The Bronx Culture Trolley rolls again on Wednesday, July 1, along South Bronx Cultural Corridor with an evening full of family activities. The evening features six art exhibitions at: Longwood Art Gallery at Hostos, Bronx Museum of the Arts, Synthetic Zero Art Space, LDR Studio Gallery, and Bruckner Gallery at the Bruckner Bar & Grill. The evening will also include a book signing at the Bronx Museum, a visit to the outdoor Tree Museum, a trip to the Alexander Avenue Art and Antiques District, an outdoor literary reading at St. Mary’s Park, and a karaoke after-party at the Bruckner Bar & Grill. The Bronx Culture Trolley is a program of the Bronx Council on the Arts (BCA). Admission to most activities is free and all are welcome to hop on board and enjoy them.
July 1’s trolley begins at the Longwood Art Gallery at (Hostos Community College, 450 Grand Concourse at 149th Street, at 5 p.m. with a meet-and-greet reception for the Bronx Culture Trolley and a viewing of two exhibitions Bangin’ and Linger, two exhibitions curated by BRIO winner Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz, on view through August 6. Bangin’ (in the Main Gallery) is a provocative and seductive show which includes the work of nine emerging women artists that allure the viewer to a deeper level of conversation and appreciation by going beyond the beauty and seduction of the surfaces and contents of drawings, paintings, photographs, sculpture and video. The show includes works by Emma Amos and Heather Hart (tapping into the issues of race), works by Traci Tullius, Alison Ward, and Emily North, (exploring the corporeal), works by Wonder Koch and Tamara Kostianovsky (taking you into the realm of politics), and works by Clarissa Cummings and Swati Khurana (questioning the notions of culture and tradition). Linger (on view in the Project Room) is a new installation of video, sculpture and performance by Bronx artist Melissa Calderon. The artist includes this media to create a hauntingly, obsessive introspection of new work that challenges the notion of intimacy, landscape and creation. Calderon aims to ad-dress the issues of vulnerability, loss and the obsessive thought process of art-making. For more information on the Longwood Art Gallery and its upcoming exhibits, visit www.bronxarts.org/lag.asp or call (718) 518-6728.
The trolley bell clangs at 5:30, 6:30, and 7:30 p.m. indicating the trolley’s departure from Hostos to make its way to the evening’s cultural events. The Bronx Culture Trolley is your free ticket to a cultural tour along the South Bronx Cultural Corridor of the lower Grand Concourse. Admission to all participating venue attractions is free. The Bronx Culture Trolley runs on the first Wednesday of each month (except January and September) providing Bronxites and tourists alike a fun way to travel via a replica of an early 20th-century trolley car. Passengers are given the opportunity to sample several of the area’s hottest cultural attractions, dining establishments and entertainment venues along the way.
FIRST STOP: Bronx Museum of the Arts, 1040 Grand Concourse at 165th Street, for a tour of the museum and its two current exhibitions. Intersections: Grand Concourse at 100, an exhibition commemorating the centennial of the Grand Concourse. The Bronx Museum examines the past, present, and future of the concourse with this, the first of three segments, organized by the Bronx Museum in collaboration with Bronx County Historical Society. On view through July 20th, the exhibition features archival documentation and original artworks by 15 artists. AIM 29: Living and Dreaming, the Bronx Museum’s 29 annual Artist in the Marketplace Program features the works of 36 emerging artists from throughout the New York metropolitan area. This show, curated by Micaela Giovannotti, will be on view through September 13. The Bronx Museum’s First Wednesdays Book Signing features author Jackie Batten-field who will sign and speak about her book The Artist’s Guide: How to Make a Living Doing What You Love (Da Capo Press). The Artist’s Guild is a comprehensive handbook that provides the information, tools, and techniques, for developing and sustaining a successful art career. It provides answers to the challenges artists face everyday and includes real-life examples, illustrations, step-by-step exercises, and bulleted lists that allow readers to dive in and begin working immediately. Author Jackie Battenfield maintains her own career as a visual artist and teaches professional development classes at Columbia University and the Creative Capital Foundation. For further information on the Bronx Museum of the Arts, upcoming exhibits, and its ongoing activities, call (718) 681-6000 or visit www.bxma.org.
NEXT STOP: The Tree Museum, Grand Concourse, from 138th Street to Mosholu Parkway, where 100 trees give voice to 100 perspectives. Trees with stories to tell can be identified by their sidewalk markers. Trolley riders can begin their visit at any point along the Grand Concourse and listen in on local stories and the intimate lives of trees offered by current and former area residents – from beekeepers to rappers, historians to gardeners, school kids to politicians. The Tree Museum was created by Katie Holten to celebrate the communities and ecosystems along the Bronx’s Grand Concourse. For info on The Tree Museum, contact Ms. Holton at (212) 729-1457 or visit www.treemuseum.org.
NEXT STOP: The Alexander Avenue Antiques District where you can visit: Books, Notes & News at 137 Alexander Avenue, (646) 496-6178 – antique books, maps, records, and more; Custom Design Studio at 49 Bruckner Boulevard, (718) 993-8370 – antique restoration, fine furniture upholstery, custom-made slipcovers, wall upholstery and throw pillows; and Thrift World Antiques at 122 Alexander Avenue, (718) 665-5619 – antiques and more. For information about the Alexander Avenue Antiques District, contact Laura at (718) 401-7866 or LauraN@bronxarts.org.
NEXT STOP: LDR Studio Gallery, 137 Alexander Avenue, Suite 10, 4th floor), for a viewing of Five Points, a multi-media exhibition of five emerging Puerto Rican-American artists living and working in New York City: photographer Luis D. Rosado; poet Bedford C. Martinez, Jr.; stencil artist David Pochoir; painter Luis Pagan; and multimedia Artist Xavier Figueroa. Using a wide range of media, the artists address varying perspectives of Puerto Rican and Nuyorican culture in relation to their heritage, traditions and localities in favor of their struggles and creation of their own culture. For information, e-mail Luis D. Rosado or call (917) 558-2389.
NEXT STOP: St. Mary’s Park, 147th Street and St. Ann’s Avenue, for the Open City’s Park Lit Reading Series, an outdoor summer reading series sponsored by Open City, Mr. Beller’s Neighborhood, and the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. This evening’s reading are curated by Ron Kavanaugh, publisher of Mosaic Literary Magazine. For info, visit the Park Lit Reading Series website at www.opencity.org.
NEXT STOP: Synthetic Zero Art Space, 305 East 140th Street #1A, between Third & Alexander avenues, for a viewing of Interaction. Curated by artist Carey Clark, Interaction emphasizes the theater in art and how it actively engages the viewer. The show include “en plaine aire” artists Rob Seyffert and Louis Nieves, works by Joseph Ferriso, Nautical Flag Alphabet workshops facilitated by Carey Clark, the Point Apache Skate Team, and more. For information on Synthetic Zero and its upcoming events, call (718) 772-4961, e-mail mitsu@syntheticzero.com, or visit www.syntheticzero.com.
FINAL STOP: Bruckner Gallery at the Bruckner Bar & Grill, 1 Bruckner Boulevard, for a viewing of OBAMA! Reflection, a collection of work inspired by the campaign, election and inauguration of President Barack Obama that reflects the multiplicity of experience and emotion surrounding this historical moment. The variety of media and subject matter ranges from snapshot photographs to assemblage art to pen and ink, cartoon-style drawings. Visit the Bruckner Gallery website at www.brucknergallery.com for more information. After you view the exhibition, stick around for the Karaoke. Mistress Wanda’s Karaoke Survivor – Part Game Show, Part Karaoke, Part S&M. Join the official Trolley After-Party hosted by artist Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz. Drink specials and full menu available. Come to sing, laugh or just watch (voyeurs welcome).
For more info call (718) 931-9500, ext. 33.
