What's New At BCA

BCA to Hold Artists' Town Hall Meeting on Monday, May 12th

May 12 / 7:00-9:00pm / Artists’ Town Hall Meeting
Savoy Room at Hostos Community College
Artists’ Town Hall Meeting for Mott Haven artists and friends. We will discuss: (1) Opportunities for Artists, (2) Current Issues and Concerns, (3) Upcoming Project: Open Studio Tour (tentatively scheduled for Saturday, June 28). Collaboration encouraged with artists and businesses in Mott Haven for those located out of area. Hostos’ Savoy Room is located at 120 East 149th Street (at Walton Avenue, near the Grand Concourse). It is easily accessible by the #2, #4 & #5 trains and BX1 & BX19 buses. Call 718-401-7866 for more info or email lauran@bronxarts.org to RSVP. Admission is free and all are welcome.

Three Bronx Indie Performers kick off BAAD!’s Boogie Down Dance Series on May 9th

Three Bronx Indie performers kick off the Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance’s BOOGIE DOWN DANCE SERIES at 8:00pm on May 9th when BAAD! teams up with the Bronx Council on the Arts to present performances by Bradon McDonald, Nelida Tirado and Jessica Danser in one spectacular dance concert. Bradon McDonald currently dances with the world renowned Mark Morris Dance Company and was recently named one of New York City’s best dancers by the New York Times. Nelida Tirado has danced with Noche Flamenca and Riverdance and the New York Times calls this Flamenco dancing Bronxite "magnificent." Jessica Danser has come into her own as a choreographer and is considered a spawn of BAAD! where she performs regularly as well as other venues throughout the city. This unique program will be followed by a Q&A with the choreographers. The Bronx Academy of Art & Dance is located at 841 Barretto Street in the Hunts Point section of the South Bronx. Click here for directions. Admission: $12. (Bronx Cultural Card discount offered) For further information, call 718-842-5223 or visit BAAD!’s website.

Click here to view press release.

SAVE THE DATE! BCA Celebrates in 45th Birthday on June 4th

BCA will celebrate its 45th Birthday at our Annual Celebration of Bronx Arts on Wednesday, June 4th, 2008, from 5:00-9:00pm as part of First Wednesdays Bronx Culture Trolley at the Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos Community College, 450 Grand Concourse at 149th Street in the Bronx. We are marking this special birthday by honoring three distinguished stalwarts of arts and of The Bronx: Dr. Valerie Capers, internationally acclaimed jazz artist and music educator; Pepón Osorio, internationally recognized sculptor/installation artist and past recipient of the MacArthur “Genius” Award; and Al Quiñones, community and cultural activist who kept 52 Park and Latin Jazz alive in the South Bronx.

Further, we have a menu of very special events taking place on June 4th: the opening of the Longwood exhibition “Other, other . . .”, featuring works by award-winning visual artists of color; the presentation ceremony for our 2008 BRIO Fellowship winners; and of course, our highly regarded Bronx Culture Trolley touring the “hot” cultural spots of the South Bronx. Thank you for your support of arts, culture and The Bronx. Please come and bring family and friends to this special event – take a ride on the Bronx Culture Trolley, see old friends, plan to celebrate our 45th birthday with us on June 4th!

We look forward to seeing you there.


BCA presents "Get It Together 2008" An Arts-in-Education Round Table Symposium on May 6th
The Bronx Council on the Arts (BCA) presents “Get It Together 2008”, an Arts-in-Education (AIE) round table symposium to be held on National Teacher’s Day, Tuesday, May 6th, from 11:00am – 4:00pm, at the Lehman College Art Gallery located in the Art Building, Lehman College, 250 Bedford Park Blvd. West. Click here for directions. This annual county-wide AIE round table is a symposium where both the education and arts communities gather to raise and address pertinent issues while sharing best practices in the field. Professionals come together from the field to facilitate panel presentations, breakout workshops, and participate in a gallery tour and reception. The symposium will afford participants the opportunity to network before and after the presentations. Click here for printable flyer. In addition to individual networking and a showcase of 2007-08 BCA/NYSCA AIE/LCB Student Projects, the day will consist of two sessions and two breakout groups, followed by a gallery tour and an informal networking / wine & cheese reception. For information and to RSVP, contact Americo Casiano Jr. at 718-931-9500 x19 or americo@bronxarts.org.

**2008 Make Music New York takes place on June 21st**
2008 Make Music New York, a free citywide musical celebration, takes place on June 21st. For one day a year -- the first day of summer -- public spaces in all five boroughs become informal musical stages for all New Yorkers, amateurs and professionals, to perform for friends, neighbors, and passers-by, turning the city into a festival of live music making. Click here for this year’s newsletter about the event. It’s long, but important. If you're a musician or location taking part in MMNY, please read it to the end. Deadlines for Signing Up: May 5th & May 9th.

Bronx Artist's Gallery is Home Sweet Home

Bronx Artist and 2007 BRIO winner Blanka Amezkua was frustrated at what she said is a lack of exhibition space in the Bronx — where she lives and teaches art — compared with other areas of the city, so she decided to set up the bedroom of her Mott Haven apartment as a gallery and open it to the public. The Bronx Blue Bedroom Project, the name of her new gallery space, is now a monthly stop on BCA's First Wednesdays Bronx Culture Trolley. Above Blanka puts the last touches on the art installation in her bedroom in her Alexander Avenue apartment in Mott Haven. Click here to read the story. Click here to hear Blanka talk about having an art gallery in her bedroom.

CrossBRONX Launched at April 2nd Bronx Culture Trolley

The official launch of CrossBRONX, BCA’s new online literary journal, took place on April 2, 2008, in conjunction with that evening’s Bronx Culture Trolley event. CrossBRONX contributing writers and BCA representatives who participated in the launch are: (back row, l. to r.) BCA Executive Director Bill Aguado, Bruce Tallerman, Gia Rae Winsryg-Ulmer, CrossBRONX Coordinator Ron Kavanaugh, and Henry Torres; (front row, l. to r.) Mary Ellen Sanger, Eileen McNamee, Luisa Beltran, and CrossBRONX Editor Sonya Chung.

The first issue of CrossBRONX is available online

The first issue of CrossBRONX, BCA’s new online literary journal, is now available. It will be published three times per year encompassing the best writing and digital art with a primary focus on Bronx writers and artists, both emerging and established writers. Click here to view the first issue.

The BRONX BLACK BOOK is now available

The BRONX BLACK BOOK is BCA’s new directory of creative business resources located in the Bronx. It is available free of charge by calling 718-401-7866 or emailing LauraN@bronxarts.org. It is also available online by clicking here. The Bronx Black Book is a project of the South Bronx Cultural Corridor.

Cultural Connections

An Exhibition of Works by Members of BCA's Artisans Initiative
Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos / April 14th – May 10th

The Bronx Council on the Arts celebrates Immigrant Heritage Week with the exhibit Cultural Connections at Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos. A showcase of craft based art and objects that express our cultural connections as immigrant artists/artisans. The featured artists are members of the Artisans Initiative and the local Bronx artisan community. Join us in the celebration! Discover talented local makers of traditional ethnic art and contemporary craft forms.

The gallery is located on the campus of Hostos Community College at 450 Grand Concourse at 149th Street and is easily accessible by the #2, #4, and #5 IRT Trains. Click here for directions. Click here for map of the Hostos area. For additional information, call 718-518-6728, 718-931-9500 x21 or e-mail trolley@bronxarts.org.

Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos

Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos presents Congos, Guloyas y Altares: Afro-Dominican Images, an exhibition of video footage, paintings, drawings, costumes and photographs, as well as the installation of an Afro-Dominican religious altar. The show is co-sponsored by the Bronx Council on the Arts and the Hostos Center for Arts & Culture and will be on view through May 10th. Click here for details.

Special Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos Gallery Tours are Available

School groups, community-based organizations, clubs, cultural organizations, and senior citizens centers are invited to take a specially guided tour of the Longwood Art Gallery @ Hostos current exhibition “Congos, Guloyas y Altares”, a multi-media exhibition celebrating Afro-Dominican culture.

Schedule a FREE, group gallery tour conducted by specially trained cultural guides who will meet your group, introduce them to this fascinating subject, and guide them step-by-step through the exhibition, answering questions and encouraging discussion. These guides are Hostos students who have conducted fieldwork in the Dominican Republic.

“Congos, Guloyas y Altares” celebrates three of the most fascinating traditions of Afro-Dominican culture: the so-called Cocolo culture of San Pedro de Macorís and the Congo and Salve traditions of the village of Mata los Indios, Villa Mella. These are living, breathing and growing expressions of Dominicans in their homeland and in the United States.

To schedule a gallery tour, call 718-518-6631 or email rdelossantos@hostos.cuny.edu

The Longwood Art Gallery is located on the campus of Hostos Community College at 450 Grand Concourse at 149 Street. The college is easily accessible by the IRT 2, 4, 5 and Bx1, Bx19 (to Grand Concourse & East 149th Street).

The Little Trolley That Did…

The Bronx Culture Trolley celebrated its 50th trip in February 2008. And with each of those trips, the Bronx Culture Trolley has grown in popularity and gained increased public awareness, not only in the five boroughs, but nationally and internationally as well. Click here to read about the trolley’s first five successful years.

The Bronx Council on the Arts Seeks Nominations
of Professionals willing to serve on its Grants Panel

Click here for information and Panel Nomination Form

The Bronx Culture Trolley is Considered the "Most Successful of
the City's Trolley Routes" according to a Recent Report

“The Bronx Culture Trolley is widely considered the most successful of the city’s trolley routes” according to an August 2007 report by the Center for an Urban Future. They researched all of the cultural trolleys in the city’s boroughs and our First Wednesdays Bronx Culture Trolley received very impressive and favorable reviews. Click here to view the Bronx Culture Trolley excerpt from full report. Click here to view the full 22-page report.

Top Free Image Editing Software for Windows

The Association for Hispanic Arts (AHA) has shared some helpful information about some top free image editing software for Windows. Click here for a PDF of the list.

2007-2008 Artist in Residence Program

The Bronx Charter School for the Arts invites you to apply to their program for the upcoming 2007-08 school year and/or to pass this message to anyone you know who is an artist and may be interested in working with our students. Click here for details.

Health News for the Arts Community

Click here to view this month's Health News entries.