Thanks for celebrating 1 year! Woohoo!

Hey all!

Thanks to everyone that came out on Saturday night to celebrate backyart's first birthday!  

It was an awesome night full of art, music, food, hilarity, sewing, dancing, singing, glitter, cake, collaboration and celebration!  It gives us so much inspiration for the next year and many to come. 

Some very cool things happened:

- Musicians old and new came together to bring us live music before and after performances- the first time this has happened and it was awesome!  Thanks to Andrew, Jacob and Craig- and to Lindsay and Dave for jamming along.  That's what I like to see (and hear!)

- We were graced with the presence of Grace Jung who performed in June and read her lovely poetry which wove together stories and experiences in a way I have rarely heard before.

- Astrid Andujar installed her paintings downstairs in the studio, recreating and transforming the space from my home and studio into a visually interactive web of color and shape.

-We created the beginning of a quilt(which will be shown in its entirety next month) sewing together squares which you all made- it all seems so symbolic huh?  And funky!

-Twilight of the Idle performed music that made you both wanna dance and question the world around you.

- Jed Clark and his gang made us laugh- ALOT!

-J. Anthony Roman brought us into the past of Mikey's family, revealing a story which was full of sadness, destruction, and as always, idiosyncratic and gritty humor.

-  Nimmers Stern brought us a silent film covered with the laughter of the audience, describing the romance of two people brought together on missed connections (we've all had the fantasy!)

- Filthy Glamour covered our yard and all of us with glitter while they seduced us with their sexy and silly shenanigans.  

- Bronwyn Flemming Jones made a DELICIOUS cake which we all ate in celebration- (I ate 4 pieces...)

Thanks again to everyone who came out and participated- It was outrageously fun.  I can't wait for next year.  

Get ready for upcoming posts with photos and upcoming events from our wonderful artists!

Love ya guys,

Lia

Come join us to celebrate backyart's 1st Bday Sat June 27th

It's backyart's 1st birthday.  

Come join us to celebrate this Saturday!

June 27, 2009 

6:30pm-11pm

649 Metropolitan Avenue

Brooklyn, New York 11211

(L train to Lorimer)

And with our new tent, don't let bad weather deter you from coming out!

 

Art Opening w/ complimentary hors d'oeuvres and music 6:30-7:30pm
Performances Start @ 8:00pm.  

$10 entrance/$5 unltd. beverages.
Snacks and more also available.

A little bit about our participating artists and performances:

banjo playing skills of Andrew Berger-Gross

Andrew Berger-Gross was born at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in

Washington Heights.  He spent his entire life wandering the five

boroughs.  Even his dreams were filled with the sound of the elevated

train and the smell of Halal meat.  Then one day, after sustaining a

minor head injury, he awoke with an unexplainable urge to guzzle

moonshine and strum a banjo.  Tonight, belly flush with barbeque,

Andrew will present a program of traditional songs and dance tunes

from south of the Mason-Dixon line.  To hear some of Andrew's music, click on http://www.myspace.com/abgbanjo

A selection of NYC poet Grace Jung's favorite personal works

Recent Pace University graduate with a BA in English (literature and writing) and philosophy.
Wrote senior thesis on Bill Watterson’s “Calvin and Hobbes” in relation to Postmodernism and Existentialism.
Currently working on a new film, adapted from the short story “Wings.”
Will be conducting research on Modern Korean literature under the Japanese occupation through a Fulbright Full Research Grant in Seoul beginning this fall.

 

The musical stylings of Twilight of the Idle

Twilight of the Idle is an innovative blend of piano-artistry coupled

with politically charged melodies and spoken words. They consist of

songwriter, vocalist, and pianist Rickie Gal, and drummer Lindsay

Haughton. Rickie started the band in 2005, with a different lineup, at

Purchase College. Since then, he has performed all over New York, and

his music has picked up influence from many different genres across

the spectrums of jazz, rock, and folk. Rickie recorded his first

Twilight of the Idle album, "Modesty," this year. He uses music to

inspire change and raise awareness about the issues that he is

passionate about. 

To hear some jams, click on www.myspace.com/twilightoftheidle

 "Chapter 6: Father's Day," by NYC author Anthony J. Roman 

the fifth segment of what will be a year-long dramatic reading series to be presented over the course of backyart '09.  To find out more about Anthony, click on http://janthonyroman.com/

 

Silent film, "Don't Speak."

A silent movie about a couple that meet on missed connections section of Craigslist.
Written & Directed: Nimmers Stern
Cast: Elon Rutburg, Mariana Soares
Musical Score: Michael Slavin
Sound Design: Rob Hubbard

The sketch comedy hilarity of Jedidiah Clarke

Jedidiah Clarke is an actor and writer born and raised in Hell's Kitchen New York City.  He is COOL.  Past titles of his include "It's Crazy Sometimes", "Emotional Lightning", "Woah Mama (Follow Your Dreams)", "Straight Fire", "Back With Fire", "Slamming Fire", and "I"m Gonna Snap (My Job)"   From time to time he collaborates with his friend J. Anthony Roman in a literary performance series called "A Search for a Better Tomorrow".  For more information, including many movie reviews, visit www.seriousland.com

The neo-burlesque performance art of Filthy Glamour

 

Art Installations by:

Astrid Andujar; paintings on wood, exploring environmental and social awareness using vibrant colors and fantastical images

Astrid Andujar (aka AS3) was born in 1989, a native of the Dominican Republic's San Pedro de Macorís before arriving in the New York City borough of the Bronx in the summer of 2003. The Bronx graffiti scene became an immediate influence with many of the Boogie Down's aerosol legends serving as inspiration for her earliest works. Currently earning a degree in Graphic Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology, AS3 has already seen her work at the likes of the Museum of Modern Art and the Bronx Museum of Art. Her current pieces consist of acrylics on wood: colorful with a touch of that urban Bronx flavor all rolled up in fun, futuristic and fantastical fit of anxiety that only today's recession-swamped generation can appreciate!

Douglas Ljungkvist; photos from his "The Quiet City" series

I’m a self-taught Brooklyn based photographer, originally from Sweden.  Photography for me is all about self expression.  My personal work is more about feeling and mood than a decisive moment.  I strive to make the ugly beautiful through my appreciation for the ordinary and keen sensitivity to natural light.  

My color photography studies the urban landscape.  I search for scenes that appeal to my eye or invoke certain feelings, including, familiarity, alienation, or eeriness.  My work is mostly void of people.  Attributes to describe my photographic voice include intuitive, urban, graphic, vernacular, and quiet.  

Lara Katie Goetzl ; selected photos from her "Operator" series

Lara Goetzl was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY where she currently resides, pursuing photography. She graduated from the Institute of Collaborative Education in 2007 and headed for art school at The Fashion Institute of Technology. In 2009 she received her Associates Degree in Arts and Science and decided to continue her educational pursuits and is now currently enrolled in the BFA program. Lara works with many NYC based artists, and, has had her worked published and shown all over NYC. She is currently a contributor at Chief Magazine. She is proud to be a part of Backyart.

 

Liz Magic Laser and Felicia Garcia Rivera

video installation of their film, "Cold Feet."