October 9, 2009

Last Day of the Sukkahs

Sukkot, the seven-day Jewish festival with origins as a celebration for the harvest, is ending today. One of the icons of Sukkot is the sukkah, a temporary hut built just for the week of Sukkot, reminiscent of the structures the Israelites built during their 40 years in the desert, following their exodus from Egypt. Here, we've put up ten iPhone photographs we took while biking around in Crown Heights and Williamsburg, home to large Jewish populations. You'll notice that Jews carry around leafy branches and lemons with them during Sukkot. These come from a commandment from Moses: "On the first day you shall take the product of hadar trees, branches of palm trees, boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days".

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?

September 22, 2009

Brooklyn's Nod from the Daily Mail

The UK's Daily Mail ran a story this weekend pointing to Brooklyn as New York City's hot spot—a well-intended, albeit embarrassingly ill-informed, accolade from across the Atlantic. Ed Costa quotes Sarah Jessica Parker on how Manhattan has changed for the worse, and continues to list the celebrities who have filmed in or moved to Brooklyn. Besides his red-carpet fawning, Mr. Costa makes a couple references to the Williamsburg Savings Bank. Sigh. One Hanson Place is iconographic, sure, but it seems like Mr. Costa's approach to understanding Brooklyn was to look at a Google satellite image and read Us Weekly.
Brooklyn Is New York's Real Gem [Daily Mail]
Image by Colin Brice

September 21, 2009

Brooklyn, the Frugal City?

According to online finance site Mint.com, residents of Brooklyn cut back on spending in 2009 in the first half of the year more than any other city in the United States. Compared to 2008, the average Brooklynite has spent 28 percent less this year, whereas the national average for spending per person dropped only 13 percent. One caveat: Mint.com collects data from its users; thus the sample pool for the spending data is self-selecting and most likely an inaccurate representation of the U.S. Even with Mint.com's particular demographic in mind, it's an interesting observation. Also, if you take a look at the graphic, you'll see that the greatest decreases in spending for which Mint.com has data were in New York and California—states with cities that rank highest for cost of living in the U.S.
The Most Frugal Cities in America [Mint.com]

HBO Does Fort Greene

Did anyone watch "Bored to Death" last night? The Local's Andy Newman ran an interview with the show's writer and main character, Jonathan Ames, last week about the process of representing/misrepresenting Brooklyn on international television. Newman and Ames, who live in Park Slope and Boerum Hill respectively, talk about how the show takes place in Fort Greene even though Ames never lived there (the central character lives on South Portland), how the trailer showed only white people despite Fort Greene's diversity, and Ames' predilection for the ladies who frequent Smooch Cafe. The interview was light-hearted and full of banter, but some of the topics covered are hot-button issues for Brooklynites. Did anyone see the first episode? How did HBO's Fort Greene compare to the real thing?
Bored to Death [Official site]
A Sense of (Semi-fictionalized) Place [The Local, NYT]

September 4, 2009

Update: Dreamland to Reopen

As we mentioned yesterday, there were rumors that Coney Island's Dreamland amusement park, closed on August 21 by owner Joe Sitt due to rent owed by operator Anthony Raffaelle, might reopen for Labor Day weekend. The Brooklyn Paper brings us the verified report that it will, in fact, open, due to the efforts of Councilman Domenic Recchia (D–Coney Island), who had denounced Sitt in the Daily News as “a heartless person who only cares about money." Even though Raffaelle admitted to owing over $500,000 in rent, he and Dreamland employees as well as local sympathizers expressed anger at the park's closing, calling Sitt a bully who didn't consider the children who would be disappointed. Stefan Friedman, a spokesman for Sitt's company Thor Equities, said: “Thor Equities is thrilled that Coney Island residents and visitors—particularly kids who start school next week—will get one final taste of summer fun at Dreamland over Labor Day.”
The Fate of Coney's Dreamland [Brownstoner]
Sweet 'Dreamland'! [Brooklyn Paper]
Coney Island's Dreamland Shut Down [Daily News]
Photo by Amusing the Zillion

August 26, 2009

The Hole: Cowboys and Bodies in Brooklyn/Queens

The Hole, a section of Lindenwood along the Brooklyn-Queens border, could be an extremely unflattering name, except that the area truly is a hole: the land is 30 feet below grade, meaning the area is marshy in places and homes are built only a few feet above the water table, so they must use cesspools instead of the municipal sewer system. Nathan Kensinger compiled a photo essay of this neighborhood, which is famous for bodies and for horses: bodies because it was an old mob dumping ground, and horses because they used to roam the fields of The Hole. Some horses still reside there, as does The Federation of Black Cowboys. Kensinger's essay captures a piece of New York that is both ancient and timeless, and it reminds us how diverse the land is within the boundaries of New York City. It's a city with an island of pick-up trucks and lobster shacks, massive skyscrapers and financial juggernauts, beaches, forests—and The Hole, a neighborhood that harks back to the Wild West.
The Hole [Nathan Kensinger]
Meet 'The Hole,' [Curbed]
An Urban Frontier [NY Times]

August 13, 2009

Sex and the Other City

The first rule of television seems to be: if something works once, do it again. Sarah Jessica Parker's production company has reportedly optioned the novel Prospect Park West to turn into a TV show. The book, by former sex columnist Amy Sohn, who also wrote the companion book for HBO's Sex and the City, chronicles the lives, urges, and dissatisfactions of four Park Slope mothers. Here's how The Post summed it up this morning: "The book creates a scathing portrait of Park Slope's mommy brigade -- of which Sohn is a breast-feeding member -- as a parade of unsatisfied thirty- and forty-something moms sizing up their plights relative to all the other stroller-pushers at the playground. Few are having sex -- at least not with their spouses." It's definitely the Sex and the City formula, but who knows if it will take off? Gawker asks the more important question: will it ruin Park Slope? There is already a festoon of strollers; will Berkeley Place now be clogged with red double-decker buses?
Sarah Jessica Parker's Sex & the Stroller Set Show [Gawker]
Treading on a Slippery Slope [NY Post]
Is Prospect Park West the New SATC? [BuzzSugar]

August 10, 2009

Waterpod Docks in Brooklyn

Remember when artists lived on barges, growing their own food, collecting their own rainwater, getting power from the sun, free to float wherever a tugboat would take them? Oh, the good old days. Now it seems there is only one such barge left in existence: the Waterpod, currently docked in the East River south of the Brooklyn Bridge. Spawned by artist Mary Mattingly, Waterpod is an experiment in art, sustainable living, and just plain adventure. A rotating crew of four artists lives full-time on the barge, where they raise chickens; grow foods like eggplant, tomatoes, and peppers; store rainwater and recycle grey water; compost waste, including the use of composting toilets; collect solar energy; host seminars and lectures; and create art. Ultimately, we cannot convey the fantastic experience of walking aboard Waterpod and talking to its crew members, so go check it out: it will be docked at Pier 5 near the construction site at Joralemon Street until August 17. Check their schedule for open hours. GMAP
The Waterpod Project
Waterpod Comes To Park’s Pier 5 [Brooklyn Eagle]
Rough Ride for Waterpod Artists [NY Daily News]

August 4, 2009

Spike and Jay-Z Do Dumbo

For much of the day Spike Lee and Jay-Z have taken over Main Street in Dumbo. We tweeted this pic at lunchtime and the Dumbo BID just posted a bunch of shots, including the one above, on Facebook. Anyone know what the commercial is for?

February 2, 2009

Bushwick Goes National

Like Williamsburg before it, the Bushwick brand is spreading beyond New York City's borders. This weekend, The Philadelphia Inquirer brought news of the gritty but increasingly arty nabe to its readers in the City of Brotherly Love. "Over the last few years, the two-square-mile Brooklyn neighborhood has been attracting visionaries outpriced by neighboring Williamsburg or disillusioned by Chelsea's artiste scene," writes the paper. "Studios, galleries and spaces that defy categorization are appearing in former bodegas, 99-cent stores, and other unglamorous structures." The 'Wick manages to maintain its street cred with a killer quotation from Laura Braslow of non-profit Arts in Bushwick: "The Bushwick art scene is not about sipping wine and looking at white walls," she said. A few of the recommended galleries include English Kills, Ad Hoc and Factory Fresh.
Art Grows in Bushwick [Philadelphia Inquirer]

December 9, 2008

Photoblogging for Beginners: The Exhibit

A couple of weeks ago, ubiquitous Brooklyn photobloggers Tracy Collins and Adrian Kinloch, aka Brit in Brooklyn, lead a photography class at the non-profit Starting Artists (that's not a typo: starting, not starving). The group helps under-served teens get into the arts. So behold a few results of the workshop. More photos are currently on view at their storefront at 211 Smith Street until January 15th. They're also having a Holiday Silent Auction to benefit their free afterschool arts programs, Thursday, December 11th from 6:30 to 8:30pm.

December 5, 2008

Red Hook Doesn't Hook Real World Cast

Big, big news folks: not all of the cast of MTV's Real World Red Hook took a liking to the neighborhood. While some of them were charmed by its post-industrial (well, and there's plenty of industry still cranking away there) feel, others "didn't seem to really soak up the local atmosphere during filming for the series, which debuts next month," writes the NY Daily News. Their complaints: too far away for those who work in Manhattan (one cast member feared taking the subway after 8PM); not safe enough; and the bars are too small to accommodate the cast's large entourage. What did they like about it? IKEA. Even a cast member who didn't appreciate living in the borough clearly realized its caché; she named her dog Brooklyn. Meanwhile, if you'd like to get an up-close-and-personal look at the cast members and their Red Hook digs, Gothamist got an exclusive visit and posted a big slide show yesterday to prove it.
'Real World' Cast Not All Hooked by Nabe [NY Daily News]
Meet the Real World Brooklynites [Gothamist]
Photo by Dominic Ciccodicola for Gothamist.

November 17, 2008

Brooklyn Is the New Hollywood

Apparently the hottest words on producers lips are "on location in Brooklyn," reports the NY Daily News. What makes us so special? A little bit of everything: cobblestone streets, brownstones, Orthodox Jews, Russians, Chinese and West Indians. Besides the Brooklyn Bridge, folks have filmed Brooklyn College as Yale and Pratt as Harvard.
Photo by isaiahlt.

September 17, 2008

Ribbon Cutting at Brooklyn Children's Museum

With a general public opening planned for this weekend, city officials and local schoolchildren got the ball rolling this morning at the new Brooklyn Children's Museum. We provided a look inside the $49 million green building back in June when it still under construction, but it sure is fun to see real kids getting to use it!
Closing Bell: Children Museum's Readies for Launch [Brownstoner]
A Look Inside the New Brooklyn Children's Museum [Brownstoner]
Photos by Diane Bondareff

August 13, 2008

Fencing In Bob Dylan

At last night's Bob Dylan concert in Prospect Park, the closing night of Celebrate Brooklyn and a benefit for it, too, the last longhaired baby boomers in the borough gathered to listen to the musical icon of their generation sing—though plenty of GenX and GenY-ers showed up as well. Only problem: those who didn't wish to swing the $55 for lawn seats or well above a cool hundred for actual chairs found they couldn't partake of extra-bandshell listening, as so many are accustomed to doing. One reader wrote in to complain about the high fence erected around the venue to prevent glimpses; sound apparently did not travel well beyond it. "Unbelievable: Dylan comes to Brooklyn & everyone who wasn't in his fan club, a VIP [there were plenty of seats reserved for music biz types], or willing to pay $200+ wound up barely able to hear and completely unable to see the concert, thanks to a tall black fence completely surrounding the bandshell area," he writes. "Considering that I've never seen this sort of setup at Celebrate Brooklyn, I have to ask: Whose idea was this - Dylan's or Celebrate Brooklyn? Anybody have an answer?" Well, do ya?
Dylan photo by Alan Fleishman

July 18, 2008

I Hate Valentine's Day Shoots Seemingly Everywhere

The movie I Hate Valentine's Day, which stars Nia Vardalos, has been covering a lot of Brooklyn ground recently, according to the blog Filming in Brooklyn: Seventh Avenue in Park Slope, Front Street in Dumbo and around Fort Greene Park. One reader took these shots last night on St. Felix Street. Any other locations we've missed?
Photos by Steve Soblick

July 14, 2008

Belltel/Real World Marriage on the Rocks?

Six weeks after the announcement (and subsequent media frenzy) that the next installment of the MTV show The Real World would take place in the BellTel in Downtown Brooklyn, a blog by the agency that books appearances for the show's casts is reporting that the deal may be delayed, or even called off, because of the pace of construction. The MM Agency blog reports that the best-case scenario for filming to begin is mid-August; it also says that filming is supposed to conclude by November 17. Then the bombshell: "An intern from Hunter College who is working for MTV provided an interesting statement that The Real World may not even film there because they were having some issues with the BellTel Lofts building with the location at 116 Third Place in Carroll Gardens as the backup." Zoinks!
Real World Brooklyn Building May Change [MM Blog] GMAP
'Real World' + Belltel = 'Center of the World'? [Brownstoner]
Time to Start Getting Real, Downtown! [Brownstoner]

June 3, 2008

Slave Theater in Court, Preservation Effort Weak

The Slave No. 1 Theater at 1215 Fulton Street in its heyday as a hub of black activism.

The fate of Slave No. 1 Theater in Bed-Stuy, opened in the early 1980s by Judge John L. Phillips, Jr., is still being decided by the probate court, documentary filmmaker and activist Mya Baker told us. The retired judge, who after being declared mentally incompetent lost control of $10 million or so worth of property in Bed-Stuy, was pronounced dead last February, on the same day a rally was scheduled to save his cherished theater, once a hub of black activism. "He didn't really have any family members and he didn't leave it to anybody, so it all depends on if they're gonna take it or not," she said.

Baker acknowledged that preservation efforts have so far received a tepid response, but a Juneteenth Festival to that end is still planed June 21. Online petitions such as this one, started last November to prevent its sale, have only a handful of signatures, and a myspace profile created for the theater hasn't been logged into in six months. "Last week they had a play called 'The Meeting Between Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr.' and it was a three-day run ... I went on the first day. It was, you know, people, not that many people," she said, sounding a bit dispirited. During the time Baker, 34, was most heavily involved with the theater, she said, "It's just trying to rally the community to want to save it, that was the biggest problem." This is in stark contrast to the energy that once emanated from the place. During the 1980s, when racially-motivated killings twice caused firestorms throughout the city, the varied factions of the black community needed a central meeting place, and that became the Slave Theater. While the name was intended as reminder of the injustices black Americans have endured, inside the walls are lined with portraits of prominent activists like Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who led movements to overcome those struggles. Baker said there are still efforts to sell the theater, and we found a listing online, albeit almost a year old. Meanwhile, the historic theater continues to play host to small events.
A Symbol of Activism Is at Center of Court Dispute [NY Times]
Slave Theater could be sold to pay judge’s ‘debts’ [Brooklyn Paper]
John L. Phillips Jr., 83, Civil Court Judge Is Dead [NY Times via mybedstuy]

May 9, 2008

BKLYN Designs 2008 Kicks Off

We just got back from Dumbo where we were checking out Day 1 of the annual BKLYN Designs show of furniture and accessories by, you guessed it, Brooklyn Designers. There are 70 exhibitors this year, so our slide show is just a taste. The event will be running all weekend.

March 25, 2008

Closing Bell: Speedo Sighting at Northside Piers

speedo%20siting.jpg
Several well-chiseled men were spotted wearing only air-tight speedos and, in some cases, designer tank tops at the Northside Piers parking garage last weekend. Toll Brothers, always creative about getting people out to their projects, donated the garage to BK Fashion Week{end}, which brought 1,500 people to the waterfront construction site five long blocks from the Bedford L Train stop. (There were six designers, with outfits ranging from unsightly to wearable, but the speedos definitely stole the show). In suburbia, Toll Brothers model homes host coloring contests, cooking shows and even Santa Claus, according to the company newsletter "Bricks & Sticks." But Williamsburg buyers are a little more discriminating, so here we get speedos. GMAP
'Burg Throwdown! The Edge Versus Northside Piers [Brownstoner]
'Everywhere You Don't See High-Rises, There Are Places To Build' [Observer]

July 13, 2007

In the Artist's Studio: Daniel Dens

Since yesterday's Food & Drink Round-Up got such a positive response, here's another Brooklyn Record spin-off that might interest the interior decorators out there. One of the ways to keep Brooklyn feeling artsy is to keep some artists around — and it goes without saying that the best way to support local artists is to buy their stuff. We're always on the look-out for Brooklyn artists who have affordable work for sale, and when we visited Daniel Dens's Manhattan Beach studio (pictured above), we wanted to give you a peek inside. If there's enough interest, we could keep this feature going — but again, if it's too off-topic, let us know in the comments. For more photos and info on Daniel and his Warhol-esque paintings, keep reading. —KZ

Continue reading "In the Artist's Studio: Daniel Dens"

June 22, 2007

Dumbo: Gallery Openings Can Be Very Tiring

On a lighter note...All the excitement at the opening for street artist Shepard Fairey at 81 Front Street in Dumbo last night must have been too much for this gallery-goer—he was passed out with some of his liquid sleeping aids on the floor of the temporary art space this morning at 7:30. For more pics of the show, check out Streetsy.com.
Photo by the real janelle

April 25, 2007

No Norten for BAM?

In what can only be described as a big setback for the much-hyped BAM Cultural District, fundraising efforts for the Enrique Norten-designed Visual and Performing Arts Library have come up well short of the $135 million required to build the glass-and-steel structure. Word of the shortfall, which originated in (password-protected) Crain's on Monday, reportedly came from an insider at the Brooklyn Public Library. Barring someone from the private sector stepping up in a huge way, it looks like Brooklyn will have to wait a while to get a piece of this starchitect. How big a bummer do you think this is for the BAM Cultural District?
BAM Library Project Stalled? [Gothamist]
The Book Stops Here [NY Post]

December 28, 2006

When Fiction Is Fact and TV Reality

demo
In a fiction piece in the current issue of The New Yorker entitled Demolition, Louise Erdrich describes a particularly loathsome (and cuckolded) contractor:

Ted had built many of the newer houses in Pluto. He was also responsible for most of the least attractive buildings in town. He bought up old properties — graceful houses just beginning to decay and churches that had consolidated their congregations or lost them to time — then he stripped them of their oak trim or carbed doors or stained-glass windows and sold it all as salvage to people in the cities. He tore down the shells and put up eightplex apartment buildings that were so hideous — aluminum-sided or fake-bricked, with shingled mansard roofs or flimsy inset balconies — it was a wonder the town council couldn't see it.

Sounds like Ted would fit right in here in Brooklyn!
Photo by MaRkoP

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