$5 coat check, Factory Fresh — a sign of things to come? photo by Hrag Vartanian
I’m sure by now you’re sick of seeing what we have to say about Bushwick Open Studios — frankly, we are, too. But wait — here’s what a ton of other people said!
Most Important: Hrag Vartanian’s 200+ photos — with captions! — from an uncountable number of studios. A man who knows how to wield a camera. And then check out his write-up of the event for verrrrry serious art zine ArtCal — the “Morgantown” meme spreads…
Big Blur of AHHHHHHH!: Pass Kontrol weighs in on the GBM parade of bands on their very own blog.
More Pass Kontrol!: This guy wants to share the “hit record” he cut with Bushwick’s rock laureates.
Girls Kissing in Lofts: Don’t act like there’s anything else you care about. These will be nice photos for the grandkids.
30-Year-Olds in Baseball Hats: A guy takes photos of some exhibit called Amerika. The “k” is like, wow, man. Profound.
Sunday afternoon was the Bushwick Arts and Neighborhood Sustainability Forum, followed by the Bushwick IMPACT Garden Party. Despite the heat and general exhaustion at the end of a jam-packed weekend, both events were well attended by a variety of stake-holders: Arts in Bushwick volunteers, neighborhood residents, local artists, IMPACT parents and staff, and representatives from Bushwick schools and United Way.
Moderated by Laura Braslow, the discussion wound up centering around Arts in Bushwick’s current and continuing role in the community, and the best ways for various populations in Bushwick to find points of intersection and common language.
The garden party shifted the atmosphere from serious to silly, as everyone moved outside to admire the recently complete Bushwick IMPACT mural (pictured above), sniff flowers in the newly planted garden, and sip lemonade. IMPACT will need volunteers to help tend the garden all summer! If you are interested in participating, please email Chloë Bass.
It was hotter outside in the back than inside in the middle, but outside in the front had a semi warm (as opposed to sweltering) breeze, so even though it was almost elbow to elbow out there on Broadway with the crowds from both Goodbye Blue Monday and newly opened DIY venue Bodega, that is where I kept running to for relief. The Bushwick Open Studios Music Festival took place over 2 days, at 3 venues, with over 30 Bushwick-based acts. We saw a handful of the 25 that played this Saturday at GBM, but as we were all barely functioning as humans due to the heat, the most we can muster up in retrospect are the following memories:
Recreating Brion Gysin’s “Dream Machine” in John Nicholson’s Studio at Grace Exhibition Space
Nicholson invited me in when I couldn’t help but notice him trying to hallucinate while staring into the strange light construction in his studio. He enlightened me that you can buy the template for the contraption at St. Mark’s Bookstore and he couldn’t resist trying it out. “Gyson thought of it as an alternative to television,” Nicholson told me. Obviously the “Dreamachine” lost out in market share but may still be a leading force among the underground demographic.
According to Wikipedia: “With Sommerville, [Gysin] built the Dreamachine in 1961. Described as ‘the first art object to be seen with the eyes closed,’ the flicker device uses alpha waves in the 8-16 Hz range to produce a change of consciousness in receptive viewers.”
Grace Exhibition Space (BOS listing)
840 Broadway 2nd floor
Part of the reason I was so excited about Bushwick Open Studios was the opportunity to see people’s homes and living arrangements — I’m the weirdo you see walking around at night hoping to catch a glimpse of someone’s living room through a window. I felt I had hit the jackpot when we got to Magda Rachwal’s apartment above the Mexican panadería on Knickerbocker — we saw plenty of cute old details and enjoyed the view off her ornate wrought iron fire scape toward the park.
What we saw: Pen and pencil drawings, paintings, photography. Magda had large paintings on the wall, but what I found most interesting were what she described as “angry pen drawings” — scraps of paper with furious scribbles that somehow turn into cars, objects, scenery, and people.
After seeing depressingly mediocre lofts populated by art school grads for the last few hours, we were surprised and awe-struck by Jennifer Latham’s gorgeous home, swimming in sunlight, full of happy plants and interesting objets. Her art was more engineering than aesthetics — one group of pieces was a study of motion as a camera moved, another was several somewhat abstract architectural/cityscape renderings. Pushed out of New Orleans by Katrina, she made her way to Maine and then directly to Bushwick two years ago.
What we saw: Pet snake! Propaganda art by Jennifer’s brother Jake Hout, cityscapes, architectural renderings on paper and in 3D.
This sculpture, “040801,” looked like it was ripped from the set of a 1970s sci-fi film — think Logan’s Run. The bizarre form was quite intriguing but with the added zing of technology it was 10x better but not yet WOW….let’s hope Abeles’ experimentation leads to some interesting artistic realms.
Did you see anything interesting or beautiful at Bushwick Open Studios that you’d like to share? Send a small blurb describing your experience, what you saw, and a photo and we’ll post it!
One of our first scheduled stops on Saturday was at 1 Grattan for Lydia Bell’s “If at All,” an installation of movement and sound. The 30 minute piece was performed in a continuous loop from 1-3 — a daunting task made even more noteworthy thanks to the aforementioned killer heat. I have been following Lydia’s work since she moved to Bushwick a year ago and she is now happily ensconced in her gorgeous part-time rehearsal studio. Keep an eye out for more from her — word has it that her work will be featured in a group show at English Kills soon.
What we saw: The three amazing performers (Lena Bui, Khalia Frazier and Owen Roberts) moved through the space and soundscape with unbelievably stellar focus. Lydia’s aesthetic is beautiful, grounded and so thoughtful — highlighted perfectly by Paul Rome’s sound creation of displaced found sounds and instrumentation.
I know I gave you a preview of Open Ground last week, but if you didn’t make it to the opening show, you missed out on the cool geometric projection one of the artists pointed at Lolo’s house. There was quite a scene on Central and Troutman this past Friday, both inside and outside Nuevo Estilo Unisex — which might just remain as a long-term neighborhood gallery. As usual, stay tuned for more info on that front.
What we saw: clay and soap (yes, soap) installations, video, photography, painting, drawing — the whole gamut was represented.
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Bushwick IMPACT mural, by 
