Category archives: Community Art
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10 years ago
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This spring AFP Arts Education Programs are celebrating the completion of our eighth school year serving NYC Public Schools with exciting, confidence building visual art and music classes and after school programs. AFP Arts Education Programs at the James Baldwin School, Humanities Preparatory Academy, and Hudson High School all expanded this year, and we continue to provide after school music programs at Quest 2 Learn, and at Hudson High School for Learning Technologies. Students at the James Baldwin School asked for an after school program where they could learn music production and beat-making, so AFP implemented a program that brings aspiring producers, rappers and singers together to learn the skills necessary to create professional quality recordings. Humanities Prep's Music Program had unprecedented success this year, introducing a number of talented students to their first instruments, and fostering the continued development of returning students through after school opportunities.
In general, AFP has helped to cultivate the creative culture that is now a primary component of the school. Many students and faculty performed in a talent showcase to end the school year on June 6th. Sophomore Abril Tiburcio brought the house down with her interpretation of Lana Del Rey's "Ride", while 2014 valedictorian and class president Michelle Bello sang The White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army." They were backed by Tiana Bush on bass, and Genesis Castillo pounding out the infect[...]
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10 years ago
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Many thanks to Art For Progress for creating this forum to allow it's artists/bloggers a platform to discuss their multi -creative disciplines as well as specific works of art . I've been a member/artist of AFP for a long time and have happily witnessed their growth over their ten years! As a NYC independent filmmaker for 20 years, I'm glad they asked me to blog about film. Being new to blogging, I was at first excited then nervous. This was due to the many different directions I could take. So I feel the best way to start is from my own experience in directing my first full length feature film entitled "H.O.M.E."
Not to get into my filmography/resume too much but I've been writing, producing and directing short films for 20 years. I've worked in the industry on production crews for most of that span which also includes many various other roles I've played whether in post production, programming or even assisting in running film festivals! Let's just say instead of getting the "ol feet wet" I jumped into the pool and have been swimming ever since. In recent years, I'd been focusing more on my own personal projects to cultivate that "dream career" of being an artist/filmmaker in NYC. Well everyone knows by now how difficult that can be and so you better know how to "hustle" in order to juggle your creative aspirations with the reality of living in the most artistically competitive places on earth. With the personal projects, i.e. short films, I was able to hone in [...]
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11 years ago
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As AFP has now launched its new website, I am excited to be the fashion blogger. As the Fashion Director of Art for Progress, I have worked with the organization from our first event over ten years ago. The organization has matured from a small group of local artists and designers, into a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization comprised of an international representation of art and fashion. I look forward to bringing my insight and love of fashion to the AFP blog. I welcome your comments as well.
Here we are in that time of year where fashion has to stand up to the heat. That usually means style comes in at a distant second to comfort and coolness. With trips to the beach and alfresco dining, everyone wants to be free of complicated ensembles. Now that summer is officially here, lets be cool and comfortable with flair! As artists and art lovers convene here at the AFP site, fashion reflects our sense of creativity and individuality. Here are a few images from some interesting designers who manage to combine ease and versatility.
-Allyson Jacobs
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11 years ago
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Are you ready for Art for Progress 2.0?
This month AFP will celebrate its 10 year anniversary. Over the last 10 years we've produced over 50 major events in NYC, Miami, San Francisco and Washington D.C. AFP has worked with thousands of students in the NYC Public Schools and with each year our programs are growing. AFP's Arts Education Program is supported by a generous grant from the Sansom Foundation which enables AFP to support programs that have lost funding, provide alternative programs for gifted students and community workshops in the summer. We are committed to taking AFP from a small growing organization to a large prospering organization that can have a greater impact for children and artists. Our first step is to launch our new artist blog website (May 19th).
We're only a couple of weeks away from launching the new site and we're excited about all the possibilities. With plans to have guest bloggers writing about the arts, education and events, the site will have plenty of fresh content. We'll also need the artists to do their part by writing in their personal blogs and updating & sharing their work. The new site has all the bells and whistles that modern technology offers, and we're going to do everything we can to make it a huge success. We have a marketing budget to provide the proper exposure for the new site, and our site already ranks on the first page of Google for a number of important searches. Along with the launch of the new site, we'll be kicki[...]
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11 years ago
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Dear Art for Progress Member,
We are excited to announce that we are in the process of creating a new, advanced website for our members. Our current website was created in 2005. As you know, through the years there have been huge advancements in technology for websites. We have updated the site periodically with various improvements, but we decided recently to develop a totally new website. The new website will still have the great functionality, but the new site will be an interactive blog with many advanced functions.
We are planning to launch our new designed web site including an interactive blog section in a few weeks’ time! This process began quite a while ago. Unfortunately, we experienced many challenges along the way, but we are very close now, and we hope that you will be as excited as we are to experience the new site!
We are also updating the artist page section. For visual artists, the process for uploading your work will be the same. For music and video, you will now be able to embed your music via Soundcloud, Mixcloud and other similar sites. In the video section, you will be able to embed links via YouTube or Vimeo.
In your personal blog section, you will be able to post your work, daily activities, anything related to your artistic passions, or even something that you feel is worth sharing. As an active AFP member you will also have the ability to easily connect with other AFP members. Some other features include; the three most read blogs, as w[...]
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New York City 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization, Art for Progress (AFP) will bring its support and celebration of equality during NYC's Gay Pride Weekend, with "Artists 4 Equality" June 28th through 30th, 4-11pm. The organization's second annual music and arts festival will take place at Solar One Park, located in Manhattan on the East River at 23rd Street. Featuring live bands, DJ's, performance and installation art, along with great food, beer and wine, it will be a top destination during NYC's Pride Weekend.
Solar One Park is the perfect outdoor summer venue for the festival which will kick off on Friday evening June 28th. The opening night will feature live music performances from some of the most exciting emerging artists in NYC including the super talented Ellis Ashbrook, while Saturday's focus will shift to DJ and electronic music culture with DJ/Producer Hector Romero headlining the evening. On Sunday, NYC Cielo resident DJ/Producer Tedd Patterson will headline the night as both live music and DJ's share the stage. Cutting edge performance and installation art will be featured all three days as we turn the park into a virtual adult playground of art & music.
Confirmed Artists: Hector Romero, Tedd Patterson, Ellis Ashbrook, Michael Alan, Kim Holleman, Idgy Dean, Andy Slate, Roxy Cottontail, Kevin Graves, Daniel Maldonado, Gatto, Lachi, Cat Del Buono, Tunacola, Berette Macaulay, Bass Control, Comandante Zero, Sindy Butz, Bonesugar, Caridad Sola, Atilla the Hun,[...]
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PHILOSOPHY
While public schools in New York City have been working hard to meet federal and state mandates for student test scores, arts education programs have become scarce. At Art for Progress, it is our mission to reverse this trend by delivering quality Arts Education programs to the students of New York City’s public schools. Our programs are designed and implemented by professional educators and teaching artists who have a wealth of experience in arts education in public schools and community-based after school programs. In addition, Art for Progress works closely with teachers and administrators at client schools to design programs for students that deepen their understanding of core subject areas. Through arts education, students make connections between material covered in class and their community; they will explore other cultures and examine human experience from a variety of perspectives and artistic forms.
In 2008 the our Arts Initiative became official when teaching artists began residencies in New York City public schools. The first beneficiaries of this innovative program were Landmark High School in Manhattan and Shorefront Y After- School Stars @ PS 225. At Landmark High our artist in residence designed a weekly visual arts elective for students in grades 9 and 10. In addition, AFP developed a multidisciplinary arts and humanities curriculum that worked in conjunction with Landmark’s Global Studies program. The purpose of this curriculum was to provide st[...]
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11 years ago
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On Sunday, we have another spectacular line-up of music & art, and the festivities get started just around the time the parade ends. Sunday's DJs & performers will take us on a bit of a different trip with a little more electro, a hip hop beat, or two and of course that big pop remix, but we're not trying to categorize Mr. Tedd Patterson. That would be impossible.
When Tedd steps to the decks a true musical journey will begin. Those who are familiar with his sets understand what to expect- a perfectly selected fusion of many dance music genres, and even a little bit of the unexpected. Tedd's long running residency at NYC's Cielo is a mainstay in the dance music community and a place where dance music aficionados gather every month to experience Tedd's creative, dynamic sets. On the other hand, if you like the more popular vibe in today's dance music sound, we have plenty of that as well.
We're pleased to have Ms. Chaisley Lussier playing with us for the first time, Chaisley will be joining us from Philadelphia where she's been creating a name for herself with her many talents. Though she hales from the city of brotherly love , NYC has a lot of love for Chaisley too. You can find her playing at some of the cooler spots around town quite regularly.
Next to take the stage will be AFP favorite Kevin Graves. When Kevin's not remixing the latest pop chart buster, he's traveling internationally spinning at top spots, creating major buzz and doing what he does bes[...]
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11 years ago
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Art for Progress will feature a special night of live music performances on Friday, June 29th from 4pm - 11pm at Solar One Park (East 23rd Street & East River) as part of the "Artists4Equality" Festival. We are so pleased to present such an exciting line-up of gifted bands, musicians, singers and song writers at Solar One Park on Friday night. Some are still a bit underground, while others have produced multiple albums and play regularly at the best live music venues in NYC, but all will be equally impressive. There's no doubt that Solar One Park will be the place to hear live music on Friday night.
Opening up the festival (5pm) will be AFP's long time member, teacher and board member Barry Komitor. Barry's an accomplished performer who will have a full back up band in tow to perform his soon to be completed album and some other favorites. It will be the perfect beginning to a spectacular night.
Next to take the stage at 6pm will be the multi-talented Lachi and her band. Lachi, who's music is most described as jazz-influenced, piano driven alternative rock, performs regularly at SXSW and CMJ in NYC. Lachi is known for her high energy, mesmerizing performances and exceptional song writing.
The newly formed electro pop duo Bonesugar will take the stage at 7pm and from what we're hearing their sound is influenced by Kanye West and Timbaland. Expect hip hop beats, live drums with indie vocals.
The next performer to take the stage, Idgy Dean, is the solo act of Brook[...]
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12 years ago
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We are gearing up for an incredible festival next weekend, and look forward to experiencing art and music in all their glory. With some of NYC's most innovative artists on board for installations, look no further than the East River.
For AFP's "Artists4Equality," Michael Alan will be drawing his life long love who will be donned in a hand made painted dress and custom designed accessories created by Alan. In a 5 hour act of love, devotion and romance, witness Alan, the line maestro, will create many drawings live while celebrating their love in a piece titled, "Love is the Only."
"Even the reclining male figure of Prostitution looks restless- the angular, attenuated limbs and their busy surfaces bring to mind one of Egon Schiele's more anxious self portraits." - Robert Shuster, The Villiage Voice, Best in Show
Kim Holleman is best known for her seminal work, “Trailer Park: A Mobile Public Park,” which has been featured in the NY Times and shown at several different sites in the city.
In Holleman's words, her installation at Solar One Park is an enormous Festival Flag which will fly in Stuyvesant Park. The fabric flag is huge, brightly colored and has metallic elements, so it acts as a terrific visual marker and color-pops against the sky. I designed to have some dimensionality too, so when it catches the wind, it fills out creating some interesting 3D shapes as it flows.
I had the idea that the patchwork in the flag was the perfect symbol for the gatherin[...]
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12 years ago
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We’re thrilled to be featuring three days of interactive, thought-provoking performance art at Solar One Park for our upcoming “Artists4Equality” Festival. Artists Caridad Sola, Sindy Butz, and Cocoon NYC will perform original pieces on all three days. We are so pleased to have these talented artists on board, and their performances are not to be missed!
Caridad Sola is known for pushing boundaries and creating emotional, thought-provoking art. If you have been fortunate enough to see one of her performances, you know that it is always fresh and exciting. Broaching topics from romantic relationships to politics, Caridad is sure to bring us performance art filled with energy and emotion.
We were fortunate to work with artist Sindy Butz during our “Mixed Greens” series last year. Through an artistic form of experimental dance called “Butoh,” Sindy creates edgy, ethereal performances. As an artist, Sindy Butz is not afraid to touch on human experiences that are common to us all, and cross racial and sexual boundaries. This time she will have us thinking of marriage and getting married.
Cocoon NYC, curated and led by artist Sherry Aliberti, is a project that revolves around multiple persons and experimental dance in a very special “cocoon.” Interactive and symbolic of life, their performances breathe energy and newness to the air.
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