Art Happenings Across Big Borough
AAAU — 4.23.25
Hey All,
I was pretty busy the last couple of days and headed out of town. So, while there is a lot below, I didn’t have time to include photos. Next week, photos will be back, I promise!
So here we go ….
FESTIVALS/EVENTS
Pinkster Festival is on Sat., May 3, from 12 to 4 PM on the lawn of the Van Cortlandt House Museum. It’s FREE! It includes all kinds of fun stuff, including live music with Chief Baba Neil Clarke, a master percussionist, an art workshop, and an Afro-Dutch Cooking Demonstration with Cheyney McKnight. More happenings that day and all info listed here.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Bronx Documentary Center presents Jamel Shabazz’s exhibit: “Seconds of My Life; Photographs from 1975-2025” through May 3 with a closing that same day. It’s FREE and more info here. “Shabazz’s work in this exhibition spans the 1970s to the early 2000s, including iconic photo albums, early images of his junior high classmates and photography spanning fashion, street, and documentary styles.”
Bronx Documentary Center (BDC) also hosts the exhibit “1000 Dreams” project, a photo exhibit from Witness Change, a nonprofit that shares the stories of marginalized groups. It is on through Sun., May 11 and BDC is open on Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5 PM. All the info here. FREE!
En Foco and Kreate Hub Bronx present the photo exhibit Shifting In Place beginning on May 9 and ending on Sept. 1 at Kreate Hub. The exhibition features a curated selection of photographs by artists previously featured with Nueva Luz or the En Foco Archives and Study Center. And there’s an opening on Fri., May 9 from 6 to 8 PM. FREE!
THEATRE
Check out this Pregones/PRTT happening at their mid-town theatre (they also have an active one in the South Bronx): “‘Parrots at the Pagoda,’ inspired by the life of iconic vocalist and prolific trio musician Johnny Rodríguez, takes audiences into the world and music of this legendary Puerto Rican composer, drag artist, and impresario.’” It’ll be on May 1 to May 25. All the info here.
MUSIC
In honor of bebop pioneer Elmo Hope's centennial, a concert of his music will be performed by the Bertha Hope Quintet on Sat., April 26 at 7 PM at the Bronx Music Hall. The concert will celebrate Lyman Place, the short street in the Bronx which was home to jazz royalty including Elmo. The concert will open with a discussion of the musical legacy of Lyman Place. Tickets are $20. More info here.
There’s a lot going on concert-wise at Lehman Center for the Performing Arts in Bedford Park this May. All the info here.
Bronx Opera will perform, in English, “Cosí Fan Tutte,” by W.A. Mozart, at Lehman College’s Lovinger Theatre from Sat., April 26 through May 4. All the details here and here.
“Form and Abstraction: A Retrospective” is the current exhibit at the Riverfront Art Gallery, a beautiful space at Yonkers Public Library in downtown Yonkers. It is on through May 23. All the info here. FREE!
Every month you can see the monthly Bronx Music Podcast interview of Bronx musicians, hosted by Gary Axelbank, live at The Artist on City Island. You can also check out the interviews/performances on YouTube, Spotify or Apple. The most recent edition, featuring jazz musicians Rale and Alma Micic is right here.
As usual, there is a lot of great live music, as well as art and theatre, to check out at An Beal Bocht Café in Riverdale. Open mics are always on Tuesday at 8:30 PM.
OPEN STUDIOS, OPPORTUNITIES, OPENINGS, etc.
The Focal Point Gallery on City Island, owned by Ron Terner, a photographer and artist, who has led the gallery for decades, has a call on all artists to be in the next exhibit “Artist Choice.” Focal Point will be accepting artist’s submissions through Sun. April 27. All styles welcome. “If it can hang on a wall, it can be in exhibition,” Terner says. You can call 718-885-1403 for more info, and here’s a helpful link. The opening will be Sat., May 3, 1 to 4 PM.
Wave Hill presents open studios for artists finishing up in their 2025 Winter Workspaces this Saturday, April 26, from 12:30 to 3:30 PM. All the info here and here.
Bronx County Historical Society presents the exhibit “Uptown Rumble: Heavy Music in the Bronx,” with an opening on Thurs., April 24 from 6 to 8 PM. Here’s what the show is all about: “While The Bronx is universally recognized as an epicenter for hip hop, salsa, doo-wop, jazz, reggaeton, and many other popular music genres, our borough is ignored in popular narratives about hard rock, heavy metal, and punk rock.” The show, at the Bronx History Museum in Norwood, features photos, flyerz, fanzines, clippings, memorabilia, oral history and more. And there are events related to this exhibit through October, listed here as well.
Longwood Art Gallery, led by Bronx Council on the Arts, has an exhibit, at its Westchester Square headquarters, called “Ancestral Wisdom,” which brings together the voices of four Bronx artists whose work bridges heritage, nature, and community to challenge contemporary social and cultural constructs. It features artists Palén Obesa, asmara, Susan MacMurdy, and Darryl Alexander Moore and is curated by Lucia Warck-Meister. There will be a closing reception on April 30 from 6 to 8 PM. All the info here.
At the Derfner Judaica Museum in Riverdale, the exhibit “Nature’s Persistence: Recent Work by Shelley Haven,” is running through June 29. There will be a Reception and Artist’s Talk on Sun., May 4 at 1:30 PM. All the info and photos here. Above is one of the photos from the show.
ART EXHIBITS
The new exhibit at Bronx Museum on the Grand Concourse (part of which is currently being renovated and enlarged) is “Working Knowledge: Shared Imaginings, New Futures.” It’s on through July 6. All visits to Bronx Museum are FREE!
At Inspiration Point in Hunts Point, WALLWORKS NY has the exhibit “Repainting Subway Art by TRIPL a.k.a FURIOUS,” (which is also the name of TRIPL’s book) through May 7. FREE!
In Hastings-on-Hudson, not far up on the Saw Mill from the Bronx, at Upstream Gallery, is a “New Artists Showcase” on through April 27. More info here.
Bronx Arts Ensemble celebrates jazz appreciation month with musician Elio Villafranca at the University of Mount Saint Vincent on Sun., April 27 from 2 to 3 PM. More info here. FREE!
At the Hudson River Museum in Yonkers, there are several exhibits to go see, including “Alvin C. Hollingsworth: And All That Jazz,” through April 27; “It Takes Two: Unexpected Pairings,” through June 1; and “Collection Spotlight: Cityscapes,” which is ongoing (see photo below). All current exhibits listed here.
The exhibit, “The Art of the Wrapping,” at Lehman College Art Gallery is on through May 3. All the info here. FREE!
Also in downtown Yonkers is a Juried Members Competition & Exhibition at Blue Door Art Center. It’s on through May 3. FREE!
Casita Maria Gallery in Hunts Point presents “You CAN Sit Here,” a multimedia solo exhibition by Bronx native Tiffany ‘Tiff McFierce’ McPherson, on through Aug. 16. More details here. FREE!
“The Orchid Show: Mexican Modernism,” will be open at The New York Botanical Garden’s Haupt Conservatory through April 27. All the info here.
WORKSHOPS/CLASSES/GRANTS
Blue Door Art Center in downtown Yonkers offers FREE classes/programs for kids on Saturday mornings.
BxArtsFactory in Melrose provides a useful series of video lessons on their website for families doing art at home.
There are various kids’ art workshops at Bronx Children’s Museum. Info here (scroll down page for listing). And here’s a link to all the “active” exhibit space and happenings.
Bronx Council on the Arts has a great listing of organizations that provide various opportunities, grants and projects for artists of all kinds.
If you want to contact me directly, you can email me, Jordan Moss, at AAAUBRONX@GMAIL.COM.
Much of my art and photography is on IG @jordanmossbx.
Enjoy the week, and weekend, everyone.
Peace, Salaam, Shalom, Paz, etc.,
Jordan
Thanks, Jordan!