Here is part 2: http://www.newrochelletalk.com/content/new-rochelle-arts-fest-2010-artists-open-studios
Today’s magnificent weather was a perfect complement to the wonderful two day “Hop On-Hop Off Arts Festival” in New Rochelle. The event runs October 2nd and 3rd from 12:00-5:00. We enjoyed a full day of activities throughout the city with the entire family and it was mostly free. The free trolley was fun!
Our day started with free ice cream (thanks Webster Bank!) at the New Rochelle Public Library where a lively juggling show was entertaining a good sized crowd in the Library Green.
Backstreet Gallery
We popped our head into the Backstreet Gallery where the artist Jeff Schlanger (http://musicwitness.com) answered questions about his dynamic artwork. He paints jazz artists on the spot in concerts, as they are performing their solos. Pretty amazing! He was planning on doing a piece today. The mural in the library lot is by him.
Music on the Trolley
We jumped on the trolley and enjoyed tenor banjo music by a talented and fun musician, Richard Stillman. He performed a variety of styles of music from Cohen’s “Give my Regards to Broadway” to “Moondance” by Van Morrison. According to his card Richard Stillman (http://richardstillman.com) is an actor, musician, singer, storyteller, and tap dancer. He plays the banjo, mandolin, guitar, bagpipes and ukulele. He was a wonderful part of the day.
Mini Sculptures on Pencil Points
At Iona’s Art Center we were fascinated by the micro-sculpture of Brazilian born Dalton Ghetti. The artist took the time to explain to us his technique of creating his mini-sculptures on the top of found pencils. His tools are very simple – an X-acto knife, razor blade, and bent needle. He set up a workbench showing how he creates his pieces. The pencils were beautifully framed with tiny signatures.
According to a handwritten note in his mocked up work area, the artist makes a living as a carpenter/house remodeler and “sharpens” pencils as a hobby/meditation. Magnifying glasses were provided by the gallery to view the artwork, though the artist does not use them to make his sculptures.
He told us, that he only uses found pencils or ones given to him because he likes pencils with character. The kids loved this exhibit. He signed postcards for us, but would not sell any of his pieces, has no website and no card, a true artist.
Legos at the Huguenot Children’s Library
We walked up to the Huguenot Children’s Library and did legos for a while. This was a popular stop with up to 60 children at a time busily building. Brick Builders did the event. Their website is http://www.brickbuilders.net and they do birthday parties. The Jack’s Friendship Playground was very busy; many families were enjoying the idyllic weather.
Transform Gallery
The Trolley then dropped us off at the Transform Galleries at 20 Jones Street (http://transformgalleries.com/about/). It is a gorgeous gallery for custom made cabinetry and was accented by beautiful and colorful artwork including pieces done by New Rochelle born Kenneth Dinkel.
The gallery makes you stop and consider getting bamboo shelving, red leather dining room chairs and origami chandeliers. The luxury closets have drawers for every need, plus huge sparkly glass sliding doors. The abstract Kenneth Dinkel artwork perfectly accented the sample rooms, some pieces were even done for the spaces.
Charles Fazzino Art Studio
We bumped into Mayor Bramson at the Charles Fazzino art studio at 32 Relyea Place, which was open for tours.
The tidy rooms housed busy artists gluing and cutting the imaginative and colorful dioramas for which Charles Fazzino is world famous. What was most interesting about the tour is witnessing the long process by which the art pieces are made. This includes the design, sketching, inking, coloring, copying, cutting, gluing, glittering and even the adding of Swarovski crystals to the mini car headlights.
One artist said it takes 4 boxes of 12 tubes of silicon for a large piece! Dollops of silicon are what lift the layers of paper and give the artwork the 3-D look. The artists were putting the final touches on a Yankee Stadium piece for Eva Longoria. Tomorrow the artist will be on site and children will get the opportunity to do an art project at 1:00pm. Items are available to purchase, including t-shirts and decoupage tvs.
Congratulations for a Great Show
The New Rochelle Arts Fest has enough activities for two or even more days of touring. Our resident artists are obviously working hard and being very creative, honing their craft. Everyone was so friendly and informative. They were kind to the children. Kudos to event organizers and participants. Great job to one and all!
Today the city sparkled with activity, artists and good vibes. Maybe next year two trolleys are in order. Plus, maybe, hello out there, can some sharp techie make an I-Phone app for tracking the trolley?
Helpful Links
Here are some helpful links –
New Rochelle Council on the Arts – http://www.newrochellearts.org/
New Rochelle Downtown BID — http://www.newrochelledowntown.com/
Click here to read about the artists who opened their studios on Sunday.
http://www.newrochelletalk.com/content/new-rochelle-arts-fest-2010-artists-open-studios
