October 27, 2009

Closing Bell: Greenpoint Convent Goes to the Artists

A former convent at 21 Monitor Street in Greenpoint has been taken over by a group of artists who are putting on a show called system: system; Flavorpill has a slideshow of show before it opened. The 25-artist group show opened this past weekend and is open next weekend from noon to 6 p.m. as well. Neato.
Sneak Peek of system:system in Greenpoint Convent [Flavorpill]

October 9, 2009

Open House New York: Much More Than Houses

The seventh annual openhousenewyork event will take place this weekend; all told, there are over 350 events in all five boroughs showcasing New York architecture and design, and the scheduled tours and talks span a wide array of cultural key points. The line-up in Brooklyn, for example, includes a tour of the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel, BAM, Brooklyn Bridge Park, the Lyceum, the City Reliquary, Tom Otterness' studio, and a long list of historical sites that may or may not be on your radar, such as the Pieter Claesen Wyckoff House, the oldest home in New York City, or the St. Ann and the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church. For the full (very full) listing, check out openhousenewyork's website. And did we mention that it's free?

October 7, 2009

Closing Bell: Lighting Up The Bridge

The celebration of the Manhattan Bridge's 100th birthday continues: Tonight the bridge becomes a canvas for four artists whose works will be projected onto it. The display, which will run from 7 to 10 p.m., is called Bright Nights and is brought to you by Random Number.

September 28, 2009

Invasion of the Invisible Dogs

Anyone out and about in Downtown Brooklyn (or neighboring areas like Boerum Hill and Cobble Hill) yesterday afternoon would have been forgiven for thinking they were losing their marbles. Legions of mostly young people blanketed the streets walking invisible dogs. They were everyone. So what was up? Turns out it was the work of Improv Everywhere, a group that "causes scenes of chaos and joy in public places" and is tied to the impending opening of a new gallery installation at 51 Bergen Street. Well done!
Photo by ifihaver

September 11, 2009

Castle Braid: Mayer Schwartz's Art Utopia?

The Castle Braid, a new 146-unit luxury rental building from developer and art lover Mayer Schwartz, will be playing host to the Street Art Festival starting this Saturday. In addition to the festival itself, it'll be an opportunity to check out Schwartz's unique vision for an artist community at 114 Troutman in Bushwick. The building hosts a slew of artist-targeted amenities such as rentable video equipment, a media library, a book swap, and a screening room (this is in addition to many other luxury amenities such as tennis, yoga, a dog run, etc.). The 6,000-square-foot courtyard (designed by Future Green Studio), which will be used for the art festival, is no exception: graffiti wall, built-in flat screen and Wii station, bocce ball court...the list goes on. A designer who worked on the project described it as "a hipster playground of sorts." The one- and two-bedrooms range between $1,650 and $3,000 a month. More info on Bushwickbk.com.
Photo of courtyard under development provided by Future Green Studio

August 17, 2009

Closing Bell: Crown Heights' Blooming Art Scene

Not even five years ago, Crown Heights was dominated by dollar stores, fast food, and the reverberations of the ethnic conflicts in the 1990s largely between Caribbean and Hasidic Jewish populations. The local melting pot was Tavern on Nostrand, but this restaurant and bar stuck out like a frat boy at an Indigo Girls concert. Now, with the influx of young professionals escaping Manhattan's exorbitant prices, the neighborhood seems to be adapting to Tavern's standards. Furthermore, the Nostrand Park blog brings news—albeit hesitant news—of a possibly exploding art scene. Three new art galleries have opened in the neighborhood within the past year, and multiple art organizations have been working steadily to promote and spread art, such as the Heart of Brooklyn, the Crown Heights Youth Collective, the Central Brooklyn Jazz Consortium, or the Chassidic Art Institute. It's certainly too soon to declare a Crown Heights renaissance (we New Yorkers always do love announcing a new renaissance in art), but we'll certainly keep our eyes on Crown Heights.
An Art Scene Grows in Crown Heights [Nostrand Park]
Photo by Crown Heist

August 3, 2009

Closing Bell: Jay-Z's 'No Sleep Till Brooklyn'

As you may have heard, Jay-Z filled in for the Beastie Boys at All Points West on Friday when the Brooklyn's most famous white rap artists had to bow out for health reasons. Fans did get a dose of Beasties, however, when Jay-Z delivered his own take of their hit "No Sleep Till Brooklyn," which you can watch above.

July 31, 2009

Whole Foods Lot Now a Tagger's Paradise

While the Whole Foods will-they-or-won't-they drama continues, the grocery's lot on 3rd Street and 3rd Ave has seen some large-scale beautification over the past several months. GMAP

July 27, 2009

Closing Bell: State Street Art Installation

A new art installation project opened Thursday night at 210 State Street in Downtown Brooklyn. The site-specific electronic installation by artist Jeremiah Teipen is titled Lithium and will be up through August 14th. More info here.

July 7, 2009

Closing Bell: Storefront Art on Willoughby Street

While plans for a 760,000-square-foot tower appear to be on hold, the MetroTech BID is taking steps to improve the streetscape in the area. The BID has partnered with East Williamsburg art gallery Ad Hoc Art to organize art installations in the 12 empty storefronts on Willoughby Street between Duffield on Bridge Streets. Featured artists include Logan Hicks, Morning Breath, Michael de Feo, Dennis McNett, Gaia, Cannonball Press and CYCLE. The opening reception in on July 10th. When we rode by this morning several of the art works were up in the windows; the combo of security gates and the reflection of the morning light made it hard to get a good photo though; there are some better images on the gallery's website.

Economic Downturn = More Alterna Art Galleries

"The positive of this economic downturn is that artists are creative -- they're using their resources to band together to do more events on their own. I believe that there will be a lot more alternative and tiny spaces cropping up in low rent neighborhoods around the city just like it did before." — Jackie Battenfield in the Gotham Gazette

June 18, 2009

Closing Bell: Mural Wall Wanted

Call for walls! The people over at Team Tish are asking for help in finding 4 walls to accommodate artwork created by Groundswell Community Mural Project artists Bayunga Kialeuka and Jessica Poplawski who have been working with 12 students from the Urban Assembly for Music and Arts High School to create a series of murals that "reflect scenes from daily life that bridge together the diverse culture of Brooklyn." The main requirement for the wall? It must be located in or near CD 35 so that means preference given to Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Prospect Heights, parts of Bed-Stuy, Crown Heights, and Vinegar Hill-DUMBO. If you know of a place, click here for contact details.

June 16, 2009

Bumblebees Take Downtown Brooklyn

We missed this when the Eagle first reported on it in May, but McBrooklyn ran a photo yesterday of the traffic barrier on the north side of Tillary Street that gives cyclists an extra buffer against cars and trucks. According to the Eagle, the project was a collaboration between the Groundswell Community Mural Project and the city Department of Transportation that brings together high-school artists to create public art. Very nice.
Brooklyn Traffic Barrier a Thing of Beauty [McBrooklyn]
Teens Beautify Downtown Traffic Barrier [Brooklyn Eagle]

June 10, 2009

Closing Bell: Mural on Water Street

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Have you seen the new mural on the Water Street wall between Jay and Pearl Streets in Dumbo? In an interview with Dumbo NYC, the artists, 303 Collective, said the mural's theme is the "harmonizing artists of different styles with the 4 elephants representing each artist. The message that in life, there are obstacles and barriers that are lifted away to result in success." This week PMFA posted Blue Barn Pictures' video of the 4-day creation of that mural.

May 29, 2009

Experience 'Shanty Living' at the Navy Yard

The art piece profiled in the vid above was slated to be moved from an Orchard Street gallery to the Navy Yard at the beginning of this month and be available for rent for $199 a week. While we can't find evidence on the web proving that it is, in fact, somewhere in the Navy Yard, the description is fascinating: "Maison des Cartes, [is] a show model 'shanty timeshare' built from 52 separate pieces of found materials...Sales representatives present the viewers with the chance to buy into the private residence club. Upon the show’s completion, the structure will be rebuilt in the scenic Brooklyn Navy Yard."
Lisa Kirk: House of Cards [Vernissage TV]

May 28, 2009

Closing Bell: Crown Height's Rescue Company 2 Art Exhibit

The opening reception has passed but you can view the new art exhibit from photographer Andrew Hinderaker through Friday, June 5th. According to Gothamist, Andrew's exhibit, "The Rescue," displays photos from his time spent with the firefighters of Rescue Company 2 in ~~Bed-Stuy~~Crown Heights, accompanying them on calls to fires, car accidents, building collapses, and training exercises. Head on over to Pratt Institute Media Arts Gallery, third floor of Steuben Hall to check it out.

May 27, 2009

Closing Bell: Mural for Root Hill Cafe

Root Hill Cafe is in the process of getting a mural. It is on the side of the Cafe's building, which is on the corner of 4th Avenue and Carroll Street in Gowanus. To make it even more special, the Cafe had students from PS 372 helping them paint it yesterday. The mural is the work of Katherine Gressel and it'll probably be done within a few weeks. It will depict some of the wildlife native to the Gowanus area as well as coffee-related images (you can sorta see the outline of some of the creatures already).

May 15, 2009

Open Studios This Weekend in Fort Greene & Clinton Hill

This Saturday and Sunday the SONYA (South of the Navy Yard Artists) Stroll celebrates its 10th Anniversary with its biggest open studio weekend ever. The free, self-guided walking tour takes place from 12-6 p.m. both days across parts of Fort Greene, Clinton Hill and Wallabout. For a complete list of artists and locations, check out this map.

May 6, 2009

Closing Bell: India Street Mural Project Artists Announced

Remember the India Street Mural Project? The North Brooklyn Public Art Coalition has announced the project's artists. With help from Council Member David Yassky, they chose six local artists "whose artistic visions captured the essence of the site as public art space, as well as the unique character of community."
After the jump are the artists and their proposed work for the mural.
Photo of chosen artist Skewville's HYPE boxes by C-Monster.

Continue reading "Closing Bell: India Street Mural Project Artists Announced"

April 29, 2009

Inside the New Issue Project Room Space at 110 Livingston

We were well aware that the Issue Project Room, the cutting-edge performance art program that for years was housed in a silo along the Gowanus Canal, had been awarded a free 20-year lease at 110 Livingston Street by Two Trees Management. But since we didn't make it to last week's fundraiser featuring Moby, we had no idea what their new space looks like. Thanks to a reader who forwarded this slideshow to us, now we do. How cool is that!

Brooklyn Bridge Park Movie Schedule Announced

The Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy yesterday announced the line-up for its 2009 Movies With A View summer season—a program we're proud to be a media sponsor of. The weekly series takes place on Thursday nights from July 9 to August 27. We've posted the full schedule on the jump, but some highlights include The Maltese Falcon, The Return of the Pink Panther and Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid. In addition, each feature film will be preceded by a short and a DJ set.
Movies With A View 10th Year! [BBPC]
Photo by Amazin' Jane

Continue reading "Brooklyn Bridge Park Movie Schedule Announced"

April 22, 2009

BAM Theater for a New Audience Not Dead

Although many of BAM's grand expansion plans have been tabled by the recession, the Theater for a New Audience is still happening. The project's sole architect (after Frank Gehry got the boot last summer) Hugh Hardy told the crowd at Monday night's Fort Greene Association meeting that the $59 million project "hasn't died." Hardy did allude to problems over the project's life, including a ballooning budget (it started out at $38 million) and shifts in site location; it's now slated to be part of the BAM Cultural District's North Site on Rockwell Place between Lafayette and Fulton. The Brooklyn Paper reported that construction could start as soon as this December.
Theater for a New Audience Project is Reeling [Brooklyn Paper]

April 21, 2009

Closing Bell: Tonky Octopus Gets Updated

The Tonky Octopus, located along the Gowanus Canal at 9th Street between 2nd Ave and Smith Street, has a new look. The artist, Tonky, redesigned the art to support the EPA's recent consideration to make the Gowanus Canal a Superfund site.

April 17, 2009

New Art Center Brewing on Bergen

A frenchman and a financial-analyst-turned-gallerist are in the process of transforming a former Invisible Dog factory at 51 Bergen Street in Cobble Hill into an arts center with design studios, a community garden and, more importantly, low rents. The project is a collaboration between Muriel Guepin, who opened the Shop Art Gallery on the ground floor of the building last December, and Lucian Zayan, who recently moved to Brooklyn from his hometown of Paris. The space officially opens on May 9; in the meantime, reports The New York Times, they've got a makeshift thrift store up and running on Saturdays and Sundays. GMAP

April 16, 2009

Closing Bell: Sketches of Brooklyn

Urban Sketchers is a new(ish) blog that consists of artists from around the world who draw the cities where they live and travel to. They also have a Flickr page as well. As expected, Brooklyn is a popular place to sketch and some of the artists capture the borough and the people in it so beautifully. Check it out for yourself.
Grand Army Plaza. Photo/Sketch by Floodfish.

Arts