An art trip to New York, with Silvia Russel. By Judy van Blaricon

A few weeks ago I went with Silvia Russel on a trip for borough(ed) stories-  I wasn’t to sure about this goal, or what it meant. But I really wanted to find out how a fellow-artist would ‘do New York’. I had never done that. And I like to share some here.

I live in Amsterdam, the city in which my father met my mother. He came from Indiana. He had travelled the world searching for something, and he found many things. For some reason the urge to leave must have been strong, cause he didn’t like to fly. He’d avoid the plane if possible. So when he wanted to introduce his future wife to his parents, he took the boat from Rotterdam to New York. All this I had to think of, jogging along the Hudson; all that is made possible 400 years ago, and how we shape current reality.

I met Silvia Russel at a Dutch network called Bites and Business. We liked each others ideas and doings. So when I heard about her plan, I asked if I could come too. This was fine, if I would to join the project”. I would bring reflections on the project in a constant flow. As well as do some thorough documentation. We both thought this a very good idea. That I am actually American could help too. ( like our own version of NY400.) Three days later we were on the plane. Work to do.

I asked if there was a plan. Borough(ed) stories- is the name of a book of her work, and it was going to be launched. Silvia’s gallery organized it for within two weeks, so she wanted to visit the gallery and check out how things were going.
The gallery turned out te be very nice. LMAKprojects.  and it is represented by a a great women (who happens to be Dutch.) Silvia also wanted to return to Bed Stuyvesant. For whom this name doesn’t ring a bell (despite famous connections as Spike Lee and notorious B.I.G ) : Bedford-Stuyvesant is a neighborhood in the central portion of New York city, USA, borough of Brooklyn.

Silvia has lived there some time ago. I guess that already is a sign that Bed Stuy was going upscale, and cappuccino, curry and Char-donnay already had mostly elbowed out crack in smalls’ old stamping grounds (not my line).

This process of upscale is also referred to as gentrification:  the change in an urban area associated with the movement of more affluent individuals into a lower-class area. Interesting maybe, but much more if you read insights on this of a Bed Stuy blogger, who quotes the artist Banksy.

I joined the first day but it didn’t work for me. I felt guilty. A useless and typical Dutch reaction. Silvia however, went every day. She helped to distribute packages of food (a.o) and listened to the stories of the people she met. This exchange is important. I could very much relate to the stories she shared. I did my work from Manhattan. We talked a lot. In a week or so the date of the launch was set with it’s perfect location: Participants Inc. at the Lower East side. Very good place for many insights on the topic.

It all worked out very well. For me, here the documentation stops. The stories I can’t tell you. They have become drawings by now.

It could be the book is still available at the Dutch museum for modern art, Het Stedelijk Museum. In september Silvia Russel will exhibit in New York at the White Box with Towing the Line, Drawing Space: 40 Contemporary Dutch Artists Defining the Moment in Holland. I have a a great time, am truly grateful for the opportunity, and glad I took it too. Off to the next creative journey, which can take us anywere!

About the author
Judy van Blaricon is  born in the Netherlands, in 1969.
Own company in online communication; heyjude.info
Studies art at the Rietveld Academie; Dogtime.

About the Artist
Silvia Russel is born in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, in 1969
Visual Artist http://www.silviarussel.com/index.html Works and lives in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

By Renny Ramakers

I am writing this blog while working on the last preparations for Pioneers of Change. These last moments are as usual full of tensions. We have disagreements with the graphic designers, who think that we are making too many changes in the texts, with the risk of destroying their precise design. They are right, with so many parties involved in the process and people on holidays, changes after changes came.

We will try to get our signage system placed on the island without disturbing their rules and regulations. We want a huge bill board, shouting: LAND! It should be the first thing you see when arriving by boat.  Let’s keep our fingers crossed… We asked the designer of the VIP room, which is furnished with Droog pieces,  to change his beautiful design. The balloons he envisioned hanging from the ceiling turned out to be not a good idea because we just heard from one of our team members that she is allergic to latex. Yesterday we rejected the designer’s alternative, again very charming, but not environmentally sound. We feel we are driving him crazy, but we are convinced that he will come with another beautiful solution.

We are negotiating with New York catering companies because we have the feeling that they are overcharging us. We have to arrange extra toilets because we expect 700 people to attend our VIP opening. Security rules oblige us to fence our space during the opening and have the audience checked for their age. Now we have to design wristbands that they can wear as proof of being over 21. That’s all because we are serving delicious cocktails.

Our two sweet interns, we call them Tom & Jerry,  are stuffing the invitations in the envelopes while watching a movie.  I hope that can be sent out today because they proceed very slowly. Tomorrow the last shipment will leave the country and the team will fly over next week, surely to what will be an exciting event.

And at the other side of the ocean our New York team is busy having the houses cleaned and preparing all electrical matters. Sixty different second hand chairs for the Open Talks house are waiting to be painted. We really did not want to ship a lot of stuff and rely as much as possible on old furniture to be found in New York. I was a bit worried about being able to find so many of them. But our New York producer did!
Our New York team also found 15 elderly people, eager to serve food and drinks in our Go Slow house, A tough job to spot elderly people living in elderly people’s homes that actually look like elderly people are supposed to look and not like those botoxed and facelifted old girls so common in the U.S.  But we have got them! And they will serve you slowly but attentively.

It’s no wonder two weeks time before the event, that the moment is full of scary excitement, when bringing together so many parties and bridging two continents. I can’t wait to be on Governors Island, to see the results and to hear all the reactions of the visitors.

About the author
Renny Ramakers conceived and curated Pioneers of Change, and is art critic and co-founder and director of Droog, the conceptual design company which was set up in 1993. She organizes design exhibitions, is member of the jury of various design prizes and is giving lectures and workshops worldwide. Ramakers took part in governmental advisory boards, amongst others as a member of the Council of Culture (1995-2001). As an art critic, Ramakers wrote for international magazines, books and catalogues and published several books under her own name.

ALSO READ: Pioneers of Change: A Sneak Preview

By Emma Blijdenstein

I don’t know much about dance or ballet. I think the last time I saw a performance was, well uhm… twenty years ago, in Amsterdam. Yesterday’s performance in the Joyce Theater however, was breathtaking, and made me realize I should see dance more often.

During a riveting two-hour show, The Nederlands Dans Theater II wowed a packed house. The troupe, premiering its show in the US, performed four pieces, all by their in-house choreographers.

I especially enjoyed ‘Sleepless’ by Jiri Kylian. With insect-like fever, dancers popped in and out through slits in a screen, sometimes only showing heads and hands from behind the canvas. The visual effects were sober, clean, and powerful. Very Dutch in fact. (more…)

By Roger van der Poel, dancer of the NDT II Dutch dance company, performing in New York April 9 - 12

There is something in the air… A group of 16 young dancers and crew experience a feeling… For some the excitement of their first time, for others the enjoyment of a revisited destination: New York City!!!

We all meet at our Theater in The Hague. The NDT staff leave the offices for a couple of minutes to say good-bye and wish good luck.
The bus trip to New York becomes a “stage” for all the morning jokes and excited smiles of the whole crew… photo and video cameras begin their battery countdown.. (more…)

By Alissia Melka-Teichroew

Fashioning Felt Exhibit is an exhibit currently shown at Cooper Hewitt. The exhibition focuses on felt that has been produced by traditional hand- or machine-felting processes. The pieces shown, range from clothing to furniture, from jewelry to felt installations.

The set up of the exhibit to me is in some ways interesting and inspirational, especially the pieces from the early 19th and 20th century from Japan and Turkey, also the video showing how felt is still being made in Mongolia. However I had hoped they would show more of the process of felting (both industrial and handmade felting methods), to give the viewer even more sense of what they are looking at. Another downside, is the fact that there is very little touching involved nor any of the raw wool available to see or feel. As a designer I have some knowledge of felting and the work that goes into it, but this is not something everyone knows, and thus can appreciate, if they are not educated. The catalogue of the exhibit however seems to give a clearer view on felt as a material. (more…)