The Dumbo Improvement District has their annual fundraising benefit in an event titled DUMBO Fight Night. The event will be held this Thursday, October 2, 2008 from 6pm at St. Ann’s Warehouse. The funds raised will directly benefit the continued rehabilitation of the Manhattan Bridge Archway. The Dumbo Fight Night is not a typical fundraiser as you’ll be able to experience Dumbo’s talented cultural community, accompanied by USA Boxing Metro sanctioned boxing matches arranged by Gleason’s Gym. Go to dumbonyc.org for more information and tickets for the event or call 718-237-8700.

Some photos from last year’s event:

(Photo: Brooklyn Arts Council’s Folk Feet project)


(Photo: amateur boxers from Gleason’s Gym)

The 2008 Art Under the Bridge Festival concluded yesterday. The installations, artists’ galleries and their art, and interactive art brought talented and interesting art for display throughout the weekend. Thank you Dumbo Arts Center (DAC) for putting together another great arts fest. We’d also like to thank the artists who opened up their studios to share with the public the talented work they do each day. Looking forward to next year’s festival.

Below are a few photos from the weekend. There are others in the DumboNYC Art Fest set on Flickr and on the DumboNYC Flickr Photo pool.

{12th Annual Dumbo Art Under the Bridge Festival 2008}
{Art Fest Links}

(Artists’ rendering of The People’s Triangle)

During the Dumbo Art Under the Bridge Festival, which starts on Friday, Dumbo artist Manuel Mansylla has been working on an installation called The People’s Triangle. According to Mansylla, he is creating a free speech triangle where spectators can transform into orators and will be allowed to speak of any issue. The original Speakers’ Corner was legally established 1872 in Hyde Park England. What used to be a stage for hangings, transformed into a landmark for public speaking.

According to the artist, “The Art Under the Bridge Festival is known for its free spirited art and is a festival where people from all walks of life go to be surprised, challenged and also like to engage with the artist and with the art piece. A salient characteristic of DUMBO is the intermittent train passing through the Manhattan Bridge. The encroaching noise of the train will turn on and off the voices of the orators. This is symbolic of our democratic system that allows only some voices to be heard and others are silenced.”

This installation can interact with other public performances going on in the Pearl Square Triangle, as the purpose is to watch how this free speech zone is used (or not). Come check it out all weekend at the Pearl Street Triangle (Anchorage Place, Pearl Street, Water Street).

{Got something to say? Let’s hear it, 10Sept2008, Brooklyn Paper}

Joseph Arthur, the musician and artist behind the Museum of Modern Arthur, is hosting their last opening party for the final exhibit tonight (Sept 25) at 8pm. The guitarist will be performing with his band. The group’s new album, Temporary People, is out on September 30, 2008.

The MOMAR gallery is closing due to the increased cost of rent. According to relix.com,

“I can’t disclose details but let’s just say, in the immortal words of Kenny Rogers, ‘You gotta know when to fold ‘em/Know when to walk away/Know when to run,” Arthur says. “And the big bad landlord is giving us the boot (We pay our rent but other things factor into this Up and coming thriving metropolis known as Dumbo).”

Previously: {MOMAR (Museum of Modern Arthur) Opens, 10Jul2007}
{Joseph Arthur, Musician and Artist to open The Museum of Modern Arthur, 24Apr2007}

With 6 weeks left for the Presidential race on Tuesday, November 4th, 2008, we’ve seen more politics related stencils and art in and around Dumbo area. There’s Barack:

…and Sarah Palin:

…and “the end” for George Bush:

On Friday, Sept 26, 2008 at 9pm, Galapagos Art Space, as part of the Art Under the Bridge Festival with Current TV, will be projecting live, the first 2008 Presidential Debate. Learn more and be sure to vote:

Who will you vote for in the US Presidential Elections?

• Barack Obama / Joe Biden (Democrat)
• John McCain / Sarah Palin (Republican)
• Undecided
• I'm not voting
• Other

View Results

The Dumbo Arts Center (DAC) is presenting the 12th Annual Dumbo Art Under the Bridge Festival ™

NYC’s big FREE urban forum for experimental art.
60+ new artworks in public space, neighborhood-wide open studios and non-stop new video art at video_dumbo.

September 26 – 28, 2008

Over the festival weekend, art will be happening everywhere in Dumbo: streets, sidewalks, storefronts, elevators, lobbies, the water, the waterfront, parks, nooks, crannnies, on the NY Water Taxi, and more. Along with the 65+ new public art projects, over 100 local artists will open their studios to the public and at the new Galapagos Art Space, video_dumbo will feature a non-stop program of cutting edge video art from NYC and around the world.

Opening night on Friday, September 26 will include the following events:

1. POLITAOKE: Hop on board the NY Water Taxi for FREE (every 30 minutes between 7 and 9 pm) at the Fulton Ferry Landing to participate in Diana Arce’s Politaoke (www.politaoke.com) – POLITcal speeches as karAOKE), where you too can deliver the great rhetoric of today’s most important politicians.
2. HACK THE DEBATE – 3D!: Galapagos Art Space, 16 Main Street: video_dumbo presents Current TV’s “Hack the Debate,” an interactive broadcast of the first presidential debate. For visual enhancement, video_dumbo will transform the Broadcast into 3D! “Hack the Debate” will, for the very first time, integrate real-time Twitter messages (aka “tweets”) over major portions of a live television broadcast. As Twitter users tweet throughout the course of the live broadcasts, Current and Twitter will collect comments regarding the debate and layer the individual messages over the debate feed.

   In addition, the debate will appear in three-dimensional space, based on a new polarized filter technique called Chroma-depth®. Ironically, this stereoscopic system is based on the colors RED and BLUE. Each object displayed in those colors will create the illusion of either protrude out of the screen, or retract behind the screen – creating a true stage for this political theater. More at videodumbo.org/opening-night.html, current.com/debate, twitter.com/current.

3. US premiere of The Snow White Project by Catherine Baÿ might be: check out the live performance at 111 Front Street, Room 202, (fiaf.org) from 7 – 9 pm.

More details at: dumboartfestival.org

Previous:
{11th Annual Dumbo Art Under the Bridge Festival, 2007}
{10th Annual Dumbo Art Under the Bridge Festival, 2006}

1) 10 Minute Lecture: Sarah Palin and “The Family”

What: Jeff Sharlet: Sarah Palin and “The Family”: Fundamentalism’s Elite
When: Thursday, Sept 18 at 1:15pm + 20 Min Q&A to follow
Where: Melville House Bookstore, 145 Plymouth Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201

Jeff Sharlet is the author of “The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power,” and he is also a contributing editor for Harper’s and Rolling Stone, and an associate research scholar at New York University’s Center for Religion and Media, where he has taught journalism and religious studies. He is the coauthor, with Peter Manseau, of Killing the Buddha, and the editor of TheRevealer.org. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

The Ten Minute Lecture series organizes lunch-time talks and presentations at the Melville House Bookstore in Brooklyn, New York. The series hopes to provoke dialogue on impossibly large topics in a short period of time.

2) Exhibition: Life on Mars by Nooka

What: Art Exhibition by Matthew Waldman
When: Thursday, Sept 18, 6:30-9:30pm
Where: Halcyon the shop, 57 Pearl Street, Brooklyn, NY

Coming from Japan, Matthew Waldman, creator of the Nooka line of products will have an art exhibition at the Halcyon shop. He is presenting a line of acrylic paintings on canvas and sculptures. DJ’s Nick Chacona and Alex Graham will be spinning.

1) Reading and Signing for Crime by Irvine Welsh

When: Wednesday, September 10, 2008 7-8pm
Where: PowerHouse Arena, 37 Main Street, Brooklyn

In one of only two New York City appearances, the celebrated Trainspotting author spends an evening at The powerHouse Arena reading from his latest novel, Crime, to be followed by a Q&A period and author reception and signing. Please join us in what promises to be a compelling literary night.

Please rsvp at rsvp@powerhousearena.com.

2) Opening Reception for Cornelia Hediger’s Doppelgänger

When: Wednesday, September 10, 6pm—8pm
Where: Klompching Gallery, 111 Front Street, Suite 206, Brooklyn

KLOMPCHING GALLERY is pleased to present the artist Cornelia Hediger and to invite you to a reception with the artist for her first solo show at the gallery.

www.klompching.com
info@klompching.com
(212) 796-2070

The DUMBO 1st Thursday Gallery Walk. DUMBO 1st Thursday features area galleries and artists’ studios, open from 5:30 to 8:30, on the first Thursday of each month. There is no admission fee – participating galleries are open to the public. Gallery receptions, neighborhood dining and bars, and live music add to the evening’s festivities:

September 4, 2008 First Thursday Participants include, but are not limited to the following list. Please check with each gallery to confirm that they will be open late on Thursday.

5+5 Gallery, 111 Front St., Suite 210
Aswoon Gallery, 14 Jay St.
Brooklyn Arts Council, 111 Front St., Suite 218
Byrd Hoffman Watermill Foundation, 111 Front St.
DUMBO Arts Center, 30 Washington St.
GalleryQB, 163 Plymouth St.
Gloria Kennedy Gallery, 111 Front St., Suite 222
Henry Gregg Gallery, 111 Front St., Suite 226
Klompching Gallery, 111 Front St.
Melville House, 145 Plymouth St.
Nelson Hancock Gallery, 111 Front St., Suite 204
Pochron Studios, 20 Jay St.
Powerhouse Books & Powerhouse Arena, 37 Main St.
Rabbithole Studio, 33 Washington St.
Robert Wilson/rw Work Ltd, 111 Front St.
Safe-T Gallery, 111 Front St., Suite 214
Smack Mellon, 93 Plymouth St. @ Washington Street
Spring, 126a Front St.
Tivoli Home, 111 Front St., 1st floor
Umbrage Gallery, 111 Front St.
VII DUMBO, 28 Jay St.
Wessel + O-Connor Fine Art, 111 Front St., Suite 200

Some highlights include:

	Farmani Gallery Inside Iran | Inside North Korea Opening Reception and Book Signing: September 4, 6-8:30pm September 4 -28. Wed-Saturday, 12-6pm | Sunday 1-5pm Selections from the award-winning book series on these enigmatic countries at center stage in today’s geopolitical arena. 111 Front Street, Suite 212, DUMBO Brooklyn, 718-578-4478 www.farmanigallery.com (Photo credit: Mark Edward Harris, “Traffic Officer” Pyongyang, North Korea 2008″)
	Prep: The Spirit of a High School Football Team by Richard Corman- Book Launch and Exhibition Richard Corman September 4, 2008, 7-10pm Exhibition runs through October 5, 2008 Saint Peter’s Preparatory School (or simply “Prep”) is New Jersey’s only Jesuit high school. A community of learners that seeks to find God in all things, Prep prides itself on molding young men of competence, conscience, and compassion. The school has created an iconic football program that is annually ranked as one of the best in America, and is the subject of Richard Corman’s Prep: The Spirit of a High School Football Team. The powerHouse Arena, 37 Main Street, DUMBO Brooklyn, 718-666-3049 www.powerhousearena.com
	Rabbitholestudio 33 WASHINGTON: A RETROSPECTIVE Opening reception Thursday, September 4th, 5-9pm Sept 4 – Sept 29 (Open throughout Dumbo’s 12th Art Under the Bridge Festival) Wed-Fri 6-8pm and by appointment through September 29 Works by Helen Brough, Christopher DaSilva, Marc Dennis, Jason Gandy, Justin William Lin, Benjamin Marxen, Joseph Marxen, Sono Osato, Dean Russo, Clifford Shikler, Marilou Villanueva. Recognizing the impact of the artists who have created within the studios of 33 Washington Street and their contribution towards Dumbo becoming the artistic epicenter of Brooklyn – Rabbitholestudio presents 11 exciting artists working in a variety of media. 33 Washington Street, DUMBO Brooklyn, 718-852-1500 www.rabbitholestudio.com

RICE
(81 Washington Street, Dumbo, Brooklyn)

Low Bar, The cocktail lounge below RICE
(81 Washington Street, Dumbo, Brooklyn)

Superfine
Live Music, Fine Art, & Fine Dining at Superfine
(126 Front St., Dumbo, Brooklyn)

(Photo Tara Greenwald for BizBash)

1) Artists from Italy + Japan + Superfine + Switzerland + DUMBO!

What: Artists’ Show
When: Fri, August 29, 8pm

7$ at the door

Paranoid Larry and his imaginary band
Paranoid Larry was discovered several years ago on a rooftop here in DUMBO by a video location crew. Since then he’s performed regularly with his imaginary band throughout the country. A highly unique show, blending music,satire, insanity, romance, push-ups and humor.

Joey Cutty samples and scratches live, he’s the kind of dj that’s fun to watch!

Asako Fujimoto
Asako Fujimoto plays analog synthesizer, glockenspiel computer & little tribal instruments. The result, AsakoMusic, is dreamy and spacey, and sung in different languages.

Fa Ventilato
Sound and mash-up artist Fa Ventilato’s freestyle approach incorporates the art of looping, real-time composing and sampling with simultaneous dj-mixing skills. We think this is some of the more interesting music you’ll hear. And he’s very handsome, ahem.

Kenny will make you dazzle!!! change your looks & your life with a precision haircut by master hairstylist Kenny!!!! Last week this was a lot of fun, four of us in the office got GREAT haircuts.

Chris Jordan (seeJ)
…explores the medium of light, movement, and time through the use of technology. His work has appeared at MoMA, The New Museum, The Whitney, The Museum of Natural History, numerous galleries and clubs; and the incidental spaces in between.
www.seej.net / www.t-minus.org

Leigha Pettett
See her paintings at: www.leighapettett.com

Katja Loher
Katja Loher projects her video works onto the surfaces of weather balloons and transforms them into Video-Planets. In Video-Tellurium (2008 work-in-progress) Katja Loher moves the viewer temporarily away from earth into the darkness of space and shows our planet from an exterior perspective. (katjaloher.com)

2) Artists, Music, Visuals, Paintings and Video

What: More artists from Switzerland + DUMBO and even an American!
When: Sat, August 30, 8pm

• Chris Jordan (seeJ)
• Leigha Pettett
• Katja Loher

See above for artist details. Hang out with Galapagos and try their new fall concoction called The Sundeck (Mint leaves, Elderflower Sirop, Champagne, White Wine).

{galapagosartspace.com}