Announcing a refreshing interlude from abstract & conceptual art:
March 13 thru April 11, 1999
Opening Reception March 13th, 1999 4-6 P.M.
Artists will be available for sketches and
portrait commissions!
Joseph Adolphe, Alexandra Balparzuk, Irvin Barnett, Jennifer
Bloom, Noa Bornstein, Joe Catuccio, Gail Godber, Howard Kalish,
George Korechoff, Scott Lawson, John Mandile, Ernest Marciano,
Tim Okamura, Lauren Plaut, Riv, Demian Schroeder, Morgan Taylor,
Stan Taub, Alexandra Compain Tissier, Lori Walls, Lisa Weinblatt,
Larry Zajac
The importance of observation of 3 dimensional
reality and discipline of recording it in art is immeasurable.
It has been the tradition of the great schools of art, even
in this century, to assure that the student who wished to
pursue a career in fine art be able to master the observation
and rendering of nature. The drawing, painting and sculpting
of the human figure with it's proportions and subtle curves
is the most difficult, the human face and positions of the
body are able to express a nearly infinite variety of moods
and attitudes. To be able to express this on paper, canvas,
or in stone, wood or metal (and now plastic) is an essential
foundation to mastering abstract form and using the ability
of abstract form to suggest more than the abstract form itself,
if that is what is intended. One must master the craft, the
tools of the trade, before one approaches the art, if one
intends to be great. As Mark Cohen the art critic points out,
the true artist, hounded by the shortness of time in this
world does not have time to create things that miss the point.
We must be absolute masters of our craft. So in this show
we see artists honing their abilities of observation &
rendering. We come back once more to the human figure and
look with fresh eyes in order to refocus and set our course
once more by the compass that points to the elegance, grace
and inspiration which is the human figure. The artists in
this exhibition have demonstrated mastery of these basics.
.Modern art more or less began at the turn of the century
and rapidly moved to the indifferent abstraction we see in
so much art today. With rapid technological advances engulfing
our world requiring that we respond with machine efficiency
to keep pace, it is good to once again recognize our spiritual
selves as contained in the human figure. In this exhibition
we reevaluate the valuable lessons of observation & discipline
and perhaps see what we have been missing in contemporary
art, the human form, the temple of the soul. – Yuko
Nii, Artistic Director & Founder
see also:
http://www.tfaoi.com/newsm1/n1m76.htm
March 6 thru April 11, 1999
Opening
Reception 3/6/99 4-6 P.M.An Exhibition of Artists with Disabilities
Organized by James Pinney of the Belsky Art Society
Artists: Gilbert Gonzales, Issa Ibrahim, Sabrina Kury (in
memorium), Ralph Perrotti, Marlane Stokes-Gonzales
April 17-May 23, 1999
Sponsored in part by a grant from the Brooklyn Borough President Howard Golden
The MOTHER EARTH CELEBRATION exhibit this year will display photography of world adventurers & explorers. Indeed this show is to celebrate the mother Earth, and to discover something about aboriginal peoples as they are living now. For as industrial progress and international investment in land & resources make incursions into these pristine regions, the traditional cultures & life styles of these remote people are challenged and they will likely be assimilated into a Western style, McDonaldiized K-mart superculture.
So, in our gallery this year we venture with Cynthia Wilder to the north, the land of ICE, exploring remote Alaska along the Yanese River and to Kamchatka, the Russian Far East (former Siberia), to stay with a group of Eveni Reindeer herders. We visit through her photos the remote islands of the Bering Sea which lead like stepping stones to the vast frontier of the Russian Arctic as yet visited by only few travelers. You will see the spectacular arctic landscapes which support some of the largest colonies of sea birds and marine mammals in the world. The time is June 1998 when Cynthia visited this region. Tiny wildflowers are in bloom on the tundra and wildlife is most active. The sun sets only briefly this time of year and we experience nearly endless hours of daylight for exploration & discovery. We meet with local people from both continents and learn about traditional methods of hunting, fishing & habitat construction and are treated by native dancers & storytellers. Cynthia Wilder is a member of the Department of Ancient Near Eastern Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She has spent many years in the American Museum of Natural History's Department of Anthropology. She is an expert on reindeer and the peoples of the north Pacific Rim, and has worked on several exhibitions featuring Siberian cultures and their migration to North America. For the past 8 years, she has been a lecturer on the American Museum's Discovery Tours in the north Pacific region. In the photography we can follow in the comfort of our gallery the pathways of famed 18th & 19th century Arctic explorers like the famed Captain Vitas Bering in 1728. This is an exhibit which must be seen. Come visit with us the scenic coves and anchorage's and study the fascinating tribal cultures, spectacular wildlife and marine environments in this remote Paradise!
Next we travel to the land of FIRE, New Guinea, with Williamsburg Journalist/Photographer James Bevins who exhibits photos and discusses his recent exploration of uncharted regions Irian Jaya New Guinea and his discovery of a new tribe unseen by Western man. James was shot with a poison arrow and had to trek through the jungles two weeks before reaching civilization. The Center will exhibit his photos and hear about his amazing "Indiana Jones" adventures.
On May 2nd @ 3 p.m., admission $3, Ms. Wilder & Mr. Bevins will lecture on their explorations & Adventure!
OPENING RECEPTION for the exhibit Sunday April 18th, 1999 4-6 P.M.
ALSO SPRINGFEST!!! Sunday April 18, 1999 12-6 P.M. featuring a Flower show & sale, a "Taste of Williamsburg" Food Festival, Special historical exhibits & photos, artifacts of Williamsburg/Greenpoint, Original Blueprints of Brooklyn Landmarks (Botanic Garden, Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Prospect Park, etc.), Lectures on Williamsburg/Greenpoint history and Brooklyn Landmarks, City Gardening, and much more!
Also: Sunday April 18th @ 7:30 P.M. New choral music by an internationally renowned Polish composer.
April 24th 7:30 P.M. ADMISSION $5
Coordinated by Philippa Woolley
Director & Founder of the Stable Dance & Yoga Studio
People always talk about the downtown dance scene, but in the Williamsburg/Greenpoint area, a burgeoning, young, vibrant community of dancers is soon to be the talk of the town. The dance festival program will consist of mostly new works and will coalesce the creative dancing energies of this community into a new light for the world to see. In the past most dancers living in Williamsburg/Greenpoint rehearsed here and performed in Manhattan, nationally or internationally. Rarely could our dancers perform without traveling. NOT SO ANY MORE! Now our community is a major international art attraction and dancers here are under the spotlight when they perform in their back yard. Here you can now enjoy new theater, film, dance, visit the plethora of new galleries and then stop off for dinner or lunch at some of the finest international restaurants in this community. So come and join the "spirit of the dance" at the WAH Center and celebrate the joy of Spring! The WAH Center offers a variety of programs, not only in fine art & craft exhibits, but dance, music, theater & performing arts, as well as art through technology, readings & lectures. Its a beautiful landmark building (1860) located right at the foot of the Williamsburg Bridge one train stop from Manhattan on the L, J or M train.
Choreographers & Dancers: Ariane Anthony, Brian Brooks, Dawn Fuhrman, Karen Hochma, Shinichiro Kunitomo, Taryn Packheiser, Pari (Muzaffar Ali Khan), Dmitry Povolotsky, Lee Shaply, Lisa Townsend, Joel Valentin, Philippa Woolley
A distinguished panel will lead a discussion with choreographers following the performance.
A Continuation of the Celebration of Spring
On Sunday April 25th @ 3 P.M. Terrance Lindall, the noted "surrealist/visionary," will be reciting selections from John Milton's great epic poem PARADISE LOST. The recital will take place in the midst of a one-day-only display of Lindall's original oil paintings of the epic. These paintings completed in 1979 have appeared in numerous books and magazines over the years. They have been exhibited around the country. Mr. Lindall will sign copies of his book and will also answer questions about the upcoming APOCALYPSE extravaganza of art, performance & "ecliptic" events in the fall of 1999!
Sponsored in part by a grant from the Brooklyn Borough President Howard Golden
April 25th @ 7:30 P.M. Admission $5
Michael Arenella, a 21 year old composer/prodigy, will premier his 22 piece Williamsburg Chamber Orchestra with classical and modern angular harmony.
His 22 piece orchestra is comprised of gifted musicians, musicians from Julliard and the Manhattan School of Music as well as professional jazz musicians, all from varied artistic inspiration. Yet all share the common desire to nurture the growth of new music, specifically in the structure of a chamber orchestra. The WCO introduces new, creative, and undiscovered music in the form of a traditional chamber orchestra. The identity and tradition from which this instrumentation comes is in no way obscured, Rather, it is reintroduced, and magnified, realizing the infinite directions that this tradition suggests.