Saturday Morning Lights (SML), the Poughkeepsie City School District Community School’s flagship initiative, is set to return. This year’s SML will provide PCSD students and families grades PreK-12 opportunity to engage in academic enrichment, positive youth development, and family bonding experiences from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. on Saturdays starting Oct. 15, 2022 and ending June 17, 2023 at Poughkeepsie Middle School.
The Art Effect hosts several visual and media workshops throughout the programs including painting and digital music projects! Click here for more information about The Art Effect’s After School Enrichment Programs. Students will engage in a variety of project-based academic courses and interactive enrichment activities. Course options include creative writing, robotics, book club, math enrichment, and more. In these project-based learning classes, teachers design lessons to support students’ academic needs while also engaging them in interactive activities, collaborative group work, and problem-solving.
All students and families in grades PreK-12 are encouraged to attend. Once enrolled, students and families will be given a schedule confirming their enrollment and the courses they are taking. Learn more and register at PoughkeepsieSchools.org
Membership into the NAHS gives excel level students participating in the Art Institute, MADLab, the Youth Curatorial Team, or Spark Studios at The Art Effect access to college scholarships from the NAEA (National Art Education Association). Furthermore, NAHS members are seen as leaders in their field and often receive priority treatment when applying to college. The average member in good standing, upon graduation has received $6,000 in scholarship dollars to attend college. Six of our graduates have even received the $60,000 NAEA scholarship to attend Pratt Institute’s Art Education program!
NAHS students will organize, plan, and host various art activities and projects to benefit the surrounding communities, such as our annual video & photography competition, Reel Exposure, gallery exhibits at the Trolley Barn Gallery, fun excursions to other galleries and museums, and Hudson Valley Regional Portfolio Week.
Posted October 7th, 2022 — Filed under News, Spark Studios
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Spark Studios students are learning the basic fundamentals of photography this fall with a new group of teens ages 14-19. This semester, students learn filmmaking and videography in order to develop their film production and professional skills including:
Working with clients on commercial videos
Bringing a creative vision to life across stages of production
Youth who complete Spark Studios can earn a $100 stipend. The Art Effect’s Youth Workforce Training Programs empowers youth to develop their artistic voice to shape their futures by giving them the opportunity to develop real skills, and guiding them towards achieving their academic and career goals.
Fall semester of Spark Studios runs September 27 – November 17, 2022, 3:00-5:30pm at the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory, 8 North Cherry Street, Third Floor, Poughkeepsie, NY 12508
Spark Studios teaches film and media arts to empower youth’s voices, build workforce development skills, provide paid work experience, and help students get on a path to college and career success. Youth in Spark Studios learn filmmaking, photography, digital media production, and create media projects in teams and for community clients.
The festival that brought in more than 700 people over the course of three days was a “Huge Success” says Nicole Fenichel-Hewitt, Executive Director of The Art Effect who also runs the Trolley Barn Gallery in Poughkeepsie, NY. “We are so proud of what the students in our community have helped create. Not only are their futures looking bright, but we got a glimpse into how bright the future of public art throughout Poughkeepsie is and what it can mean for this community,” says Nicole.
The PKX Festival serves as a building block to the development of Youth Arts Empowerment Zone, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts Our Town Grant, establishing a youth-led arts district in and around the Trolley Barn Gallery, the only youth-led gallery in the state! “The Youth Arts Empowerment Zone is an integral part of our community. The festival is another great example of how the arts in Poughkeepsie are providing an avenue for people to come together and be proud of where they live,” says Poughkeepsie Mayor, Rob Rolison. The mayor declared September 17, 2022 as PKX Day in the City of Poughkeepsie which will reoccur for each year’s festival.
Over the last eighteen months, PKX Festival Youth Committee consisting of Poughkeepsie High School students and alumni worked alongside artist duo BoogieREZ and Curator Alison M. Glenn to create and curate various art experiences throughout the festival including a public art installation and an artfully curated exhibition. The PKX Committee is one of The Art Effect’s newest youth training programs at the Trolley Barn Gallery where students learn and practice public speaking skills, conduct presentations to government officials and learn about place making – a people-centered approach to planning, designing and managing public spaces.
“Being a part of the Youth Curatorial Team has made me a more dynamic thinker. I feel so much more confident in my idea processing. Also, seeing the [Wonderland] exhibition come together makes me proud of myself and my colleagues, because we put so much effort and heart into this festival and I’m so excited for the community to experience it.” says Jadeen Sampson, Curatorial Team and PKX Festival Youth Member
The Art Effect is interviewing and hiring the next group of PKX Committee youth to help plan the 2023 PKX Festival, “Droppin’ Jewels” next fall and promises to be even bigger and better with more than 1,000 people in attendance. “Seeing the exhibition come together makes me proud of myself and my colleagues because we put so much effort and heart into this festival,” comments Jadeen,. “The main goal is to do it again, we want it to be a success.” he said.
To get involved with The Art Effect in the development of the Youth Arts Empowerment Zone, or the PKX Festival, reach out to PKXFestival@TheArtEffect.org or to see a gallery of photos from this year’s festival and stay up to date on the plans for next year, visit PKXFestival.org
Welcome BACK TO SCHOOL🏫 , Back to Art Class 🎨, and Back to the National Art Honor Society!
The Art Effect is currently recruiting for the 2022-2023 school year. The Art Effect’s National Art Honor Society (NAHS) Chapter #2242 recognizes 9th-12th grade students of high academic and artistic standing throughout the Hudson Valley. The NAHS encourages students to reach their highest level of professionalism and prepares students for a career in the arts. Members serve their community by designing and painting public murals, raising money for scholarships and local organizations, creating public art projects, participating in community art events, and helping set up student exhibits. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙢𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙧𝙩 𝙀𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙮𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙮. Learn more about the National Art Honor Society Here.
Want to call the shots on the next big arts exhibition in Poughkeepsie? Ever wonder how galleries or museums choose what’s on the walls? What even IS a curator? Learn to generate a theme, jury a national call for entries, and hang the work as a part of the Trolley Barn Gallery youth curatorial team!
The Trolley Barn Gallery youth curatorial team is the team of youth who will be leading the decision-making around Trolley Barn Gallery exhibitions for Winter/Spring 2022. Successful applicants will be able to commit to attending all sessions (which adds up to about 3 days per month) and will receive a $500 stipend in bi-weekly installments, as well as recognition for their leadership.
Tuesday – Thursday, 3-5:30pm | Fall 2022 Session: October 4th – December 14th | Spring 2023 Session: February 6th – June 6th
The Trolley Barn Gallery is seeking new members for the Youth Curatorial Team – who make exhibition curation decisions and are mentored by expert curators and artists in the field of art and museums!
What started out as a class project during one of The Art Effect’s youth workforce programs, MADLab (Media, Art, Design Lab), has become a staple image throughout downtown Poughkeepsie over the last couple months. As one of The Art Effect’s youngest workforce students, Latiana Belton is the talented artist behind the now ‘famous’ PKX Festival Logo!
The PKX Festival will take place on September 15-17, 2022 in downtown Poughkeepsie activating locations along Main Street and North Cherry Street as the new Youth Arts Empowerment Zone (YAEZ).
“It feels exciting to see the logo that I created everywhere, says Latiana. The logo is not only a part of a cool new arts festival but is also featured in a public art sculpture we worked on this summer with Artist Duo, BoogieREZ that will be unveiled at the Festival on Saturday, September 17.”
PKX Festival serves as a building block to the development of Youth Arts Empowerment Zone, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts Our Town Grant, establishing a youth-led arts district in and around the Trolley Barn Gallery, the only youth-led gallery in the state! This year’s festival themed, Wonderland, features community-wide art, performances, and workshops. Throughout the year, PKX Festival Youth Committee Members worked alongside artist duo BoogieREZ and Curator Alison M. Glenn to create and curate various art experiences throughout the festival including a public art installation and an artfully curated exhibition.
“Community art-making is at the heart of the PKX Festival.” Says Nicole Fenichel-Hewitt, Executive Director at The Art Effect who also runs the Trolley Barn Gallery in Poughkeepsie, NY. “From painting the pavement to workshops, music, face painting, juried exhibition, and partner booths — there is something for everyone at PKX this weekend.”
Latiana’s PKX logo will be on display throughout the festival and can be found stenciled along Main Street’s sidewalks, on tee shirts for sale, and it will even be featured in the interactive public art installation that we invite the public to come add their mark to!
For the full schedule and more information about the festival lineup, visit PKXFestival.org
Posted August 25th, 2022 — Filed under News, PKX Spotlight
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Wonderland welcomes an array of media, including digital media, painting, collage, textiles, and installations. Wonderland reimagines the Trolley Barn 3,000 square foot gallery as an transcendental empire of cosmic expansion and ephemeral fascination. We find excitement in the curious. We invite work that disrupts standard notions of reality by exploring the Wonderland we create for ourselves. We ask – we recklessly ponder – how can your art help us reimagine our reality and create positive change in our community?
The Trolley Barn Gallery brings together an international roster of vital voices; presenting thought-provoking artwork and ideas in a renovated industrial space that is the hub for the area’s thriving arts scene. The Wonderland International Juried Exhibition is the point of entry to the PKX Wonderland Festival, September 15-17, 2022. The PKX Wonderland Festival will attract hundreds of visitors and feature the unveiling of original public art commissions, performances, and creative activities in and around the Trolley Barn Gallery.
The public is invited to the opening reception at the Trolley Barn on Friday, September 15, from 5 pm to 9 pm
Juror: Allison M. Glenn in collaboration with youth from The Art Effect’s Curatorial Program Exhibition Dates: Sept 15 – Oct 20, 2022 Opening: September 15, 5-9pm
The Wonderland International Juried Exhibition is the point of entry to the PKX Wonderland Festival,Wonderland reimagines the Trolley Barn 3,000 square foot gallery as an otherworldly empire of wonder, illusion and surprise. We invite work that disrupts standard notions of reality through sensory excess (texture, color, light, sound) and/or unexpected visual mischief. We ask, and wonder, how can your art help us reimagine our reality and create positive change in our community? Allison Glenn works collaboratively with The Art Effect’s Youth Curatorial Team to curate the Wonderland exhibition, selecting artworks from submissions from around the globe. Glenn received substantial critical and community praise for her curatorial work in the groundbreaking exhibition at the Speed Art Museum in Louisville, Kentucky titled, Promise, Witness, Remembrance, an exhibition that reflected on the life of Breonna Taylor, centered on her portrait painted by Amy Sherald. The New York Times selected the exhibition as one of the Best Art Exhibitions of 2021.
Posted August 25th, 2022 — Filed under News, PKX Spotlight
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The Art Effects Youth Workforce Programs had the opportunity to work alongside PKX Featured Artist, BoogieRez, a duo artist team inspired by the Hip Hop culture that incorporates a creative blend of music, photography, illustration, painting, graphic design, dance, fashion design and sculpture into their work.
As a part of the annual PKX Festivals, youth work closely with a selected artist that they feel fits the theme, mission, and goals of the chosen PKX Festival theme each year as part of the the Youth Arts Empowerment Zone. After selecting a theme, students research artists, send out RFP’s and undergo the artist selection process.
For the 2022 PKX: Wonderland Festival, The Art Effect’s youth and BoogieRez began working on a unique public art piece we are thrilled to unveil at this year’s PKX Festival. From a whirlwind trip to BoogieRez’s studio in New York City in the spring to spend weeks in the summer constructing an interactive public sculpture, The youth had insightful conversations about the influence of public art in the city of Poughkeepsie and spent a lot of time creating, laughing, and planning this year’s PKX Festival!
Visit The PKX Festival on September 17, 2022 for the official unveiling and to hear from all the artists involved
“Honestly my creative adventure really started in Poughkeepsie once I met Rez. It’s a magical place, Poughkeepsie, it really is. It is amazing that there is just so much different culture in Poughkeepsie. There is a lot of hidden and not-so-hidden talent in the city” – Riiisa Boogie of BoogieRez.
“Hopefully we are beacons to help you get wherever you want to get to creatively” – Rez Ones of BoogieRez.
Posted August 25th, 2022 — Filed under News, PKX Spotlight
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You can invest in your community and the youth by purchasing event sponsorships or journal ads for the first annual PKX Arts Festival, Wonderland. Sponsorships are a unique way you can support The Art Effect’s mission to make a positive change in the lives of those we serve. The PKX: Wonderland Festival, taking place on September 15-17th, 2022, is the physical manifestation of local youth’s vision for an idyllic Poughkeepsie, and an opportunity for art to not only reflect lived experiences, but also shape a new reality. This youth arts festival is incredibly important for the City of Poughkeepsie and the arts community. This event will not only attract large crowds to downtown Poughkeepsie, but it will provide an opportunity to showcase local agencies and performing artists.
Event sponsorships are a unique way to support The Art Effect and The PKX Festival. As a sponsor, your company will enjoy a host of exceptional perks and will receive high profile recognition across multiple marketing channels.
