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.
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.
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.
Join The Art Effect at the Trolley Barn Gallery (489 Main Street) or virtually via Zoom on Tuesday, August 29, for a day of professional development in preparation for the Poughkeepsie Public Library District’s 2023 Big Read. We will discuss how to center human stories in the study of history, how educators can use historical creative non-fiction to engage present-day students, and how to connect historical texts to students’ lives in relevant, meaningful ways.
In this hybrid day of professional development, educators will gain background knowledge and culturally-informed context for teaching this year’s Big Read: The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown. Educators will learn concrete curricular resources and strategies for student engagement, as well as practice facilitating generative writing and multimedia assessment projects to help students identify central themes in the text and draw parallels between historical stories and the present day.
By the end of the professional development session, all participants will be able to:
Understand and teach historical narratives as constructs embedding a specific point of view
Lead students to apply critical thinking skills to ethical dilemmas, using The Boys in the Boat and US participation in the 1936 Olympics in Nazi Germany as an example
Understand the political experiences of people with marginalized identities negotiating life outside of dominant social groups
Understand background knowledge about the Poughkeepsie Championship Regatta’s importance to the cultural and economic development of the Hudson River Valley
Provide generative writing prompts around The Boys in the Boat
Identify ekphrasis as a literary device, and generate original ekphrastic poems
Assign filmmaking as a multimodal assessment enabling diverse learners to demonstrate learning and perform understanding
Location: Hybrid event; in-person at the Trolley Barn Gallery, Main Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 or virtual via Zoom
Provider: Poughkeepsie Public Library District Big Read
All participants will receive a copy of The Boys in the Boat free of charge. There is no fee to attend this workshop. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.
*Documentation verifying teacher attendance will be provided to registrants who have prior in-service approval from their home districts.*
AGENDA
8:00 – 8:30am: Coffee & Breakfast 8:30 – 8:45am: Welcome & Opening Remarks 8:45- 9:45am: Keynote: Whose History? Whose Story? Shaping the ‘Historical’ Record and Listening to Black Voices of the Hudson River by Bill Jeffway, Celebrating the African Spirit/Dutchess County Historical Society 9:45 – 10:00am: Q&A for Keynote 10:00 – 10:15am: Coffee/Bathroom Break 10:15 – 10:50am:Teaching Holocaust-Related Literature: An Introduction and Resources for Teachers by Jeffrey Urbin, Education Specialist at the Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum of Dutchess County 10:50 – 11:30am: Rowing On The River: A Brief History of the Poughkeepsie Regatta by Elizabeth Clarke and Ann Sandri, authors of The Poughkeepsie Regatta 11:30 – 12:30pm: LUNCH 12:30 – 2:30pm: Concurrent breakout sessions:
Session 1 (in-person): “Multimedia Storytelling as Assessment” Workshop by The Art Effect
Session 2 (virtual): Engaging Learners Through Modes of Imagery and Writing From The Senses, with The Ekphrastic Writer
2:30 – 3:00pm: Closing Remarks and Feedback Survey
The Big Read is an annual ‘community read program’ coordinated by the Poughkeepsie Library District. It will run across the fall months of 2023, and is designed to broaden our understanding of our world, our communities, and ourselves through the joy of sharing a good book.
Thank you for opting-in to mid-week updates for Ulster Arts Camp: Week 2!
This week, campers have been discovering different methods of self-expression through the theme of Welcome to the YOU-niverse! In 2D art class, students used new painting techniques to create original games and playing cards decorated with custom characters. In 3D art class, students made creatures out of air-dry clay, and planets with unique habitats where these creatures live. In animation class, students learned looping, walk cycles, and line boils techniques to create imaginary villages. Other activities also included music, dance, tie-dye, and a visit to the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, led by museum educator Zachary Bowman.
Check out the photos!
Join us on Friday, 8/4 for our end-of-week showcase, where you’ll experience the YOU-niverse for yourself through students’ immersive projects. Doors will open at 2:30pm for our gallery walk and media screening. A dance performance will take place at 3:00pm, followed by dismissal and collection of your children’s art at 4:00pm.
Thank you for opting-in to mid-week updates for Ulster Arts Camp: Week 1!
This week, the theme is Forces of Nature, and campers have been finding inspiration in the natural world as they complete projects in different mediums. Activities have included pendulum paintings, realistic observational drawings, watercolors with different textures, animation, and dance. Students have also visited the Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, where they were led around the different exhibitions by museum educator Zach Bowman. This was a great opportunity for young artists ages 5 – 10 to gain exposure to contemporary art! Check out the photos below:
Join us on Friday, 7/28 for our end-of-week showcase, where you’ll experience the Forces of Nature yourself through students’ projects. Doors will open at 2:30pm for our gallery walk and media screening. A dance performance will take place at 3:00pm, followed by dismissal and collection of your children’s art at 4:00pm.
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
Thank you for opting-in to the School’s Out Summer Camp mid-week update!
So far this week, older students have been creating animated self portraits and original songs with Garageband. Younger students have been making clay plants and animals and drawing, painting, and collaging. Both groups are also having fun learning dance moves to perform at our showcase on Friday!
On Friday 6/30, doors will open for the showcase at 2:30 pm, with the dance performance taking place at 3:00pm. Join us for a gallery walk, media screening, and dance performance, followed by dismissal and collection of your children’s art at 4:00pm. We can’t wait for you to see campers’ wonderful work in-person!
Follow us at @feelthearteffect on Instagram and Facebook for more updates!
A mural painted by The Art Effect’s Media/Art/Design Lab (MADLab) workforce youth has been installed in the Malcolm X Park on Mansion Street in Poughkeepsie. After being neglected for many years, the park has been revitalized with new playground equipment, benches, tables, native trees and shrubs, a refurbished basketball court and bleachers– and now, public art created by local youth. The park both celebrates an icon of American history and provides a beautiful green space for community members to gather; the mural advances both of these goals, and also provides creativity and a visual symbol of Black empowerment.
In 2019, the idea for the mural was initially conceived by Scenic Hudson, MASS Design Group, The Art Effect, and project lead Ernest Henry from the Hudson Valley Re-Entry Network. This team consulted with local residents of all ages who frequent the park, and decided that the mural would become a collaborative project; community members would paint a Kente stripe design (inspired by the traditional Ghanaian cloth that has become a symbol of African and African-American identity). However, this plan was interrupted by the pandemic.
Fortunately, MADLAb youth were able to complete the mural using the art and design skills they had learned in the classroom. Their hard work ensured that the project remained a collaborative endeavor, and added youth voices to the design of an important community resource. The finished mural includes a portrait of Malcolm X and an inspiring quote from the human rights leader: “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.”
The Malcolm X Park is now more welcoming than ever. This mural is yet another example of MADLab’s commitment to creative placemaking– the practice of shaping a neighborhood, both physically and socially, by local residents. With projects like Scenic Hudson mural, We Are Poughkeepsie mural, community clean-up days along the Fall Kill Creek, and now the mural at Malcolm X Park, MADLab youth are connecting with more community partners and deepening their positive impact on the places where they live and work.
Click here to learn more about MADLab and apply for the summer session beginning on July 5.
The Art Effect is now accepting applications through the Dutchess County Workforce Investment Board (DCWIB) for the 2023 Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP)!
SYEP is a first come first serve program for youth who meet eligibility requirements. SYEP participants can $14.20 per hour for up to 25 hours per week. Please write in The Art Effect and which program you are interested in applying for on the DCWIB application below.
SYEP ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS ✓ Resident of Dutchess County ✓ Family income being at or below 200% of poverty level ✓ On July 1, 2022, you are between the ages of 14 and 20 years old. ✓ Eligible to work in the U.S. and have proper identification
MADLab (Media, Arts & Design Lab) | July 5 – August 17 Monday – Thursday, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
MADLab is an arts-based career and skills training program that trains youth in:
Visual art, graphic design, and aesthetic development skills
Creating public art projects with professional artists
Leadership and communication skills through public outreach
Create a mural for the Dutchess Community Empowerment Center as well as public art installations around the Trolley Barn and botanical installations on Pershing Avenue this summer! Youth who complete MADLab earn a wage of $14.20/hr
Spark Studios | July 5 – August 17 Monday – Thursday, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Spark Studios is a media-based career and skills development program that trains youth through community client projects and origional creative film. Training includes::
Video production, camera operation, filmmaking techniques
Working with clients on commercial videos
Video editing software including sound mixing
Create original narrative shorts and Public Service Announcements to be entered into film festivals across the world this summer! Youth who complete Spark Studios earn a wage of $14.20/hr
To apply for summer Spark Studios or MADlab, please submit your application directly to DCWIB:
Original, signed applications may be dropped off or mailed to: DCWorks, 191 Main Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 Operating Hours 8:30am to 4:30pm
The Breaking Into The Business Film and Media Insider Panel will discuss how each of the panelists got their start in their industry. With a diverse level of experts including an entrepreneur, film director, actress, executive producer, and journalist on the panel, we will get a multigenerational understanding of what it means to be in the media industry including an up close and personal look at the various pathways available, opening minds to all possibilities! Hear from the panelists as they share their origin stories, future projects, and what skills may be helpful for youth looking to start out in their world.
Mary Stuart Masterson is a filmmaker, entrepreneur, mother of four, committed locavore and full time resident of the Hudson Valley. Her film, TV and theater career, includes roles in At Close Range, Some Kind of Wonderful, Immediate Family [National Board of Review Award] Fried Green Tomatoes, Benny and Joon, and the Broadway musical, Nine [Tony Award nomination], with recent film roles in Daniel Isn’t Real, Sid is Dead,5 Nights at Freddy’s and The Senior (in post-production). Mary Stuart moved to the Hudson Valley in 2006 when she directed, The Cake Eaters, starring Kristen Stewart and Bruce Dern (released in 2009). In 2016, Masterson founded Hudson Valley-based, Stockade Works, a crew training and mentorship non-profit, followed by Upriver Studios, a sound stage facility in Saugerties, and then her production company, Quality Pictures. With her husband, Jeremy Davidson, she is co-founder of the Storyhorse Documentary Theater project.
Nile Clarke is a long time media content specialist in all things creative with film and television experience from the Hudson Valley REGION in New York. Clarke directed her first film in Poughkeepsie and continues use the Hudson River as her backdrop. She is currently the EIC at TheGoodieDrop.com. The Goodie Drop is a good news and great media services outlet for the local community.
Jasmine Aiyana Garvin is an actress from Poughkeepsie, NY. She graduated from The New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts in 2021 with a degree in Musical Theatre. Soon after, she received a spot in the 2021 Warner Brothers Television “Top 10 Actors in Training”, a global casting initiative for recent graduates from acting programs. You can find her listed amongst the talented cast of “Poker Face”, a murder mystery-of-the-week series by Rian Johnson and Natasha Lyonne on Peacock. She strives to push boundaries, create opportunities, and share her knowledge with others as much as possible. She is currently working with the Poughkeepsie City School District, Poughkeepsie Rising, and New York Stage and Film to strengthen the relationship between her community and the performing arts.
Hezues R. is the founder of the S.I.C. (Social Impact Content) Film School, the first film school focused entirely on advocacy for Social Issues. We address Gun Violence, Mental Health, Suicide Prevention and other issues through innovative programs like Glocs4Ocs, the country’s first Gun Exchange / STEM program which allows youth to trade in a gun and receive an Oculus VR Headset. The Founder of S.I.C. (Hezues R) has been Honored by Barack Obama for his work in Gun Violence Prevention. We offer schools Curriculum, Mentors, Teaching Artist (actively working on major productions) and Production Resources like our Ambulances converted as Mobile Classrooms, which operate as Podcast Studio, Editing, Video Village, and Full Production Vehicles. Students can produce content on location or we can pull up to schools that are under-resourced in Production Equipment.
Magalie Laguerre-Wilkinson is an award winning journalist Magalie Laguerre-Wilkinson became Vice President of News Programming and Executive Producer of NICK NEWS at Nickelodeon in October 2020. Prior to joining Nickelodeon, she worked for 60 MINUTES, America’s most watched news program, for 16 years. She produced stories for Ed Bradley, Lesley Stahl, Steve Kroft and Anderson Cooper. She was a key producer on one of the broadcast’s most memorable and inspiring stories about an orchestra in the heart of Africa. The Bob Simon story about the Kimbanguist Symphony Orchestra in the Democratic Republic of Congo won Peabody and Emmy accolades. Laguerre-Wilkinson has reported from the far corners of the world and covered domestic stories including Hurricanes Katrina in New Orleans and Sandy in New York. Her Haitian roots have made her an invaluable producer on CBS News coverage of the country, including an Emmy-winning 60 MINUTES report on the deadly earthquake there in 2010. She also served as a correspondent for the “60 Minutes” online franchise, “60 MINUTES Overtime” and for CBS News. In addition, she was a reporter for the CUNY-TV programs, “Arts in the City” and “Science & U” and co-hosted the Carnegie Council’s digital franchise, “Ethics Matter”. Laguerre-Wilkinson also serves as moderator and master of ceremonies for a number of events including The French Institute/Alliance Française 2015 and 2017 galas and The Voices of Faith Women’s Conference at The Vatican (2016, ’17, ’18 and ’19). Before joining 60 MINUTES, she worked as an associate producer and producer for anchorman Tom Brokaw at NBC News. The native New Yorker lives in Manhattan with her husband, Bruce and their daughters, Juliette and Joséphine.
