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Huge Movie Screen for the BAM Harvey Theater
This summer, and for the first time in 40 years, the BAM Harvey Theater is getting a movie screen. This week the Steinberg Screen at the BAM Harvey Theater debuts as the largest movie venue in Brooklyn — the screen is 35 feet by 19 feet and the theater seats 834. BAM also outfitted the Harvey for film viewing with 42 surround sound loudspeakers permanently mounted to the side and rear walls of the theater, as well as adjustable acoustic panels. The giant screen (which can show 3-D movies as well) will first be put to use on the opening night of BAMcinemafest, on June 19. Then throughout the summer BAM will screen the silent film series The Hitchcock 9, with live music accompaniment, special sneak previews, first-run summer films, and classics like Lawrence of Arabia and The Godfather.
06/17/2013 10:30 AM
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Closing Bell: Red Hook Movie Schedule Now Live
One of our favorite summer film series, the Red Hook Flicks, has announced its summer lineup. The movies, which take place on Valentino Pier, begin July 9 and last til August 27. They include Stand By Me, Caddyshack, Strictly Ballroom, and Kung Foo Panda. Check out the full schedule here.
Photo via Red Hook Flicks
06/10/2013 4:00 PM
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Massive Photo Installation Coming to Brooklyn Bridge Park
This week the Brooklyn-based cooperative United Photo Industries will put up a 1,000-foot-long photo installation at Brooklyn Bridge Park, from Jane’s Carousel to Pier Five. Called “The Fence,” it is an outdoor photo exhibition displaying photography with the theme of community. Work from 40 different photographers, who submitted pieces under the categories of either home, streets, creatures, people or play, are printed on a continuous, photographic mesh canvas. Last year, The Fence ran in Brooklyn Bridge Park from Pier One to the uplands of Pier Three and received more than a million visitors. The public launch for this summer’s project is on June 13 at 6 pm. United Photo Industries will host a free tour beginning in the picnic area near Jane’s Carousel, and there will be a live music performance and ice cream from Ample Hills. The Fence will be on display for 15 weeks, until October 1st.
Photo of last year’s installation by scoboco
06/10/2013 11:30 AM
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Art Event Takes Over Governors Island
On Saturday, we hopped the free ferry to Governors Island and checked out Figment, an all-volunteer, non-commercial art event that took place over the weekend. For those who haven’t been to the island yet, it’s one of the nicest green spaces in New York City, with great views of Manhattan, Brooklyn and New Jersey. It’s also full of historic buildings, including a fort and early 19th-century houses. Legally part of Manhattan, the island sits just across the Buttermilk Channel from Brooklyn, and the ferry ride takes only a few minutes.
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06/10/2013 11:00 AM
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Artist Puts Fake Historic Plaques on Brooklyn Sites
Artist Anna Robinson-Sweet fashions her own historic plaques and places them on sites in Brooklyn, Curbed discovered. The plaques are fakes, in that they’re not authorized, but the history and locations are real. “The contrast between these vanished buildings and what now stands in their place is often stark,” said the artist. We were surprised to discover that sewing pattern maker Butterick Publishing Co. had once been located here. Click here to see photos and a map of all the sites.
Artist Plasters Plaques On Brooklyn’s Ignored Historic Sites [Curbed]
Photo by Anna Robinson-Sweet
06/06/2013 12:00 PM
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Closing Bell: Plans Revealed for Child’s Restaurant Reno
Brooklyn Daily has all the dirt on the major renovation planned for Child’s Restaurant, the landmarked but empty building slated to become a theater. The building, along with the vacant lot next door, will feature an amphitheater, a public park, a high-end eatery and a rooftop cafe. The City plans to restore the terra-cotta exterior detailing and renovate the interior for a high-end restaurant operator. There will also be seating on the roof, and a semi-circular seating bowl outside underneath a tent for performances. There will be 40 concerts held here from May to October; 15 free and 25 paid. And finally, the empty lots on both sides of West 22nd Street will be converted into public park space with playgrounds, concessions and seating. The city plans to pay the current land owners $50 million; then the design must go through Landmarks as well as a land use review hearing. The project, a longtime dream of Borough President Marty Markowitz, is expected to open in 2015.
Plans to Convert Coney Landmark Into Music Venue Revealed [Brooklyn Daily]
Marty Getting a Theater in Coney Island [Brownstoner]
Rendering via Brooklyn Daily
06/05/2013 4:00 PM
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Landmarks Hearing for the Tobacco Warehouse Today
Today the Landmarks Preservation Commission will hear a proposal for “rooftop additions” to be constructed at 45 Water Street, the Tobacco Warehouse in Dumbo. Rogers Marvel Architects presented plans to renovate the warehouse into a performance space for St. Ann’s Warehouse this April. The warehouse currently does not have any roof, so the plans call for enclosing the 18,000-square-foot building. You can also see a modest, glassy-looking addition on the left side of the building in the rendering. The architects are not proposing any other external changes to the building, at least in this hearing.
New Architect for St. Ann’s Warehouse [Brownstoner]
06/04/2013 10:00 AM
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Crest Art Show Opens Next Saturday
Next weekend you will find us at the Crest Fest, opening day of the Crest Hardware Art Show, where every year local and other artists exhibit hardware-themed art among the garden hoses and boxes of nails. This is Crest Hardware’s 12th year of showing art during the month of June; last year 281 works of art were displayed. The show got started when one of Crest’s many artist customers suggested hanging his work there. If you hit opening day at the right time, you will find a big crowd — including many of the artists — as well as burgers, beer, live music, DJs, and crafts for kids. Alternatively, you can always visit the in-house parrot and pick up some plants or hardware from the incredibly knowledgeable staff. The festival takes place Saturday, June 8, inside and in the backyard of Crest Hardware at 558 Metropolitan Avenue in Williamsburg. The art will be on display for a month.
Photo via Crest Arts
05/31/2013 12:00 PM
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Closing Bell: The Mermaid Parade Is Happening!
Great news for Coney Island! The organizers of the Mermaid Parade have met (and exceeded!) their Kickstarter goal of $100,000. Coney Island USA, who runs the parade as well as the Coney Island Museum and performance space, faced huge setbacks after Hurricane Sandy. Yesterday they told Gothamist that to run the parade, with all the security and insurance, they need around $190,000; they will raise the rest of the funds through grants, entry fees and sponsorships. They raised the last bit of Kickstarter money last weekend after a benefit concert. Last year 750,000 visitors showed up for the annual summer spectacle and the organizers expect even more this year. It’s scheduled for June 22 at 1 pm and you can sign up to participate here.
It’s Official: The Mermaid Parade Is Saved [Gothamist]
Photo by Ossip Kaehr
05/30/2013 4:00 PM
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Ice Cream Social at Restoration Plaza This Saturday
The non-profit Noel Pointer Foundation, which runs string music programs for children throughout New York City, is holding its annual Ice Cream Social this Saturday, June 1, at Brooklyn’s Restoration Plaza. (Not at the Children’s Museum, as its web site says.) Don your summer whites and pastels; there will be pizza, ice cream, face painting and “a small army of young classical musicians doing what they do.” The event runs from noon to 3 pm and takes place under a big white tent at 1369 Fulton Street.
05/30/2013 12:00 PM
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More Than 600 Shows at Bushwick Open Studios
It’s that time of year again: Bushwick Open Studios takes place this weekend. This is the seventh year for the arts festival (in its current configuration), which has local sponsors, although it is a community organization open to anyone who volunteers and runs on a break-even basis. More than 600 shows this year include not only open houses in artists’ studios and curated group shows but also performances of all kinds, food and drink, discussion panels, music, and kid-friendly events. Those interested in Brooklyn history might want to check out Pioneers of Bushwick, a photography exhibition by Daryl-Ann Saunders, and Defying Devastation: Bushwick Then & Now, which examines Bushwick’s past and present through Meryl Meisler’s photos and Vanessa Mártir’s stories, alongside art from contributors who range in age from eight to 101 years old. The historic Schoolhouse building at 330 Ellery Street will be open, with more than 15 artists showing their work, and there will also be garden tours, a mural launch party, and a bike tour of Bushwick agriculture. For a full list of events, including photos of the work that will be shown, go here. If you haven’t attended Bushwick Open Studios before, it’s a great way to meet the neighbors and local artists.
05/29/2013 12:00 PM
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Video: A Waterfall Swing
Here’s a video of an event that took place at Brooklyn Fire Proof earlier this month. It shows people on swings riding through a waterfall, but they don’t get wet. The interactive art installation, called “Waterfall,” was created by Mike O’Toole, Andrew Ratcliff, Ian Charnas and Andrew Witte. A computer anticipates where the rider is going to swing, and makes a hole in the wall of water.
05/28/2013 12:00 PM
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Closing Bell: Piper Theatre’s Summer Schedule
This week the Piper Theatre announced its 13th season of free summer concerts at the Old Stone House. This summer they will be re-creating the horror classic “Frankenstein” throughout July, with three performances a week. The play will be accompanied by live music and original rear projections. All the details, as well as the summer schedule, live here. And this weekend Piper will hold two performances to benefit the theater’s free summer programs. The play, called “Tape,” is about two former best friends from high school who meet up for the weekend in their hometown of Lansing, Mich. The performances will run Friday, May 24 and Saturday, May 25 at 7 and 11 pm. You can find details and tickets for “Tape” here.
05/23/2013 4:00 PM
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Media Center to Replace Pratt Art Store
The building at 550 Myrtle Avenue that currently houses the Pratt Store will be getting a major makeover by architectural firm WASA/Studio A in preparation for its transformation into a media center for the school. The building has 15,000 square feet of space and will house sound stages, a recording studio, mixing rooms and a screening room, DNAinfo reported. WASA/Studio A also designed Pratt’s Myrtle Hall, where Utrecht Art Supply Store is located. The new design is still in the planning stages, but the building’s mezzanine will stay. No word yet on whether Pratt intends to expand upward. The redo of 550 Myrtle Avenue is expected to be completed by fall of 2014.
Video and Media Center to Replace Soon-To-Be Shuttered Pratt Store [DNAinfo]
Photo by Google Maps
05/23/2013 9:30 AM
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Williamsburg Cinemas Commissions Mural
We caught a few photos Friday of this mural going up on the back wall of the Williamsburg Cinemas on North 1st Street near Driggs. The artist is Frederico Massa, according to Street Art Walk. Click through for a close-up of the artist at work and a photo of the mural in its entirety. (more…)
05/22/2013 12:00 PM
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From Hip-Hop to Cupcakes and Armani Exchange
This interactive Times feature contrasting the Brooklyn hip hop scene of the ’80s and ’90s with Brooklyn now doesn’t contain any revelations, but it does have links to relevant videos on YouTube. The story starts off with The Notorious B.I.G.’s childhood apartment for sale, and continues on to Jay-Z selling his Nets stake and to Foxy Brown, still living on the block where she grew up in Prospect Heights. Above, a contemporary shot of the block where Biggie Smalls used to live.
Brooklyn, the Remix: A Hip-Hop Tour [NY Times]
Photo by Google Maps
05/13/2013 9:00 AM
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Closing Bell: Brooklyn Film Festival Coming Next Week
The Third Annual Art of Brooklyn Film Festival kicks off next week and will screen a total of 40 films with Brooklyn cred. The films include features, shorts, documentaries, experimental/art films, comedies, dramas, horror and suspense, all of which were either filmed in Brooklyn, feature Brooklyn artists, or are about Brooklyn. If These Knishes Could Talk, a documentary looking into the origin of the Brooklyn accent, will run at the festival, as well as Rescue! Brooklyn, a documentary about Brooklyn’s Sean Casey Animal Rescue. The showings take place at St. Francis College’s Founders Hall and Maroney Theaters and St. Joseph College’s Tuohy Hall Theater, starting on May 15. Check out the full schedule, trailers and ticket information at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival website.
05/10/2013 4:00 PM
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Closing Bell: Summer Studios at the Gowanus Print Lab
The Gowanus Print Lab is kicking off its summer studio workshops soon! They are hosting a series of week-long workshops for high school students starting July 8th, although you only have until June 1st to register. The courses include screen printing, digital photography, indie filmmaking, textile design and lots more. Check them all out here. The idea is to enrich the high school students as well as give them a taste of working in a professional environment. Classes range from $300 to $550 for the week.
05/09/2013 4:30 PM
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Brooklyn Landmarks in Jazz
The Landmarks Preservation Commission has put together an online presentation about jazz in New York City featuring many locations in Brooklyn. The red house above, 117 Saint Felix Street, is where jazz singer Betty Carter lived from 1972 until her death in 1998. The house was built circa 1859.
Photo by PropertyShark
05/09/2013 12:00 PM
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Steel Fabricator Curates Street Art in Bushwick
Williamsburg has handed over the mantle of street art home base to Bushwick, where a neighborhood native, a steel fabricator, is fostering its proliferation by making special arrangements with local businesses to support the work on their walls, reported The New York Times. Have you noticed any of it while out and about in Bushwick? Above, street art at Just My Type, a gallery featuring street art at 143 Central Avenue in Bushwick.
Bushwick Gets a Fresh Coat [NY Times]
A Place for Vandals Turns Outdoor Gallery [NY Times]
05/06/2013 9:30 AM
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jayne canon
Jun 12, 2013 | 09:09 AM