Op-Ed: The back of our ballot in NYC

Op-Ed by Pat Arnow 

Even the most informed NYC voters might overlook key proposals tucked on the back of this year's ballot. These measures are significant, so don't forget to flip your ballot and make your voice heard. 

Here’s what's up as early voting begins on Saturday: 

Proposal 1 

VOTE YES on the State Equal Rights Amendment to the state Constitution.

Equality for all under the law seems like it would be straightforward and popular, but big money is being spent to defeat it. 

Opponents warn that "the law would undermine 'parents' rights' and allow transgender kids to participate in girls' sports teams. The nonpartisan New York City Bar Association says those claims are false," according to Gothamist.   

Proposals 2-6

VOTE NO on NYC Charter proposals. 

"Mayor Adams rushed revisions to change NYC's charter (our constitution) to give the current and future mayors more unchecked power, weaken checks-and-balances, and make it harder for city government to deliver for New Yorkers. The proposals came out of the most rushed and undemocratic charter revision process of the past 20 years and should never have been fast-tracked to our ballots." (from the Grand Street Democrats) 

Here's the text of Proposal 1, the ERA to the NY State Constitution: § 11. a. No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws of this state or any subdivision thereof. No person shall, because of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, creed [or], religion, or sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy, be subjected to any discrimination in [his or her] their civil rights by any other person or by any firm, corporation, or institution, or by the state or any agency or subdivision of the state, pursuant to law. 

Proposals 2-6: They sound innocuous, even beneficial, but they're destructive and a power grab by the mayor. 

Proposal 2: "This proposal would amend the City Charter to expand and clarify the Department of Sanitation's power to clean streets and other City property and require disposal of waste in containers." One of the several problems with this initiative, according to The City, is increased ticketing (harassment) of street vendors and small businesses. 

Proposal 3: "This proposal would amend the City Charter to require fiscal analysis from the Council before hearings and votes on laws, authorize fiscal analysis from the Mayor, and update budget deadlines."

According to The City, "Opponents of Prop 3 say that requiring the executive branch to submit a budget estimate before a public hearing on a bill is held will just delay lawmaking processes that already take years...Jason Otaño, general counsel for the City Council, testified at one of the Charter Revision Commission hearings that Prop 3 would give the mayor's office a 'de facto veto' of proposed legislation…"

Proposal 4: This proposal would require additional public notice and time before the City Council votes on laws respecting the public safety operations of the Police, Correction, or Fire Departments.

According to The City, "City and State reported that opponents felt that the Adams administration was pushing this proposal in direct response to two specific laws passed by City Council earlier this year: one that requires the NYPD to report on lower-level encounters with residents and another which bans solitary confinement. Adams vetoed both those laws, and the City Council then overrode him."

Proposal 5: "This proposal would amend the City Charter to require more detail in the annual assessment of City facilities, mandate that facility needs inform capital planning, and update capital planning deadlines." 

From No Power Grab NY: "The mayor's charter commission claimed that Proposal 5 was based on a recommendation from the city’s Comptroller (the city’s top financial executive)." 

Comptroller Brad Lander’s statement reads in part: "Requiring the Citywide Statement of Needs to include additional detail on facility condition is meaningless for capital budget planning purposes — since these are in fact the projects that the City has already decided need to be improved and to invest funds to do so…"

Proposal  6: "This proposal would amend the City Charter to establish the Chief Business Diversity Officer (CBDO), authorize the mayor to designate the office that issues film permits, and combine archive boards." 

From No Power Grab NY: "Proposition 6 is a collection of three totally unrelated items. It claims to support Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises (MWBEs), but really only renames and largely restates the role of a mayoral office. This gives the illusion of change without additional concrete support for MWBEs." 

For more on what these proposals will do and objections to them, here are several resources and published reports cited above:

• A Guide to the Six Ballot Questions New Yorkers Will Vote on in 2024 (The City) 

• Why New Yorkers Should Vote 'No' on Proposals 2 Through 6 (NYCLU)

• 2024 NYC General Election Ballot Proposals (New York City Council) 

• VOTE NO on Props 2-6 — What You Need to Know (No Power Grab NYC, PDF)

So be sure when you vote to flip your ballot and vote on these propositions! 

------

Pat Arnow is a Lower East Side resident, park advocate and founder of East River Park Action.

From the EVG archives: Q-&-A with Susan Seidelman, director of 'Smithereens' and 'Desperately Seeking Susan'

Filmmaker Susan Seidelman has just released her first book, "Desperately Seeking Something: A Memoir About Movies, Mothers, and Material Girls." Seidelman and the book have received a lot of press (The New Yorker... Vogue... Variety... among others). 

I talked with Seidelman in 2016 when her first feature, "Smithereens," played a weeklong revival at Metrograph on Ludlow Street. On the occasion of her book release, we're revisiting this post...

---------- 

Seidelman started filming "Smithereens" in late 1979 and continued on and off for the next 18 months. (Production shut down when Berman broke a leg during rehearsal.) "Smithereens," made for $40,000, was the first American indie invited to compete for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

She went on to make several female-focused comedies, including 1985's "Desperately Seeking Susan" with Rosanna Arquette and Madonna and 1989's "She-Devil" with Roseanne Barr and Meryl Streep, among others. (She also directed the pilot for "Sex and the City.")

I spoke with Seidelman about "Smithereens" and her follow-up, "Desperately Seeking Susan," also partly filmed in the East Village, during a phone call. Here's part of that conversation, edited for length and clarity.

On why she wanted to tell this story in "Smithereens":

I was living in the East Village and I was also at NYU. And at the time, NYU Film School, the graduate film school, was on Second Avenue — part of it was where the old Fillmore East used to be. So, for three years, that area around Seventh Street and Second Avenue was my stomping grounds.

I started NYU in 1974, and I was there until 1977. So it was interesting to watch the transition from the older hippie generation and hippie-style shops and people as it started transitioning into the punk and new wave kind of subculture. I was a music person, so I frequented CBGB and Max’s Kansas City at that time. And so, that world was interesting to me, and telling a story set in that world about a young woman who’s not from that world, but wants to be part of it in some way, was both semi-personal and just of interest.

On production shutting down:

There were challenges throughout the shoot because I never had all the money. The budget ended up being about $40,000, but I probably only had about $20,000 at any given moment. I was borrowing and racking up bills. I wasn’t really thinking about how I was going to pay for it. I figured I’d get to that when I needed to pay it.

Aside from those challenges, when Susan Berman fell off a fire escape and broke her leg during rehearsal, there was no getting around that. We had to quit filming. I kind of thought, oh, you know, fuck it — I’m not going to let this stop me. It made me actually more determined. I had the time to look at what was working and what wasn’t working, and I learned a lot of stuff. I started editing the footage. I could rewrite stuff and change the story a bit.

On casting Richard Hell [a longtime East Village resident]:

That was when we redefined the character of Eric, who was originally not played by Richard Hell. It was played by somebody else who was not a rock-and-roller — he was more of a downtown painter/artsy type, not a musician — and was also played by a European actor.

By recasting and redefining that role with Richard Hell in mind, it shaped the tone of the movie and changed it, I think, in a good direction. I’m not going to give names, but the other actor — the other person is a working actor, as opposed to Richard Hell, who was acting in the movie, but was more of a presence and an iconic figure even at that time. So, trying to make the character of Eric blend in with the real Richard Hell added a level of authenticity to the film.

On filming in the East Village:

In the scene when Wren is waiting out on the sidewalk, and the landlady throws her clothing out the window and then splashes her with water, all the people and all the reactions in the background were from the people living on that block who had come out to watch.

At the time, New York was coming out the bankruptcy crisis. There weren’t a lot of police on the street, there wasn’t a lot of red tape and paperwork. These days, to film on the street, you have to get a mayor’s permit — so many levels of bureaucracy. Back then, it didn’t exist … but also I was naïve to what probably needed to be done.

We just showed up with cameras and we filmed. We had some people working on the crew who were friends and they told crowds lining in the street — just don’t look in the camera. Sometimes they did, sometimes they didn’t, but it was all very spontaneous.

That’s the advantage of doing a super low-budget movie — you can just go with the flow. For example, there’s a scene with a kid who’s doing a three-card Monte thing on the sidewalk. He was a kid we saw in Tompkins Square Park with his mother. We didn’t have to worry about SAG or unions or anything. I thought he was interesting and [we asked his mother] if they would come to this address and be in our movie.

On the lead characters:

My intention wasn’t to make likable characters. I intended to make interesting characters with some element of ambiguity. There are things that I like about Wren; on the other hand, I think she’s obviously somebody who uses people and is incredibly narcissistic. I’m aware of that. But she’s also somebody who is determined to recreate herself and to live the kind of life that she wants to live, and redefine herself from her background, which you get a little hint at, this boring suburban New Jersey life she must have run away from.

On the independent film scene at the time:

The definition of an independent filmmaker has changed so radically. Nowadays, being an independent filmmaker could mean you’re making a $5 million movie that’s really financed by the Weinstein Company, or it could mean you're doing a cellphone movie like “Tangerine.”

But back then, there weren’t that many independent filmmakers. I know there were some people working out of Los Angeles who were doing stuff and a small pocket of people in New York City. So either you knew them or you were friends with them or you just knew what they were doing and had mutual friends. It was truly a small community. And within that community, there were also a definite relationship between people who were musicians, filmmakers or graffiti artists.

So everyone was borrowing people, trading information or sharing resources. Also, the world wasn’t as competitive as it is today. People were eager and willing to help somebody who was a filmmaker would act in somebody else’s film or tell them about a location or a musician. It was pretty simple, like — hey, let’s make a movie, without a lot of calculation.

On her follow-up film, "Desperately Seeking Susan:"

I didn’t have anything lined up after "Smithereens." I didn’t know what I wanted to do next. I just finished the movie when it was accepted into the Cannes Film Festival.

But I did know that there were very few female film directors. And the one or two I had heard about who had made an interesting independent film ... I knew that your follow-up movie, especially if it was going to be financed by a studio, you needed to be smart about the choice. You had to make a movie that you could still be creatively in charge of, or else you could get lost in the shuffle.

For about a year and a half, I was reading scripts. And they were, for the most part, terrible. I just figured these couldn’t be my next movie. I have nothing to say about this kind of material.

So then I got this script. It was a little different than the way it ended up being, but it was called "Desperately Seeking Susan." I liked that the character, Susan, felt like she could be kind of related to Wren in "Smithereens." I thought I could bring something unique to that kind of a role. So I didn't feel like I was out of my element there.

Also, part of the film was set in the East Village, a neighborhood that I loved and knew. The other good thing was that I was so familiar with the characters that I was able to add my own spin using many people from the independent film community in small parts, like Rockets Redglare, John Lurie, and Arto Lindsay. Richard Hell has a cameo.

On working with Madonna:

At the time, Madonna was not famous when we started out. We were just filming on the streets like she was a regular semi-unknown actress. So there wasn’t a lot of hoopla around the film.

And then, you know, so much of life is about being there with the right thing and the right timing. It just so happened that the movie came out at the moment that her "Like A Virgin" album was released, and they coincided and she became a phenomenon. But since that wasn’t during the actual filming, there wasn’t the kind of pressure that one would normally feel if you were working with a big star or a super-famous person.

On the legacy of "Smithereens":

I think I was trying to document what it felt like to live in that neighborhood in that part of the city at that time. I never really considered whether the film would pass the test of time or be a time capsule.

But the fact that it ended up being pretty authentic to the environment, to the neighborhood, is maybe what enabled it to pass the test of time.

The farce awakens at the Orpheum Theatre

A new era is beginning at the classic Orpheum Theatre on Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place... yesterday afternoon, the signage arrived for the venue's next production, "The Empire Strips Back" ...

This burlesque "Star Wars" parody begins a limited run at the venue on May 10.

This is the first time in 29 years that "Stomp" signage is not present on the theater. That show, which is on the road these days, ended here on Jan. 8 after 11,000-plus performances.

And this production continues the Orpheum's use as a theater. In the 1980s, the Orpheum was well-known for Off-Broadway productions such as "Little Shop of Horrors" in 1982, Sandra Bernhard's "Without You I'm Nothing" in 1988, Eric Bogosian's "Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll" in 1990, John Leguizamo's "Mambo Mouth" in 1991, and David Mamet's "Oleanna" in 1992.

The Orpheum is reportedly owned by Liberty Theatres, a subsidiary of Reading International, which also runs Minetta Lane Theatre.

According to Cinema Treasures: "The site on which the Orpheum stands is alleged to have been a concert garden as early as the 1880s and, as such, to be one of the oldest continuously operating places of gathering for entertainment events in New York City." 

...and another view via Steven...

May the farce be with you: 'The Empire Strips Back' is next up at the Orpheum Theatre

A burlesque version of "Star Wars" is next up for the Orpheum Theatre on Second Avenue — the first production to play here after the 29-year run of "Stomp." 

Starting on May 10, "The Empire Strips Back" begins a limited run at the theater between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place. 

Per the official description: "The classic 'Star Wars' characters are dropped into the world of burlesque. Comedy and striptease, loving detail and hilarious parody… Let us deliver you to the dark side."

Originally from Australia, this "Empire" has been touring around the globe since it first opened in 2011

Tickets go on sale Tuesday at noon. Sign up for info here.

"Stomp" ended its 29-year run at the Orpheum in early January. 

According to Cinema Treasures: "The site on which the Orpheum stands is alleged to have been a concert garden as early as the 1880s and, as such, to be one of the oldest continuously operating places of gathering for entertainment events in New York City." 

In the 1980s, the Orpheum was well-known for Off-Broadway productions such as "Little Shop of Horrors" in 1982, Sandra Bernhard's "Without You I'm Nothing" in 1988, Eric Bogosian's "Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll" in 1990, John Leguizamo's "Mambo Mouth" in 1991, and David Mamet's "Oleanna" in 1992.

Jabba pic via the "The Empire Strips Back" site

Get ready to say so long to the Stomp sign

Photo by Steven 

Workers were spotted measuring the marquee today at the Orpheum Theatre on Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place... word is the "Stomp" sign will be coming down soon to make way for signage of a new production. 

No word just yet on what might be next here in the famed theater. (There are rumors of an April start date.)

"Stomp" ended its 29-year run here in early January. 

According to Cinema Treasures: "The site on which the Orpheum stands is alleged to have been a concert garden as early as the 1880s and, as such, to be one of the oldest continuously operating places of gathering for entertainment events in New York City." 

In the 1980s, the Orpheum was well-known for Off-Broadway productions such as Little Shop of Horrors in 1982, Sandra Bernhard's Without You I'm Nothing in 1988, Eric Bogosian's Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll in 1990, John Leguizamo's Mambo Mouth in 1991, and David Mamet's Oleanna in 1992.

Bang a gone: Stomp's long run on 2nd Avenue concludes in January

The producers of Stomp yesterday announced that the energetic percussion-based show will conclude its 29-year run in the East Village on Jan. 8, 2023. 

The closing is "due to declining ticket sales," a spokesperson for the production told The Hollywood Reporter. 

Stomp debuted on Feb. 27, 1994, and has performed nearly 11,500 shows at the Orpheum Theatre on Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place. 

Show creators Steve McNicholas and Luke Cresswell told this to The Hollywood Reporter: 

"We are so proud that the East Village and the Orpheum Theatre has been Stomp's home for so many wonderful years and want to thank our producers and our amazing cast, crew and front-of-house staff, all of whom have worked so hard for so long to make the show such a success. They have always given 100 percent to every audience, from the very beginning in 1994 to the post-lockdown audiences of 2022. We want to thank everyone involved for such an incredible New York run." 

Per press reports, the show has won the Olivier for best choreography, an OBIE award, a Drama Desk award for unique theater experience and a Legend of Off-Broadway award. 

You can still see Stomp elsewhere as its North American and European tours will continue. 

No word on what production might be next for the Orpheum, which is reportedly owned by Liberty Theatres, a subsidiary of Reading International, who also own Minetta Lane Theatre.

According to Cinema Treasures: "The site on which the Orpheum stands is alleged to have been a concert garden as early as the 1880s and, as such, to be one of the oldest continuously operating places of gathering for entertainment events in New York City." 

In the 1980s, the Orpheum was well-known for Off-Broadway productions such as Little Shop of Horrors in 1982, Sandra Bernhard's Without You I'm Nothing in 1988, Eric Bogosian's Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll in 1990, John Leguizamo's Mambo Mouth in 1991, and David Mamet's Oleanna in 1992.

Above photo by Lucien Samaha via Cinema Treasures

Today in civic duty

As seen on Ninth Street and Avenue A — a squished spotted lanternfly. (Thanks to Steven for the photo!) 

The "invasive pests" recently made an NYC return... prompting (reluctant?) kill/squish orders from city officials ... and fun headlines, like! 

 • Sex-crazed lanternfly invasion ramps up in NYC as insects look for mates (The Post — naturally!) 

 • In the Lanternfly War, Some Take the Bug’s Side (The Times) 

• On the hunt with New York’s spotted lanternfly squishers: ‘I came to kill’ (The Guardian)  

Read less tabloid-y ways to squish and dispose of these sex-crazed invaders (just another weekend night!) at the Parks Department site.

RIP Nick Zedd

Nick Zedd, a longtime East Village resident who spearheaded the Cinema of Transgression film movement, died yesterday in Mexico City where he resided since 2011, according to his Instagram account. 

The artist and filmmaker, born James Harding, was 63. 

According to a recent GoFundMe campaign, he had been diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver, hepatitis C and cancer. 

Zedd spent his career on the fringe, directing no-budget films including "They Eat Scum" (1979), "The Bogus Man (1980)" and "Geek Maggot Bingo” (1983), and editing The Underground Film Bulletin from 1984 to 1990. In 2004, Zedd started making a TV series with his then-girlfriend, Reverend Jen, called "The Adventures of Electra Elf." 

Per a 2015 feature in Filmmaker Magazine:

Back in 1985, Zedd coined the term the “Cinema of Transgression” to describe the campy movies full of shocking sex and violence that he and other artists like Lydia Lunch, Richard Kern, and Kembra Pfahler were making on the Lower East Side. They were scrappy movies shot on 16mm often with pornographic punchlines.

Among the social media tributes...

R.I.P. Nick Zedd, the NYC underground filmmaker who coined the "Cinema of Transgression" movement. pic.twitter.com/FxsqQLPsQk

— Film at Lincoln Center (@FilmLinc) February 27, 2022

Farewell to American filmmaker Nick Zedd (1958-2022), who spearheaded the 'Cinema of Transgression' movement in the 1980s, edited the Underground Film Bulletin and joined the dots between Kembra Pfahler, Richard Kern, Tessa Hughes Freeland, Lung Leg and Lydia Lunch. pic.twitter.com/OveAVS3Jbh

— Robin Rimbaud - Scanner (@robinrimbaud) February 27, 2022

Extremely sad to hear of Nick Zedd's passing. The real deal. His work (along with Kern, Lunch, Wojnarowicz, Dick, etc) is a necessary station for anyone with even half an interest in what lies beyond the gated enclaves of boundaried taste. A mad genius of the cinema.

— thee deklane (@theedeklan) February 27, 2022

RIP Nick Zedd, one of the realest to ever do it. Watched all his films (and public access work 🙃) in a 24hr period a few months back and permanently broke my brain in the process. Max respect to a true underground king! pic.twitter.com/QSmGGF3pi9

— ᘻᓰᖽᐸᘿ 𝔹 (@_RareArt) February 27, 2022

Zedd is survived by his partner of 15 years, Monica Casanova, his son Zerak and step-daughter Amanita Funaro. 

You can read an EVG interview with Zedd from 2013 before a retrospective at the New Museum right here.

A groovy kind of love: 3rd and B'zaar back with a Valentine's Market this weekend

Like Air Supply, if you're lost in love, then you may want to check out the next pop-up market at 3rd and B'Zaar.

The mixed-vendor market and event space at 191 E. Third St. between Avenue A and Avenue B will host a variety of local designers, artists, merchants and vintage sellers for this Valentine's weekend.

The Valentine's Market runs Friday-Sunday from noon to 7 p.m.

In a photoshoot with Stacie Joy, organizers (from left) Maegan Hayward, Sara Ann Rutherford and Delphine Le Goff paid homage to some 1980s excess and indulgence ...

3rd & B'Zaar debuted in late 2020 with a month-long Holiday Market followed by Sex, Love & Vintage in February ... Spring Into Pride in May and June ... Summer in the City in the summer and another holiday-themed pop-up late last year. 

You can follow them on Instagram for more info about vendors.

Ringing in the holiday season at 3rd & B'Zaar

A seasonal holiday market returns today to 3rd & B'Zaar.

The mixed-vendor market and event space at 191 E. Third St. between Avenue A and Avenue B will once again host a variety of local designers, artists, merchants and vintage sellers through Dec. 24.

The 3rd & B'Zaar social platforms — Instagram and Facebook — have been featuring the vendors each day. The space is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday with some later-evening events in the works.

3rd & B'Zaar debuted late last year with a month-long Holiday Market followed by Sex, Love & Vintage in February ... Spring Into Pride in May and June ... and Summer in the City in the, uh, summer...  with several art shows in between. 

Pictured above from left are 3rd curators Frank New, Delphine Le Goff, Delia Anne Parker, Maegan Hayward and Sara Ann Rutherford. Photo by Stacie Joy.

Summer in the City returns to 3rd and B'zaar TODAY

Summer in the City is back today at 3rd & B’Zaar.

The mixed-vendor market and event space at 191 E. Third St. between Avenue A and Avenue B is hosting another day-long pop-up today featuring more than 20 local artists, designers and vintage sellers indoors and out from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Jane's Exchange next door will be in on the action too!)

 Here are a few scenes from the first SITC on July 24 via EVG contributor Stacie Joy...

3rd & B’Zaar debuted late last year with a month-long Holiday Market ... followed by Sex, Love & Vintage in February and Spring Into Pride in May and June...  with several art shows along the way.

Summer in the City at 3rd & B’Zaar

Photos by Stacie Joy

It's time for Summer in the City at 3rd & B’Zaar.

The mixed-vendor market and event space at 191 E. Third St. between Avenue A and Avenue B is hosting several day-long pop-up markets late this summer... starting tomorrow (Saturday!) where more than 20 local artists, designers and vintage sellers will be featuring their wares in the space from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Sara Ann Rutherford, Delia Anne Parker and Maegan Hayworth (seen below) are among the merchants...

The folks at 3rd & B’Zaar also adopted the latest cardboard installation from East Village-based artist Tom Manco. He whipped up a picnic scene that was in Tompkins Square Park... the burger is now in the front window for Summer in the City.

After tomorrow, they'll be another Summer in the City market on Aug. 14. (And look for Drag Bingo here on Aug. 6 and Aug. 19.)

3rd & B’Zaar debuted late last year with a month-long Holiday Market ... followed by Sex, Love & Vintage in February and Spring Into Pride in May and June...  with several art shows for good measure. 

Prepping for 'And Just Like That' on Avenue A

Text and photos by Stacie Joy

On Wednesday afternoon, I was visiting with Nancy Preston, owner of Milk Money Kitchens at 50 Avenue A. (Read more about Milk Money, which provides commercial kitchen rentals and consulting services for food businesses, right here.) 

Preston was prepping her space between Third Street and Fourth Street for an HBO shoot for the "Sex and The City" revival titled "And Just Like That." (You probably noticed the production trucks along Avenue A!)

Featured in the spread for the assembled cast and crew: cupcakes named after the show's main characters. Today's scene involved cast members Kristin Davis and Mario Cantone (no Cynthia Nixon or Sarah Jessica Parker here). Executive producer Michael Patrick King was also on hand and took a moment to take a photo with Preston.

And thanks to Nancy for letting me stick around to watch the setup...

Gallery Watch: 'Group Sex' at Full Tank Moto Cafe

Text and photos by Clare Gemima 

Group Sex

Full Tank Moto Cafe, 49 Monroe St.

The New York City health guidelines — via its updated Safer Sex and Covid-19 fact sheet — discourage group sex, but provide advice for interested parties, suggesting “to find a crowd, pick larger, more open, ventilated spaces”…

This is an open-minded safety precaution endorsed by the New York City health department to take during the pandemic ... and also a genius conceptual parameter for a visual-arts exhibition. 

The East Village-based Ed. Varie is presenting Group Sex in their newest collaborative location on Monroe Street that showcases the works of artists Cavier Coleman, Colleen Herman, Esteban Ocampo-Giraldo, Giorgio Handman, Ivy Campbell, Leticia Infante, Moises Salazar, Nina Gilkshtern, Sarah Hombach, Scout Zabinski and Ted McGrath. (To learn more about each artist, please visit the gallery website here.)

The show explores group sex, sexuality and sensuality — both metaphorically and literally — in a raw, 2,000 square-foot space. This particular Ed. Varie collaboration marries gallery with the new Full Tank Moto Cafe — part cafe, motorcycle workshop and future bookshop all under the same beautiful roof. 

The building used to be a glass factory, and (thematically, if you will) hosts chains hanging from the ceiling. Ed. Varie founder Karen Shaupeter had to enlighten me that the bondage decor was not part of the show but a happy accident nonetheless. 

Through linoleum prints, gouache and acrylic paintings, soft sculpture and collage, the grit of the work in the space left an enduring impression as I walked through and witnessed exposed brick walls around the canvases and spilled dog food along the gallery floor. 

There were spirit and realness both on and off-canvas, and if you’re exhausted by the Chelsea gallery hoity-toity, then please visit Group Sex for a revitalization. Authentic work is out here in the Lower East Side, ready to challenge and capsize the whitewashed and straight status-quo of what being an artist in New York looks like. 

Thank you Ed. Varie for curating a show that, much like its title, isn’t afraid to show its roughness, its realness, its core. Among the standout work: Esteban Ocampo-Giralso’s Mañanas oil painting, depicting an illusionary, self-pleasuring scene that collides ecstasy with the mundanity of one's own bedroom confines. The forms in this piece are curvaceous and rich with highlighting and shadow play that is seductive and wildly transportive.

Another highlight was Ted McGrath’s Marat Moods/“…stop me if you heard this one…”/Haw haw haw. For me, the more disturbing looking the work is, the better. In this oil painting, we see multiple characters looking both humanly and mystically entrenched in a scene that looks so uncertain and on edge that it becomes nerve-wracking and uncomfortable to be around. There are skulls, banana peels and a sense of impending doom all captured in a sizeable canvas. Confusing and wretched, my favorite work in the show, hands down. 

And there is Spring Fever by Moises Salazar, which captured me immediately both from Ed. Varie’s social media and in person. The work depicts a female form wearing heels on a fur backdrop embellished with constructed floral arrangements. 

This to me is a kitsch daydream from the color right through to the glitter, yarn and sequins used to create the piece. The work is so polished and technically precise that it will leave you wondering how Salazar made it, let alone how the idea came into existence. Super cute, super ridiculous and super exciting to see how this artist grows. To no surprise, this piece has already sold.

If you are in need of a visual explosion, or even a new lease on your own creative practice, then I recommend visiting Ed. Varie’s amazing new space, and even striking up a conversation with its founder and staff. The experience was extremely welcoming and informative and I thank Karen for curating a potent and memorable show that represents a handful of talented and young practitioners. 

Group Sex will be showing until April 18 at 49 Monroe St. (across the street from Coleman Skatepark under the Manhattan Bridge). Full Tank Moto Cafe is open daily from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the gallery will remain open until 6 p.m.

Ed. Varie’s sister location, 184 E. Seventh St. at Avenue B, is currently exhibiting a solo show of Cavier Coleman’s work titled Heaven & Hell, also showing through April 18. 

 

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Clare Gemima is a visual artist from New Zealand. New-ish to the East Village, she spends her time as an artist assistant and gallery go-er, hungry to explore what's happening in her local art world. You can find her work here: claregemima.com 

A walk around inside the long-abandoned — and ghoulishly beautiful — P.S. 64

Photos by Stacie Joy

In recent weeks, residents who live near the former P.S. 64 on Ninth Street and 10th Street between Avenue B and Avenue C have reported an opening in the plywood, offering access inside the long-empty property.

There have been reader reports lately of people inside the school, including on the roof. The FDNY responded to a fire here in December.

The other day, EVG contributor Stacie Joy, accompanied by a friend, walked through the wide-open gate to look around the former school and Charas/El Bohio Community Center. (The plywood has since been shored up, cutting off this entry.)

After seeing her photos, I asked Stacie for more about what she saw inside the school, which developer Gregg Singer bought in a city auction in 1998.

Why did you decide to enter the former P.S. 64?

It was kind of a whim. I’d heard reports of what was going on inside and I was, as a photojournalist and longtime East Village resident, curious…and the door was open. 

I originally planned just to take some shots of the exterior but when I saw I could get inside the building I decided to document it for posterity. I have a history of getting into places and I felt it was important to see — and share — what was inside.

What did you first notice after entering the building? 

The smell! It’s pretty unpleasant. A mix of urine and funk, with top notes of mold/mildew and, I think, animal death and decay. I also keyed into the sounds…there is a lot of dripping noise, echoes and scurrying and flapping from the animal inhabitants. Hundreds of pigeons live inside, plus the rats. 

It’s almost pitch-black as you enter and there are shards of broken glass everywhere. There is evidence of other people bleeding from getting caught in the shattered glass or broken planks and exposed nails. I could also hear and feel the wind as it moved through the building. It was eerie and spooky and ghoulishly beautiful. It had a bit of a post-apocalyptic feel to it, at least until you made it up to the roof.  

Based on your photos here featuring discarded cans of spray paint and fresh graffiti, it appears people have been inside recently. Did you see any evidence of anyone who may be living inside? Did you think anyone else may have been present while you were there — perhaps just hidden from view?

I did not see evidence of anyone living in there. I didn’t want to disturb anyone who may be living inside, and I wanted to be as respectful of the space as possible for an uninvited guest. There are, I think, six floors including the basement, plus the roof, but I only spied the wall art left behind, and evidence of parties: empty White Claw cans, condoms, teenage graffiti, love notes and messages, mostly centering around sex and drugs, plus some social justice themes. 

What is your assessment of the building’s current condition?

It looks like at one point work might have begun — there were some supplies on the first floor ... but also evidence of a fire. The place is gutted down to the crumbling brick and studs, and there are hazardous holes in the floors and walls. 

The space is soaring, empty and vast. I kept thinking about what it could be, and what a luxury it must be to have so much space to live or work in. The ceilings are so high! And there are so many windows, though most of them are busted out. 

I was with a local artist who marveled at the graffiti and was covetous of the space, and what could be created there. We both felt changed and deeply affected by our time inside. 

As previously reported,  Gregg Singer has wanted to turn the building into a dorm called University Square. The DOB continues to maintain a Stop Work Order — dating to August 2015 — on the property. 

In years past several local elected officials, community activists and residents have asked for the return of the building for community use.