Archive for the "Trolley Barn Gallery" Category

Youth Arts Empowerment Zone & Trolley Barn Gallery Community Clean-Ups

The Youth Arts Empowerment Zone (YAEZ) and Trolley Barn Curatorial Team are collaborating to initiate a series of community clean-ups around the Trolley Barn Gallery on Main St., Poughkeepsie. The youth are calling on all community members to join in making a positive impact in the neighborhood. If your interested group has more than five volunteers please email info@thearteffect.org at least 3 days before the cleanup!

This effort is supported by the Environmental Protection Fund through the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. These environmental clean-ups are scheduled for March 30, April 13, April 27, June 8, July 19, and August 3, and will provide opportunities for youth to actively engage in improving their local environment.

This last month it’s been an educational experience for me learning about the pollution prevention process. The clean up around the Trolley Barn Gallery along with the presentation/activities has made a sense of community and pride about our Earth. 
-Chanel Reed, member of the Trolley Barn Curatorial Team

In celebration of this community effort The Trolley Barn Gallery is hosting an international open call for artists to submit to be part of their upcoming exhibition, Earth’s Reflection. The gallery is interested in bringing together artists who specialize in work that brings attention to pollution prevention. The deadline to submit is April 22, 2024. This exhibition will be open from June 14 through August 9, 2024. 

Curator’s Corner: Mary Elizabeth Boatey on “And the Moon Be Still as Bright” at Harper’s Gallery

As part of The Art Effect’s curatorial workforce development program, youth curators attend gallery shows in the Hudson Valley and New York City and write reviews of what they’ve seen.

Member of the Trolley Barn Curatorial Team, Mary Elizabeth Boatey shares her thoughts on a recent show at Harper’s Gallery in Chelsea.

Located on West 22nd St, Chelsea 512 currently houses the “And the Moon Be Still as Bright” group exhibition, displayed among several other historical and influential art galleries. Founded in 1997, the Harpers Gallery embedded themselves within the heart of  New York City’s art district, flourishing within the complex minds of the world’s creatives. 

“And the Moon Be Still Bright,” an initially niche but progressively enticing phrase, originates from American writer, Ray Bradbury, author of science fiction novel the Martian Chronicles. The story highlights the preservation of land, describing a familiar tale involving exploration and settlement on newly colonized regions in Mars. The specific title “And the Moon Be Still Bright” references a chapter within the novel describing desperate attempts to save and prevent the internal pollution of Mars at the hands of the new inhabitants from earth. The pieces within this exhibition mimic that sort of natural space both graciously untouched and riddled with destruction. Each artist takes on this theme in a unique way exploring the different “found” mediums equally mimicking the exploration of new areas in the Martian Chronicles.

What initially drew me to this exhibition was my natural love for maximalism and the implication of organized clutter in a lot of art. In regards to the appreciation of nature, the art ranges thematically from the beauty of the past, to the uncertainty of the future. All the while it maintains love for natural imperfection contrasted for man-made “perfect” beauty. 

A specific arrangement of pieces that spoke to me was a bright colored orange flowing tapestry by Mimi Jung, titled “Our Inclinations” and an equally sized seemingly overgrown tapestry laced with jewels and valuables in gold titled “Rags to Riches” by Suchitra Mattai. The fabrics of “Rags to Riches” in particular blend with all of the other external elements elevating the entire piece, while also coming across a bit abrasive and harder to look at. The beautiful color contrasts with the rough texture.

Within all the art is a common approach regarding the perspective of immigration and settlement; whether or not human presence in natural spaces results in good or bad, and the internal conflict of that guilt as human civilization is the reason for the pain of others.

Curator’s Corner: Crystal Serino on “EVERYTHINGINBETEWEENTHESUNANDTHEDIRT” at Miles McCentry Gallery

As part of The Art Effect’s curatorial workforce development program, youth curators attend gallery shows in the Hudson Valley and New York City and write reviews of what they’ve seen. One of the newest members of the Trolley Barn Curatorial Team, Crystal Serino, shares her thoughts on a recent show at Miles McCentry Gallery.

The Miles McEnery Gallery in Chelsea (511 W 22nd St) exhibited Markus Linnenbrink in the “EVERYTHINGINBETEWEENTHESUNANDTHEDIRT” exhibition. 

Linnenbrink’s gleeful use of unexpected colors and vibrance embraces a childlike joy in art. He developed unique processes he refers to as “Cut”,”Drill”,”Drip”, and “Reverse” painting. Linnenbrink stated: “All interaction with color happens in and through the eye of the viewer. The same visual information then lands in receptors that are all molded by the whole life story of the individual that receives what is to be seen.” His other works in the space include spheres, chairs, and linear sculptures. 

My favorite piece in the gallery was the resin sphere “COLDWORLDGOODMANBITEBACK”. This work has objects infused inside such as a Roblox character, a medical ID, a Seinfeld photo, and even a tooth. Mixed in with the vibrant colors are small skulls in the layers. 

Of all the galleries we toured in Chelsea, this one was my favorite exhibition. You can play around with a childhood wonder. In my artistic journey, resin art has always fascinated me. Seeing it represented in this light brings my soul joy.

Curator’s Corner: Chanel Reed on “Night Tripper” at Tanya Bonakdar Gallery

As part of The Art Effect’s curatorial workforce development program, youth curators attend gallery shows in the Hudson Valley and New York City and write reviews of what they’ve seen. Senior member of the Trolley Barn Curatorial Team, Chanel Reed, shares her thoughts on a recent show at the Tanya Bonakdar Gallery.

The Tanya Bonakdar Gallery is at 521 West 21st Street, New York, NY. This gallery developed a contemporary program that includes painting, drawing, installation, sculpture, video, and photography, representing thirty unique artists worldwide. The gallery continues to support the works and careers of artists internationally. The Tanya Bonakdar Gallery featured a past exhibition, “Night Tripper” (June 22 – July 28, 2023), exhibiting Dana Powell’s newest pieces that have an ominous and unsettling effect. She composed small-scale oil paintings that depicted moments like the moonlit sky and dark backroads.

Powell’s small-scale pieces aren’t as provocative as others but burden the viewer with many questions. Dana Powell’s “Closed Road” is a 12 x 14-inch piece that drew my attention. It produces an unnerving atmosphere with bright orange cones and green leaves scattered along a dark road. The piece is painted with fine details that layer paint with textured strokes but also renders form with smooth discipline – similar to impressionism, but with more detail. Powell lets light and color prevail in her work, letting the mood settle into the audience. 

This hyperrealism series presents a pleasingly cinematic story full of crime and sinister acts. Within the gallery, the images are spacious along its large white walls. The viewer closes in toward one painting and takes a few steps to another with a whole new scenario. It has the same effect as the pacing of an indie movie. They are capturing the rare moments people miss. This exhibition was purely interesting. It inspired me to continue a path in my illustrative career, creating work that minds the little things in life people look twice at and letting the brain flow.

The Art Effect Celebrates the Class of 2023!

This spring, twenty-nine seniors are graduating across The Art Effect’s programs and continuing their artistic journeys in college or career. Their achievements in the studio, the gallery, the classroom, and beyond are worth celebrating. We can’t wait to see what they accomplish next.

Not pictured: Nastajia Epps (MVP After School Program), Myelle-Sanai Johnson (MVP After School Program), Jose Marrero (MVP After School Program), Deavin Moore (MVP After School Program), Dayiana Moore (MVP After School Program), Nicholas Regini (Art Institute), Melanie Rodriguez-Velasco (MADLab), Janelle Smith (MADLab)

Samuel Bates

Art Institute

Janae Brown

ArtsBridge, National Art Honor Society

Caleb Clark

Spark Studios

Celia Drury

Art Institute, Senior Project

Shawn Elliott

Spark Studios

Katia Estrada

ArtsBridge, Senior Project, National Art Honor Society

Dalya Hanel Sheshany

Art Institute, National Art Honor Society

Self Portrait, 2020

Gabriel Kladakis

ArtsBridge, National Art Honor Society, Trolley Barn Curatorial Team

Greta Laubscher

Art Institute

Memorial, 2021

Leroy Manrique

ArtsBridge, Trolley Barn Curatorial Team, MADLab

Tracy Ortega

MADLab, National Art Honor Society

Davaine Reid

MADLab

Soledad Antonio Santizo

MADLab

Fiona Shanahan

Art Institute, Senior Project

Kisheema Spencer

MADLab

Jason Umanzor Perez

MADLab, ArtsBridge

Sheila Pinacho-Cruz

ArtsBridge

Jonathan Jerez

Spark Studios

The Contemplation, 2021

Grayson Weyant

Spark Studios

New Sunset, 2021

Featured Artist: William Koenig-Vinicombe

Last week, youth from The Art Effect’s Spark Studios workforce program collaborated on a public art video projection with William Koenig-Vinicombe, for the PKX Reel Exposure International Teen Film & Photography Festival. Featured artist Koenig-Vinicombe is a Hudson-Valley-based photographer and video editor who recontextualizes cultural iconography through a combination of digital and analog image-making. 

In a weeklong spring break intensive, nine youth discussed mass-media messages that they felt had influenced their perception of self, then brainstormed ways to subvert these harmful stereotypes and misrepresentations. Topics included teen mental health, masculinity, and women’s representation in sports. Koenig-Vinicombe led the group to edit videos from contemporary sources of mass media, distort old video tapes, and create layers of physical collages. Through greenscreen and digital editing techniques, the youth combined these three mediums and created new and empowering short videos about their chosen topics. 

In an era of constant media inundation, this intensive was a great opportunity for youth to practice cultural literacy, learn new artmaking skills, and express their own unique points of view. “I believe it will be powerful for the public to see the kind of media that has impacted the youth, and hopefully inspire new media with these new perspectives in mind,” Koenig-Vinicombe stated.

The youth participants’ completed videos will be unveiled at the PKX Reel Exposure Festival on Friday, May 5 at 7:30 pm at the Trolley Barn Gallery. Join us to view this thought-provoking projection and hear Koenig-Vinicombe discuss the project and his work.

About the final art: Media Metamorphosis is a video art installation created by eight youth at The Art Effect in collaboration with artist William Koenig-Vinicombe. The two-channel video was produced for this year’s PKX Festival, which took place over three days in May. Using found footage to analyze misrepresentations in popular media, the project recontextualizes imagery through collage and various video art processes to explore the transformative potential of video art. Media Metamorphosis invites viewers to see the world around them through a new lens and to critically engage with the media they consume.

The PKX Festival is conceived and produced by youth in The Art Effect’s YAEZ Liaisons workforce program, which is working to establish the Youth Arts Empowerment Zone in the immediate blocks surrounding the Trolley Barn Gallery. This long-term collaborative effort between The Art Effect, the City of Poughkeepsie, and other community partners seeks to engage locals and visitors through youth-led art projects that celebrate Poughkeepsie’s creative vitality.

Media Metamorphosis Youth Artists
Lauren Baer
Jaylamarie Belton
Aiden Colby
Melonnie Fullwood
Richard Graham
Yazmin Rivera
Nyhkaii Tissiera
Shandrela Williams

Guest Artist
William Koenig-Vinicombe

Visit the PKX Reel Exposure Festival website for the full festival lineup and to RSVP for select events. Limited space; reserve your place now! 

Double Take Exhibition

Youth Curated with Guest Juror: Rachel Seligman Head curator of The Tang teaching museum 

January 21-February 24, 2022

Gallery Hours
Wed-Fri 2-5 PM • Sat 12–4 PM
(during exhibitions only)

Double Take, this exhibition’s title and theme, is both enduringly engaging, and particularly timely, with its suggestion of second chances, opportunities to see anew, and encouragement to review that which we have passed over or passed by the first time around. Our world has changed dramatically in the last few years, and we are all being required to reconsider and reflect, in effect, to see with new eyes and question our assumptions.


Being a part of the youth curatorial team changed my relationship with the show, in the fact that I have a better appreciation for artworks than before working with The Art Effect as a juror. — Olivia Barker-Duncan 

The team has given me constant perceptions of art that explores and offers a diverse experience while keeping the art and artist identities intimate. — Karla Zarate 

Embracing compromise when making decisions as a team, creates an unbiased understanding for me as both an artist and juror. — Harrison Brison-McKinnon 

Click here to learn more about current and upcoming exhibitions!

Senior Project Virtual Gallery

Senior Project Students

Senior Project is the most rigorous course currently offered at the Art Institute, the capstone of The Art Effect’s portfolio development programming.

Modeled after a senior thesis college course, students work on a personal theme for 12 weeks with an artist/mentor in their chosen art medium. Students present a new work each week along with touch-ups made to the work from the previous week, completing the program with a strong body of work around a chosen theme. Mainly focusing on developing a cohesive body of work, how to prepare for an exhibition, and how the gallery viewer will interact with the work. The Senior Project exhibition is a celebration of the accomplishments of these young artists.

All works are on display at the Poughkeepsie Trolley Barn from December 17, 2021 – January 7, 2022.

Inquiries regarding the purchase of art works should email lauren@thearteffect.org

About the Instructor:

Rick Price has an MFA from Savannah College of Art & Design, is the chair of the fine art department at the Harvey School, and has extensive teaching experience at Buck’s Rock in CT, mural painting in San Francisco and Beacon, illustration commissions, and has exhibited his fine art work nationwide.

Senior Project

Senior Project Class

Youth curated and created by the talented young artists in Senior Project Class of 2021
Led by instructor, Rick Price

Artists:
Ava Maegrle
Cora Fenichel-Hewitt
Ben Solliday 
Emily Dooley

Show Dates: December 17 – January 7, 2022
Opening Reception – December 17, 5-7pm

Senior Project is the most rigorous course currently offered at the Art Institute, the capstone of The Art Effect’s portfolio development programming.
Modeled after a senior thesis college course, students work on a theme for 12 weeks with an artist/mentor. Students present a new work each week along with touch-ups made to the work from the previous week, generally completing the program with a body of work comprised of 12 pieces.The Senior Project exhibition is a celebration of the accomplishments of these young artists.

Teen Visions at The Barns Art Center!

Teen Visions is moving from The Trolley Barn Gallery to The Barns Art Center Oct 9-Dec 10  The Teen Visions show is moving from The Trolley Barn Gallery, to The Barns Art Center in Hopewell Junction, NY! Be sure to check out this artwork presented in this incredible new space. The show will be up from Oct 9 -Dec 10. The Teen Visions show is a culmination of the hard work the youth from summer classes at Media, Arts, and Design Lab, SPARK Studios, Junior Art Institute and Summer Art Institute. The show is made up of pieces from these  programs, which you can learn more about here. Be sure to check out our Teen Visions Virtual Gallery that is currently live if you are not able to see the show in person! . The Barns Art Center and  Harvest Festival Info: The Barns is a contemporary art initiative that highlights art and artists in dialogue with food, farming, ecology, and sustainability. The Barns Art Center is also having their first annual Harvest Festival October 9 & 10. Be sure to sign up on their website to take part in these fun events or just check out the space!