Giordanne in her Greenpoint studio. Photo: Ian Hartsoe
Giordanne Salley spends a few weeks each summer out of the city. She retreats to the rocky coastlines and glacier-carved forests of our Northeastern-most state. There, she quickly assumes the circadian rhythms of nature, in part, encouraged by a lack of cell phone reception. Swimming, kayaking, and hiking, Salley studies the sun and changing colors of the day. Upon returning to New York she begins painting these summer experiences. Nude figures running freely among raw pebbly beaches, silky waters, and deciduous brush; Giordanne has managed to transport the spirit of the spruce islands to her Greenpoint studio.
Greenpointers: When were you first exposed to art as a child?
Giordanne Salley:I am originally from Southwest Ohio. My parents took us to the Dayton Art Institute on the weekends which had an interesting collection of art for a city of its size. We would picnic in the gardens and spend the rest of the afternoon exploring the various exhibits. I remember once looking at a Josef Albers’ red square painting and wondering why it was in a museum. I find it ironic now because I’ve taken color theory classes and really appreciate his work. Being homeschooled until the sixth grade, my parents always encouraged me to take on any form of self-expression I wanted. I was constantly being supplied with paper and drawing tools. I could organize my time differently than kids in school, and was able to spend a lot of time exploring nature. This remains very important to me and my paintings. Continue reading →
Dusty Rose (251 Greenpoint Ave) is hosting a show this Thursday night (7-10pm) for local and national artists offering their interpretation on the theme of #Nightboob. 15% of all sales that night will go to Komen Greater NYC, an organization that helps a diverse range of women get help with breast cancer screening, treatment, and more. Just as importantly, there will be private boob portraits painted by the talented Akane Ogura (who was doing face portraits this weekend during Greenpoint Open Studios), live screenprinting, music by Mur and adult beverages.
We had so much fun last year at Williamsburg Walks, and are psyched about this year’s festivities. On June 11th and 12th, Bedford Avenue between Metropolitan and N 12th Street will turn into an artsy public park. Temporary wall units, interactive installations and sculptures will be staggered throughout the blocks. In addition to the installations there will be a variety of activities; last year there were a ton of vendors selling their wares, food and a skateboarding demo.
Northside Art is seeking proposals for: 1. Live painting/graffiti/collage 2. Interactive installations/workshops 3. Sculpture/stand alone installations 4. Performance artists
Submit your proposal via this form. The deadline to submit is May 15th. Send all questions to [email protected]
North Brooklyn offers a cozy mecca of studio spaces for artists to work, live in, and Instagram. While the app has earned a reputation for promoting endless boredom check-ins and vanity selfies – plenty of artists are taking advantage of the platform to promote events and shows, document their work in various stages, and link with other like-minded creatives.
I scoured the ‘gram to find my top 8 pick of talented painters in the neighborhood with impressive archives, all for your viewing pleasure. Continue reading →
You may have noticed that Greenpoint now has two new murals—at 1043 and 1077 Manhattan Avenue—thanks to Boston native and muralist Alex Cook, who recently painted both out of love for the neighborhood (and crowd-sourced the funding himself to do it). “While I was working on both of them, I got tons of feedback from the neighbors,” Cook said. “It was universally pretty good.”
At 1043, Cook’s mural depicts a surreal, three dimensional space with a young tree and balancing and floating boulders. Down the block at 1077, a series of heads with broad foreheads and strong jaws seem to be floating in front of the wall, looking passers-by in the eye. “The thing that was compelling to me about these images was the three dimensionality of it and being able to make an image that feels real,” said Cook. “One of the things I love the most as an artist is being able to create a sense of wonder or something mysterious that stops you in your tracks and makes you have a moment of ‘I don’t know everything.'”
Greenpointers recently caught up with Cook to talk about his eighteen year career as a muralist, his creative process, and his love of north Brooklyn.
Too cold to go outside for a slice of pizza? Too cold to even think of going out to a gallery? Greenpointers has you covered on the art end with this list of eight brilliant artists who have studios in Greenpoint. Feast your eyes on:
It’s raining, and then it’s not. You don’t have shoes for this and your umbrella kind of half works, but you still want to hit the streets and see some art. We got you—just follow our Greenpoint Open Studios Walking Tour #1. Continue reading →
Transform old furniture into something fresh!Transforming furniture is one of the things we love to do the most at Suite Pieces (located at 162 Huron Street)! We’re going to share with you how fun and easy it is to change the look of something you already own without the hassle of sanding and priming. We’ll be using one of our favorite product lines that we offer in the shop, Chalk Paint® decorative paint by Annie Sloan. By the time you do all that prep-work with traditional latex paint, you’re ready to call it quits and leave yet another unfinished project sitting around your apartment taking up precious, expensive square footage. When you use Chalk Paint® for your painting projects, you get instant gratification that keeps you going till it’s back in place ready for a photo op! Continue reading →
On a recent Friday night I visited two art shows that both opened on Greenpoint Ave. Both artists, Maj Anya DeBear and Roxanne Palmer mentioned that honesty was one driving force behind their recent artworks. While being true to oneself creatively in a hard to please art world is difficult to attain, the resulting satisfaction and confidence that came through made for two stand-out openings on either side of McGuinness Blvd. Continue reading →
In our age of digital hyper connectivity, we often feel isolated – our smartphones a barrier rather than a bridge to “the real thing.” Our viewing experience of art is distorted by online renditions of works, too – after all they are physical objects meant to be seen in person.
Similarly, in a world of mass consumerism that leaves our closets filled with “stuff” we feel empty – even paralyzed by our belongings with no connection to what these items mean, if they have meaning at all. Can an appreciation for artwork undo this affliction? Or is art just more stuff?
The portraits of Williamsburg artist Pilita Garcia, whose faces are perhaps turned away from, but lit by, artificial lights from digital devices – seem to call back to a time before social media, selfies and online advertising. Perhaps they long for “the real world” – but a different world where the value of objects – how they are made and where they come from – is important, a reflection of the artist’s own world view.
Pilita’s painting exhibition titled Rowan’s Sphere will open at Picture Farm (338 Wythe Ave) this Friday March 7th, from 6-9pm.
Watch the below video, produced by the show’s curator Todd Stewart and read our interview with Pilita – then put your computer to sleep (don’t worry it can be alone for a little while) and go see some artwork in real life.
We chatted with Pilita about her work and why making artwork is more important than making “stuff.” Continue reading →
We had so much fun 
