore the island’s Lenape history, military legacy, wildlife and waterfront ecology, public art, The Harbor School, the Billion Oyster Project, and the everyday encounters that give the island its distinctive character.
Designed to be experienced much like Governors Island itself, the book embraces discovery and surprise. Its playful, nonlinear structure invites readers to wander, double back, and linger, while visitor quotes, short texts, and Leslie Kerby’s colorful illustrations create a richly layered portrait. The result is a book equally suited to longtime New Yorkers, first-time visitors, armchair travelers, and anyone fascinated by urban waterfronts, public space, art, and environmental change.
Ferried Away also looks ahead to The New York Climate Exchange and the large-scale development it will bring. As Governors Island enters another period of transformation, the collection considers what that change could mean for public access, community, art, and environmental stewardship. Both celebration and time capsule, Ferried Away preserves the spirit of a remarkable place at a pivotal moment in its evolution: a book to read before boarding the ferry, carry in a backpack while exploring, or revisit long after returning home.
Contributors: Nora Almeida, Sally Beauty Twin, Layla Bursor, Eliana Colachis Glass, Sarah Cascone, Jamie Caulder, Prophet Davison, Stefan Dreisbach-Williams, Denise Bright Dove Ashton-Dunkley, Oriol Eustache, Murray Fisher, Nicole Gelinas, Valérie Hallier, Elizabeth Logan Harris, Hollis Hillhouse, Karen Holmberg, Mitch Jureckson, Marlena Kinlan, Leslie Kerby, Joe Korber, Richard M. Larrabee, Lina Lajqi, Stephanie Lin/Office III, Justin Lokossou, Chris Lowe, Roger Manning, Nicole Maskiell, Mary Mattingly, Cuthwulf Eileen Myles, Aaron Nickey, Ross Perlin, Robert Pirani, Laziza Rakhimova, Kevin Reed, Alec Rovensky, Carl Safina, Frank Schwall, Ian Sklarsky, Tattfoo Tan, Amy Laird Webb, Rollie Williams, Jessica Wilson, and Kathy Basa Withers
Leslie Kerby is a New York artist working in drawing, collage, printmaking, video, and public art. She has exhibited at galleries and arts venues including Paula Cooper Gallery and BRIC Arts NYC and is Co-Director of Project ARTspace. Kerby is a 2026 nominee for the Global Arts Prize for Innovation. Her work is held in the permanent collections of the Bradbury Art Museum and Columbia University School of Social Work.
Elizabeth Logan Harris (Edited By)
Elizabeth Logan Harris is a writer whose interest in New York City waterfront communities began with co-producing and writing the WNET documentary The Bungalows of Rockaway. Winner of the Mississippi Review Nonfiction Award and an AWP Intro Journals Award, her work has appeared in Guernica, Longreads, Conjunctions, Fourth Genre, Colorado Review, and New England Review.