Art All Around Us — 10.23.24
With a bit of photography from San Juan, Puerto Rico ...
Hey Everyone,
My wife, Margaret, and I were in San Juan, Puerto Rico recently, for a week visiting our daughter, Devin, who is there for her fall semester. So, in addition to the happenings I was able to gather, I’ll share a few photos of what I came across in Puerto Rico, which, of course, is a huge part of what the Bronx has, and does, experience art-wise. I look forward to learning much more than I learned last week. Photo-wise I’ll start with this. A couple more to follow.
Photography
En Foco, in partnership with Pregones and the Puerto Rican Traveling Theater, launches the exhibition “In The Spirit Y En El Espíritu: Works by Mariana Yampolsky.” It runs through March 31 and features portraits by Mexican photographer Yampolski (1925–2002), and is curated by Xavier Robles Armas. The exhibition is an initiative of the Nueva Luz Study Center (NLSC) and part of En Foco’s mission to preserve the culture and legacy of diasporic lens-based artists. FREE!
Check out the pic and video on Bronx Documentary Center’s website regarding its current exhibit, “Ken Light | American Stories:1969-1995 [which] showcases three decades of work by photographer Light, highlighting significant moments in American history from 1969 to 1995.” Exhibit through Nov. 17.
Art Exhibits
BronxArtSpace, based in Mott Haven, also has some space on Governor’s Island. And this Saturday, Oct. 26, from 3 to 5 PM, there will be a community quilt-making workshop there with Artist-in -residence Laura Alvarez in BronxArtSpace’s House 410A on Colonels Row. “All are welcome to make and contribute a square that will be incorporated into one collective community-made quilt. The final quilt will be exhibited in the house through the weekend of October 26 & 27. “All quilt-making materials are provided free of charge!” FREE!
The Casita Maria Gallery, of the Casita Maria Center for Arts & Education in Hunts Point, presents the exhibit “Animal Studies,” by Maria P. Vila, through March 6, 2025. The work of Vila, a teaching artist at Casita Maria, “features a series of watercolor, soft pastel and oil paintings combining animal imagery with poetry and collage as a form of healing.” FREE!
At Lehman College Art Gallery, through Jan. 18, 2025 (and at two other CUNY colleges) is “Incandescence: The Chandelier in Contemporary Art Works” by 45 artists exploring “the motif and meaning of the chandelier through sculptural forms, photography, painting, drawing, installation and video.” All the details here and here. FREE!
The current art exhibit (outdoors and indoors) at the New York Botanical Garden is “Wonderland: Curious Nature” through Oct. 27.
The Derfner Judaica Museum, at the Hebrew Home in Riverdale, features “Artfully Arranged: Floral Works from the Collection” through Feb. 2, 2025. It’s a “thematic exhibition [that] features 24 prints, paintings, drawings, and mixed media works spanning the mid-20th century to the aughts by 20 artists who use flowers and floral forms to explore the intersection of the natural and urban worlds; formalism; decorative design motifs; symbolism, and mortality.” FREE! You can also see on Derfner’s website many of the paintings and more info on the exhibit.
I went to see this exhibit at Bronx Museum: “FUTURA 2000: BREAKING OUT,” which is “a retrospective of this singular artist’s evolution from early graffiti art styles to his current practice of contemporary abstraction. The exhibition is the most comprehensive examination of FUTURA 2000’s five-decade career ever presented in his hometown of New York City.” It runs through March 20, 2025. Always FREE at Bronx Museum!
Through Jan. 26, 2025 in Norwood, the Museum of Bronx History in Norwood presents the group exhibition of Seis del Sur: “HISTORIAS: The Stories Behind the Images.” “This interactive multimedia exhibition will go below the surface of the collective’s documentary photographs of The Bronx — many never exhibited before — and illuminate the borough’s historical narrative through contextual timelines, meta and personal anecdotes.” The museum adds that the pop-up showcase “will cover a broad range of issues … that have impacted the people of the Bronx over the last four decades.” The museum is open on Saturdays, 10 AM to 4 PM. Private tours via appointment are available throughout the week. All FREE!
The upcoming exhibit opening at WALLWORKS NEW YORK: “Yo Soy de Aquí / I am From Here,” on Saturday, Nov. 2 from 6 to 8 PM, features artists Lizzy Alejandro, Alexis Marie Montoya, Kamille Vargas-Estrella. And check out its mission here. I’ve yet to be there and know little about it. So I can’t wait for this opening or one in the near future. (Incidentally, one of the solo exhibits at Casita Maria Center for Arts and Education in Hunts Point this year was Montoya’s, one of the exhibitors at WALLWORKS. You can see some info and photos about her work in a previous AAAU newsletter.
There are a few great exhibits at Wave Hill right now and there is more info on all of them right here. Admission is FREE on Thursdays. I wrote a bit about of one of the exhibits, with photos, in a recent edition.
Dance
Calpulli Mexican Dance Company’s “Día de Muertos” appears twice this weekend, on Oct. 26 & 27, at Hostos Center for the Arts & Culture. More info here.
This coming Monday, Oct. 28 from 5 to 7 PM, Mind-Builders Creative Art Center in Wakefield, presents a workshop for Fagan Technique as part of their Master Dance Class Series. $25. More info here.
A Bit Beyond the Bronx
Just over the bridge from Bronx to Manhattan on Broadway are art happenings in Inwood organized by Inwood Art Works which supports ongoing creative happenings of all kinds. Check it all out here.
Through Nov. 22, Within/Without is an exhibit at the Riverfront Art Gallery in the downtown Yonkers Public Library that explores visual storytelling and how what we create reflects deeper underlying personal narratives. FREE!
In Pelham, very close to the Bronx border’s northeast section, there are many ongoing art exhibits and events at the Pelham Art Center. Check them all out here.
Upstream Gallery in Hastings-on-Hudson, features two photographer/artists, Janine Menlove and TB Ward in the “Apertures of Light & Time” through Oct. 27. FREE!
At the Hudson River Museum there are several exhibits to explore, and it’s just a bit beyond north Riverdale. It’s on through Jan. 26, 2025.
Blue Door Art Center presents “Selfie: Self Portraiture,” a group exhibit through Oct. 26. (I’m in that exhibit — see photo here). FREE!
Music
There really is a lot going on this weekend at the brand new, stunning, Bronx Music Hall. This Saturday, Oct. 26, “Halloween & Edgar Allan Poe: El Cuervo,” Poe goes Latin jazz with Bobby Sanabria & Project X. Tickets are $15. And before that, on Fri., Oct. 25, “Women's Voices in Song, Poetry & Dance [features]: Gamae Garifuna Performing Arts Company (Belize), Evelyn Ganigi (Yurumein), Paula Castillo (Guatemala), Mara Henriquez (Nicaragua), and Wabafu Garifuna Dance Ensemble (Honduras).” Tickets are $25. And then on Sunday, Oct. 27, the Bronx Music Heritage Center presents: “Intersections: Exploring West African Ghanaian & Irish Traditional Music.” It’s $20.
This Saturday, on Oct. 26, Jose Luis Rodríguez "El Puma" performs at Lehman Center for the Performing Arts in Bedford Park. More info here.
Connaughton’s Riverdale Steak House in Riverdale has live music including open mics every other Wednesday eve. You can get more up-to-date details on host and performer Mark Weitzman’s (also known as Mark the Harper) Facebook page.
The Artist (also known as The Starving Artist) on City Island hosts lots of live music and a weekly open mic and a monthly interview with musicians, hosted by Gary Axelbank, the latest interviewing rap artist Richard Pigkaso as part of his Bronx Music Podcast which is on YouTube. More info on The Artist here.
An Beal Bocht, an artsy Irish pub in Riverdale has live music and other artsy events throughout the week.
Through Nov. 2, join The Bronx County Historical Society in the upper room of Edgar Allan Poe Poe Cottage — at Grand Concourse and Kingsbridge Road — for an exhibit of the surrealist visual art of Margarita Deida Pietri, widow of leading Nuyorican poet Rev. Pedro Pietri (1944–2004). Margarita is exhibiting her visual art in conjunction with selections from Pedro’s poetry, paying homage to her and her late partner’s admiration for Edgar Allan Poe. It’s open on Saturdays from 10 AM to 4 PM and Sundays, 1 PM to 5 PM.
Dance/Halloween Fun
Choreographer Sydnie L. Mosley shares the eve of Fri., Oct. 25 at 8 PM at BAAD! (Bronx Academy of Arts & Dance) with Soles of Duende, an all-women trio based in the rhythms of Tap, Flamenco & Kathak dance. Tickets are $20. Also coming up at BAAD!, on Sat., Oct. 26, is HalloKween to celebrate Halloween “inside a 19th century chapel by a graveyard! Join Bronx drag queens Appolonia Cruz and Vivika Westwood Mugler for an open mic, karaoke, costume contest, and dance party.” It’s FREE.
On Sunday, Oct. 26, from 11 AM to 2 PM, Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum in Pelham Bay Park features Trick or Treat Trek. “Come in costume, rain or shine, it’s outdoor trick or treating time! Wander the grounds, search for a treat, one never knows who one might meet….” $10 per person.
Families/Kids
BxArtsFactory in Melrose provides a useful series of video lessons on their website for families doing art at home. You can learn a lot more about the organization here.
There are various kids’ art workshops at Bronx Children’s Museum, which opened just a little less than a year ago. Info here (scroll down page for listing). And here’s a link to all the “active” exhibit space and happenings.
Blue Door Art Center in downtown Yonkers offers FREE classes/programs for kids on Saturday mornings.
I really hope you can check out something listed above. Some of you have shared with me what interesting shows, exhibits, etc. this newsletter has led you to. If you have something to share about what you’ve seen and experienced, just email me anytime at jordanmossbx@gmail.com. I would love to include what you’ve experienced!
Have a great weekend and week, everyone!
Peace,
Jordan