The Art Effect is excited to announce its affiliation with Barrett Art Center, bringing together the largest arts organization with the oldest arts organization in Dutchess County. The affiliation will open doors of new opportunities for The Art Effect and Barrett Art Center, creating spaces that match the breadth of the combined mission and merged identity—a true manifestation of their shared vision where youth and community come together to create and experience art in all of its forms.
On March 10, with a staggeringly high measure of participation, the voting members of the Barrett Art Center unanimously approved an affiliation with The Art Effect. The final vote was 52 in favor and 0 opposed. “As part of The Art Effect’s mission to organize youth-led nationally-recognized art exhibitions and educational programming at the Trolley Barn Galley, I am thrilled to be partnering with Joanna Frang and the team at Barrett Art Center to bring a new level of expertise to The Art Effect. This exciting affiliation will not only maintain the knowledge, direction, and engagement that Barrett brings to the community, but also to our new curatorial initiative.” says Nicole Fenichel-Hewitt , Executive Director of The Art Effect.
Together, The Art Effect and Barrett Art Center will grow and deepen their impact in the community in exciting new ways. The current collaboration will expand to establish a teen curatorial program at the Trolley Barn Gallery, expanding opportunities for gathering, showing, and experiencing art in the community. Additionally, Barrett’s two art studios at 55 Noxon Street will continue to be actively used by working artists, the Barrett Kids after school programming, as well as The Art Effect’s Junior Art Institute this Summer.
Comments on the news: “It was refreshing to see the measure of participation and support from colleagues whom we’ve trusted and worked with for, literally, decades. Their unanimous endorsement confirms that The Art Effect/Barrett task force did its homework and came to the appropriate conclusions. Barrett, the region’s most established arts organization, will be integral to the efforts of The Art Effect in further transforming and reinvigorating the arts community in Dutchess County and beyond.” Michael West, Esq., Senior Attorney New York Council of Nonprofits, Inc.
“The staff and board at Barrett Art Center is excited to combine our experience and skill in presenting cutting-edge exhibitions and arts education programming with their commitment to, and proven success in, empowering young people to develop their creative voices and artistic skill to shape a more vibrant, caring, inclusive and sustainable world. Together, we will not only preserve the history of the arts in Dutchess County, carrying our Founder, Tom Barrett’s, legacy and his vision of a permanent center for the arts in the City of Poughkeepsie, but also drive their future.” Loretta Spence, President of the Board of Directors, Barrett Art Center “We are very excited to bring a profound new level of programming to The Art Effect and the Trolley Barn Gallery space. The combination of these two phenomenal arts organizations offers an exciting opportunity to strengthen and expand exhibitions, programming, and Poughkeepsie’s vibrant arts scene. I am honored to be a part of this great team and excited that together we will create an even more sustainable impact in the community.” – Gaye Mallet, Chair of the Board of Directors, The Art Effect
Anthony P. Musso for the Poughkeepsie Journal Located on the north side of Main Street, a half-block east of Clinton Square in the City of Poughkeepsie, is a building that once served as a horse, and later, electric trolley barn during the 19th and early 20th century. Established in June 1870, the original small four-wheeled horse-powered trolley cars could accommodate 20 passengers, who each paid 10 cents to ride it.
Originally using stables near the P&E Railroad Depot to house its cars and 42 horses overnight, the company erected its own stable on Main Street in 1874, which became the terminus of the system. During the blizzard of 1888 the snow and considerable drifts were so high that the company dug out tunnels for the horse trollies to pass through; the Garden Street sector resembled a temporary subway.
In 1894, the transformation from horse power to electricity saw the 63-foot square, 25-foot high Main Street building’s interior experience a major remodeling. Interior studding and beams were removed and a 12-inch partition was erected, which enabled the trolley company to utilize boilers on one side of the building and engines on the other.
The roof was raised 4 feet, an extension spanning 30-feet by 90-feet was added to accommodate the large fleet of electric trolleys and a power plant and the front of the building was reconfigured to include a superintendent’s office and waiting room. Office space was utilized on the second level while a repair shop was established in the basement.
Six trolley tracks, each fitted with car pits underneath, provided access for general maintenance and repairs. Of the six tracks installed in the building, four accessed the street.
“The building experienced a fire in 1906 and they rebuilt it,” said Roy Budnik, director of the Mid-Hudson Heritage Center farther west on Main Street, who recently purchased the old trolley barn. “The trolley ran from the Hudson River to Vassar College and the same company ran an urban line down to the Village of Wappingers Falls.”
The latter line had a regular stop at the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery, where a trolley waiting shelter still stands just inside and north of the property’s front gate. From that point, the trolley accessed South and Market streets, and made its way back to the barn.
“The trolley replaced stage coaches that used to transport people from Wappingers Falls to Poughkeepsie,” Budnik added.
The trolley operation shut down in 1935 and the city housed its buses in the building through 1954. Afterward, Diesing Supply Company set up shop there, offering auto supplies. That company’s name still exists on the side of the building.
In 1994, the building was sold to the Alamo Ambulance Company, which resold it in 2004 to a group of businessmen from New York City, but it remained empty. In September 2015, Budnik purchased it to relocate and expand the Heritage Center.
“We’re working with a number of different not-for-profit groups to create a multi-organization, multi-cultural center there,” Budnik said. “This space is much bigger than our current location and we’ll be able to stage many different kinds of events there.”
With Art Centro, an expansion of the Heritage Center that was established next to the trolley barn in 2013, Budnik said the goal is to make the location a cultural campus. Off-street parking, located in a lot between Art Centro and the former trolley barn that was once occupied by a hotel, will also benefit visitors.
Opened in 2010, the Mid-Hudson Heritage Center promotes appreciation of the
Hudson Valley’s cultural diversity through arts events, film screenings, lectures and workshops open to the community.
“Many people think of us as two separate organizations,” said Art Centro Director Alexis Feldheim. “Once we are on one campus people who know about Art Centro will become more aware of what’s happening at the Heritage Center, and vice versa.”
The historic former trolley barn is at 489 Main St., Poughkeepsie.
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.
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
Questions? Contact Gigi@thearteffect.org for more information.
Embracing compromise when making decisions as a team, creates an unbiased understanding for me as both as artist and juror. — Harrison Brison-McKinnon
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
How can words and pictures come together to help us tell our stories? As part of the Poughkeepsie Public Library District’s Big Read, fourth grade students in Ms. Shereen Cader’s class at Warring Elementary School tackled this question head-on through a residency project called PhotoStory Portraiture conducted in partnership with The Art Effect.
In this residency, which was based on Rachel Neumann’s edited collection I Am Home (one of this year’s Big Read mentor texts), students learned about the genre of memoir, and then wrote mini-memoirs expressing their thoughts and feelings about what “home” means to them. Students then learned about how image composition can help tell a story, and chose specific shots, angles, and framing for their portraits, to finally use professional photography and lighting equipment to stage and capture photographic portraits to accompany their writing. Through the tools of memoir and photo portraiture, these students took control of telling their stories.
Their work is on display at the Boardman Road Branch Library (141 Boardman Rd POK NY 12603) through the end of 2021.
Donna Mikkelsen, a professional art teacher and long-time teaching artist at The Art Effect. Donna has been teaching arts-based curriculum both in-school and community-based settings for over 25 years. In 2001, she founded the arts-integrated Garden Road School in Westchester County and served as its Director for 11 years. Following that, she became Education Director for the Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art in Peekskill where she organized In-School Artist Residencies with the local school district including a Docent Training program for high school students. As a teaching artist she has developed AmbiArts workshops for people of all ages. These workshops incorporate the principles of her ambidextrous drawing technique “Spontaneous Symmetry”. This fun process engages both hemispheres of the brain, utilizes kinesthetic learning, calms nerves, and builds teamwork. Donna works with schools, non-profit and community-based organizations throughout the Hudson Valley.
Warring & Clinton 4th and 5th Grades Students at Clinton and Warring were visited by Vassar College students for Black History Month. Each student was given the book “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave written by Himself.” The class learned about Frederick Douglass’ life and the role he played in history and discussed “what does it mean to be Black?”. Each student then designed at least two large watercolor feathers for a collaborative “Wings of Justice” artwork where they illustrated or wrote responses to the following: “Who am I?” “What makes me unique?” “Who will I be as I get older?”
The Art Effect conducted a series of library workshops, teacher trainings, and in-school residencies as part of the Poughkeepsie Public Library District’s 2021 Big Read program. Each workshop revolves around generating, gathering, and celebrating community stories.
A Different Pond, by Bao Phi
Poughkeepsie Public Library District
Create Your own Comic Book/Graphic Novel In this workshop, library patrons learned how to capture an autobiographical moment in the visual/sequential medium by creating their own graphic novel/comic book from start to finish. This workshop covered sequential storytelling as well as how to sketch, ink, and color their comics.
Staatsburg Library
Podcast and Radio Production For tween-teens | VIRTUAL. In this workshop, teens learned the art of audio production and sound design to produce their own mini-podcast telling their family’s story. Finished pieces air on Radio Uprising, the Art Effect’s youth-produced radio show, which airs every Thursday from 4pm – 5pm on 91.3fm WVKR Independent Radio.
Watercolors for Adults Inspired by Thi Bui’s watercolor illustrations in the graphic novel The Best We Could Do, adults in this virtual workshop generated short memoirs and then learned the art of watercolor to create three-panel watercolor illustrations to accompany their anecdotes.
Poughkeepsie High School
“My America Is” Video Poems After completing the in-school unit on immigration and the Big Read featured book The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui, students work in groups to compile each written “I Am America” poem and write/produce a film script to create video poems about what being an American means.
Warring Elementary School
Photography and Memoir Writing In this residency based on I Am Home, elementary students wrote mini-memoirs expressing their thoughts and feelings about what “home” means to them, then learned professional photography and lighting techniques to stage and capture photographic portraits to illustrate and accompany their writing.
Animated Learning Students use stop-motion animation to collaborate on an animated narrative or expository short. Students learn different techniques using various materials to create the story, backgrounds, characters, and movements. Students also learn editing in Adobe Premiere to incorporate voice recordings, music, and sound effects.
Art of Music Videos Students will get a chance to pick a song to create their own music video. Students will also critique their favorite music videos to help them identify criteria for what makes an interesting and visually appealing music video. They will learn multi-media production to be able to incorporate animations, special effects, and narrative storylines to make their music videos unique to them.
Cinematic Adaptation Students learn to translate textual literacy into visual literacy to use the tools of cinematography to script, film, and edit a cinematic adaptation of a source text, with the challenge of retaining the theme/tone/central conflict of the original source but updating the time period and circumstances to reflect students’ lives and interests, as well as altering the conclusion to become more hopeful than the original.
Counter-Advertisements Students use basic media literacy principles to decode advertisements. They then create counter-advertisements, or parodies of advertisements, that deliver more truthful or constructive messages using the same persuasion techniques as real ads. This workshop can be offered either in print media, radio, or video formats.
Visual Arts Residency Offerings
Sketching and Drawing 101 Sharpen your drawing skills! Learn how to create a sketch that captures a fleeting moment, focusing on the lines and movement of what you are looking to draw, then learn how to add light and shadow to bring depth to your drawing.
Watercolor Painting Explore various watercoloring techniques as you blend colors and let your imagination run free, creating colorful flowers and fantastic landscapes.
Acrylic/Tempera Painting With Red, Yellow, and Blue you can make any color you want to! Learn about primary and complementary colors through color mixing as you create fun abstract paintings. Sponges, tape, utensils and more will be available to create unique patterns and designs.
Oil Pastels Explore different pastel techniques to create a world of summertime fun. Learn the art of composition as you create an image that captures your idea what makes summer such a special time of year.
New York based artist, Destiny Arianna displayed her artwork at The Art Effect’s Indigenous Peoples’ Day event on October 11, 2021.
“Taking the skills, she acquired through self-teaching Destiny continues to focus on depictions of Blackness in art. Over the past year, Arianna has used painting, photography, and collage to explore her Black and Indigenous identity, with a focus on land, lineage, and language. Her works address the hyper-visibility, visibility, and invisibility of her racial and cultural identities. Arianna addresses the deeply rooted connection between the rich culture she was immersed in growing up and its relation to the violent history of her ancestry to reconstruct a narrative of beauty, resilience, and survival in her work.”
Trolley Barn Fellow
Destiny is also The Art Effect’s Poughkeepsie Lead Fellow at the Trolley Barn Gallery, leading The Art Effect’s new PKX Squad and planning the annual PKX Festivals in downtown Poughkeepsie. She is a New York-based artist who graduated from Bowdoin College, with a Bachelor of Arts in Africana Studies, Art History, and Visual Arts. After entering her first technical art classes during her sophomore year of college, she encountered a teaching style that excluded Black people. The gap in her artistic training led her to pursue the study of race in arts education. During Kearney’s time within Bowdoin’s Visual Arts program, she continued to learn from and rebel against that pedagogy. Taking the skills she acquired through self-teaching she continues to focus on depictions of Blackness in art. Bowdoin College Awarded her with The Richard P. Martel Jr. Memorial Prize in Visual Arts which is awarded to the students who, in the judgment of the Visual Arts Faculty at Bowdoin are deemed to have produced the most creative, perceptive, proficient, and visually appealing art works exhibited at the college during this academic year.
Embarking on her post-grad journey, Kearney joins the Art Effect team as the Trolley Barn Fellow. She will be with us for the next two years as a member of the first cohort of Lead for Poughkeepsie Fellows, a branch of the Lead for America program.
