Brats, Poppers, and Art Pop: Charli xcx Spends a Day at Storm King

The title of Charli XCX's remix album, "Brat," perfectly captures the essence of her pop-up listening event held on Thursday at the Storm King Art Center in upstate New York. This gathering showcased Charli in a whole new light—she was right there, dancing joyfully in the sunlight among hundreds of fans and surrounded by massive sculptures, creating an experience unlike any we've seen from her before.

Brat, both the album and its underlying idea, represents a certain vibe and environment. This vibe is captured in the expression ‘okay? (¬_¬)’ while the setting evokes a carefree gathering with your attractive friends, or more recently, at Madison Square Garden. In contrast, Storm King is quite different. This 500-acre outdoor museum in the Hudson Valley, which has been around for 64 years, is home to an impressive collection of sculptures by renowned artists like Richard Serra, Alexander Calder, Maya Lin, and Louise Bourgeois. Normally, the site features rolling expanses of greenery, largely tranquil except for the sounds of birds. However, this past Thursday, from around 3:30 p.m. when the guests started to arrive, until approximately 5:30 p.m. when the bold artist finished her roughly one-hour DJ set, the atmosphere was anything but quiet. As we know, a club is an ever-changing experience, whether filled with flashing lights or illuminated from above.

“I had no idea what the atmosphere would be like,” Charli remarked into a microphone as she took her place on the DJ booth. Positioned within a tall, two-sided structure covered in green vinyl and featuring the names of the brat tracks, the installation had an almost otherworldly presence, much like Kubrick’s monolith, attracting both staff and guests to gather around it.

I can't speak for the people at the back, but close to the makeshift stage, the fragrant smells of oak and maple gave way to a much stronger floral scent. People were reaching into plastic bags, and the familiar sounds of poppers filled the air. As Charli’s playlist spun into the "360" remix, the bass thumped loudly. The audience, ranging from teenagers to seniors, erupted in cheers. “You aren’t excited enough!” the star shouted in response.

The Storm King team is still counting the final number of attendees, but they reported that over 200 people with RSVPs, along with their guests, showed up as of this morning. This count doesn’t include staff and vendors. The organizers also noted that the maximum capacity was set at 1,000. It was shared that about 26,000 eager fans who had RSVP’d to the event were unable to attend. In defense of the approximately 25,000 who missed out, it was quite a challenging process. The event was first hinted at in a TikTok on Monday. Then, on Tuesday, Charli shared a registration link in her Instagram story, where she has 6.4 million followers. Despite the late notice, ticket-holders caught the 12:30 p.m. Metro-North train from Grand Central—informally called the bratmobile—much to the surprise of other commuters. One woman, who happened to wear a bright green sweater on October 10, remarked that she and her friend had no idea Charli XCX was performing in New Windsor.

"Our main worry was figuring out why the train was so packed," the man remarked.

The fans got off shortly after arriving at Beacon. There was a bit of a pause before the Storm King staff organized the crowd into shuttle buses. The attendees wandered around the station and the sidewalk, looking out of place in their festival outfits in the cool midafternoon air. Black leather jackets paired with black sunglasses (which remained on their faces); glitter highlighted their eyes and brows; some guys were in jeans, some wore skirts, and one person even donned a Minion costume because, well, ‘why not?’

Surprisingly, John Stern, the president and CEO of Storm King, informed ARTnews that the event was organized in only “a few weeks.” He mentioned that Charli's team initially contacted them regarding a partnership between the museum and the live streaming service Twitch. It seems that the Cambridge-born artist is quite fond of Storm King; “I had no idea,” he remarked. While Storm King has held classical music events before, Stern expressed that his team is eager to explore more collaborations with contemporary pop art in the future.

The press didn't get a chance to talk with the singer on Thursday, and she quickly jumped into a parked car right after her final song. However, there was at least one other artist available to have a conversation.

"Everyone kept asking me about tickets, assuming I could get them," Arlene Shechet explained. "I really wish I could! My colleagues at the studio and gallery were quite anxious," she continued, imitating a look of desire. The sculptor, who operates a studio about an hour away in Woodstock, visited Storm King since her solo exhibition, “Girl Group," is on display until November 10. (Art in America highlighted Shechet’s exhibition in its May 2024 “Icons” issue.)

Her six impressive creations, crafted from materials like steel, wood, paper, and ceramic, brought a vibrant splash of color to the space. In contrast to the institution's permanent collection, which predominantly features plain steel, stone, and aluminum—with just a few exceptions like red Calders—these works stood out. They seemed to resonate with the unusual image of lime marking paths in the bright yellow-green grass.

“Storm King is incredible, especially on a day like this,” Shechet commented, pointing to the clear blue sky, the colorful autumn leaves, and the visitors—two couples even mentioned they were celebrating their anniversary. “It would be great if more people took the time to explore the art here as well.”

Shechet got her wish. The audience slowly broke apart after the main event concluded. A tired group made their way down the gravel path toward the exit, where the shuttle buses were parked. Meanwhile, some people took a winding grassy trail that led further into the area, becoming smaller in size as they climbed the hill featuring a massive sculpture by Mark di Suvero. As Charli mentioned earlier, “We’re now connoisseurs of fine art.”