Here's the latest NY See panel, East Village-based illustrator Grant Shaffer's observational sketch diary of things that he sees and hears around the neighborhood and NYC ...
Thursday, April 15, 2021
Joey Ramone died on this day in 2001
On this occasion, the Post talks with Joey's brother Mickey Leigh ... and discusses some of the mementos from Joey's former apartment on Ninth Street at Third Avenue.
You can read my interview with Leigh from 2012 following the release of Joey's posthumous album, "Ya Know," and the new video for this song "New York City."
The 20th annual Birthday Bash for Joey is expected to happen in some form on May 19.
A visit to Leopold Masterson’s 'Diamonds, Razors & Champagne'
Text and photos by Stacie Joy
It’s the night before Leopold Masterson’s gallery exhibit Diamonds, Razors & Champagne (now open at 3rd & B’zaar, 191 E. Third St. between Avenue A and Avenue B) is set to open and the artist/curator pauses to take a sip of beer as he looks around the space with a critical eye.
He makes some last-minute micro-adjustments before stopping to chat with me about the show, his penchant for trolling, and how he sees social media and consumer culture’s influence within the artworld.
What is the inspiration behind your Diamonds, Razors & Champagne show, and how did it come to be located in the 3rd & B’zaar space?
The original idea began forming years ago when I was doing more internet trolling. At the time, I was aiming to change the focus of the public and visual culture using media techniques and fictitious narratives. It was a new way of creating and engaging with art after having developed as an object-maker.
I began hypothesizing an exhibition that went beyond objects to encompass live performance, experiences and direct art sales, which would give people the chance to touch artwork from across time. I came to be associated with the great crew of 3rd & B’zaar through my close friends Maegan [Hayward] and Alex [Carpenter] at the East Village Vintage Collective (EVVC).
Before the pandemic, I had my art studio at EVVC for more than three years. As life had drastically changed for all of us, I decided to make a move to expand not just my studio space but also my vision for my entire art practice, so I rammed everything together and applied for a PPP loan as a sole proprietor.
After doing all my due diligence I utilized the money to rent the space and push out the exhibition. Right now, the long-term status of everything seems so volatile that I think sharing spaces for periods of time in a collective model has the most potential for expanding the horizons for communities. So here I am until April 23.
There are more than 15 artists represented in the show and lots of different media, what was the curatorial process like?
To me, a huge part of curating is talking to as many artists and visiting as many studios as possible. Obviously, 2020 kneecapped the studio visits. Of course, I still found some of the artists on the internet and randomly reached out, even though that is usually a crapshoot.
But another important part for me was that if I was going to represent an artist or entity in the exhibition, I felt compelled to have a historic example that could take the pieces from the present to the past and back again. I love having $20 tee shirts alongside multi-thousand-dollar jewels. Sam Gassman’s rag take on Karl Hagenauer’s bronze Art Deco drunk sailor is a perfect encapsulation of this rags or riches conversation.
I also have reproductions of 2D works ranging from the 1780s to the early 21st century with artists such as Jim Tozzi, Carpo, and myself reworking those pieces to bring them into conversation with the past, and adding our sense of humor to them.
I also have to say that I don’t work with artists that have bad attitudes or feel endlessly entitled. Everyone involved is sincere and engaged and that is critical as a curator so I don’t begin wondering whether that electrical cord could support my weight hanging from the ceiling.
The exhibition statement reads, in part, “This exhibition manifests our growing tendency to overindulge our senses and seek out newer and stronger addictions.” What role does desire play in this show? Consumer culture? Social media?
That idea stemmed from watching the churn of epidemics, addictions, and luxury hedonism metastasize and cascade completely out of control. I remember growing up in the 1990s and “millionaires” were special. Now stocks and art markets are practically indistinguishable and the invisible hand is groping around for the next great commodification.
The fact that there is a new company creating blockchains for speculating on people’s reputations (i.e., BitClout) is in no way surprising. It’s just a way to monetize the need for fans, which drives a large section of our culture.
To succeed in that market, you have to have the perfect body, have all the right kinks, and constantly be doing more to feed the desires of your fans. There is a collaborative video with Ben Peterson of the two of us puking in buckets and throwing pottery as we pushed to be the best. We strove to WIN to the point of toxicity, which is basically the story of social media.
Unfortunately, social media has devolved into little more than the basic capitalist model of selling products via prescribed standards of beauty. So come take a selfie with our products presented and sold via our lower standard of beauty!
What has the reaction been so far to the show?
The reaction has been hysterical and very positive. I have a rather crackpot sense of humor and love to swear so my celebrity missing posters and silly-ass wine bottles taped to lamp posts have driven a lot of attention to the gallery.
The concept of the exhibition is a slow burn and it is ramping up this weekend and as it continues until the closing party on Thursday, April 22. I also think people are just excited to be in a physical space again, even though they still have to follow the standard safety protocols. You can even come inside after taking a selfie with the Britney missing poster! It’s been fun and exciting to give some people a little release, even with the prophylactics in the way.
What’s next for you as an artist?
Probably some light prostitution, basic entry-level stuff if I’m lucky. But really, I do enjoy being my own curator, gallerist, publicist, archivist, photographer, designer, artist and entrepreneur, though I have to admit I am reaching a point with my career where I probably need to have a discussion with some established galleries and arts professionals.
I am so accustomed to carving my own pathway and selling artwork on my own that I have a lot of trepidation over losing control of my practice and the multifaceted approach I have employed to continue to grow artistically. After I “come down” from the exhibition I intend to rent another space in the neighborhood and see what happens next.
Wednesday, April 14, 2021
Wednesday's parting shot
EVG contributor Derek Berg recalled this photo of Farrier, the founder of Bookleaves used and rare books in the West Village, reading a copy of "Baseball All-Stars" on Second Avenue from 2016...
Remembering Jimmy Webb
Jimmy Webb, a familiar figure in the East Village during his long tenure as the manager and buyer at Trash & Vaudeville, died on April 14, 2020, of cancer. He was 62.
He started working at his dream destination, Trash & Vaudeville, in 1999, and remained there until the shop relocated from St. Mark's Place to Seventh Street in 2016. He opened I Need More in October 2017.
On the one-year anniversary of his death, Vogue published an online appreciation of Webb.
Said stylist Bill Mullen: "To his fans and customers and anyone lucky enough to witness him boogie-ing onstage at an Iggy Pop concert, Jimmy was pure magic and a total superstar. Let’s be honest here, nobody held the 'Punk is not dead' torch higher and not even Karl Lagerfeld rocked Agatha Blois custom leather with as much je ne sais quoi. Yet Jimmy will be remembered first and foremost as a sweet and gentle man who loved music and fashion and all combinations of the two for all the most right and true reasons."
The article, which includes an EVG quote, is here.
Meanwhile, the campaign to co-name part of St. Mark's Place after Webb is apparently still in the works. Details here.
Photo from 2013 by James Maher
Gallery Watch: 'Nature Morte' at the Hole
Text and photos by Clare Gemima
Nature Morte,
The Hole, 312 Bowery
The line to get into Nature Morte on the night of the opening honestly stretched so far beyond the Bowery that it had no visible end at all!
The Hole’s yearly group show packed in 60 visual artists working across painting, sculpture, neon, photography, works on paper and ceramics.
The entire gallery is now a transformed concrete wilderness, sporting grey shades and foliage from ground to ceiling, framing each work in its own unique environment.
Depicting disease, darkness and death, Nature Morte showcases the artist’s response to the chaos of the climate change crises using taxidermy, abjectness and deceptive seduction.
The 21st century’s take on the death of the natural world circulates around a constantly growing collection of symbols such as cigarette butts, grease stains, balloons, animal repurposing/consumption and plastic. Compare this to a broad 17th-century critique and the gradual devastation, or our inhabitants' negligence, is a little bit too hard to bear (luckily matcha gin cocktails were being served).
You can find a list of all the artists in the show at the Hole's website.
Nature Morte will be running until May 9 at the Hole, 312 Bowery near First Street. Hours: Wednesday – Sunday, 12-7 p.m., and by appointment.
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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
RIP Arthur Farrier
Here's more information from his published obituary:
Arthur cherished all his many friends and fans from Bookleaves and the tight-knit NYC booksellers community.
Born in the Bronx, he was a proud graduate of Stuyvesant High School, a U.S. Army veteran who was antiwar, a New York cabbie, a longtime East Village resident, and an accomplished abstract photographer.
Bookleaves was part of a New York Times feature from 2003:
Stocked with out-of-print books, it is a browser's nirvana. People bring in dusty boxes, and the owner, Arthur Farrier, sorts them.''I have the smallest inventory in the Western world,'' said Mr. Farrier, who spent 20 years driving a cab before he got tired of complaining about disappearing bookshops and opened one of his own. ''The odds against finding a book here are tremendous.''Mr. Farrier is in danger of becoming a Village character. He affects a beret over a mane of white hair — he calls it a poor man's toupee — and he is a mine of Greenwich Village lore.
Felton Davis of Maryhouse on Third Street shared the above photo of Farrier with his friend Marianne Goldscheider sitting in Washington Square Park.
"Most of us are, sadly, always running around from one thing to another, but if you had the time, those two had the memories," Davis told me in an email.
Goldscheider, an activist and writer, "is carrying on bravely in her late 80s," though she is now in a senior-care facility near her family in Massachusetts.
On the CB3-SLA docket tonight: Tiger Lily, Lamia's Fish Market, Little Rebel
Here's a look at three new liquor license applications in the East Village:
• The Tiger Lily Kitchen (Elvis' Cafe LLC), 58 Third Ave.
Hospitality veteran Michelle Morgan is looking to bring the Tiger Lily Kitchen to the former Boilery space here between 10th Street and 11th Street.
Morgan opened Tiger Lily, which serves "healthy Asian-inspired cooking with gluten-free and vegan options," late last year as a takeout and delivery operation at 293 Third Ave. between 22nd Street and 23rd Street. This space would allow for her to offer indoor dining.
For a look at their lunch and dinner options, you can check out the Tiger Lily Instagram here. The application for the address is on the CB3 website.
• Lamia's Fish Market (East Coast Fish Market Inc), 45 Avenue B
Lamia's Fish Market is seeking an upgrade from beer-wine to a full liquor license here between Second Street and Third Street.
Lamia Funti, the applicant, appeared before CB3's SLA committee meeting in April 2016. The application was reportedly denied based in part on the history of the space. (The Lo-Down reported on this here. And DNAinfo here.)
Media outlets previously identified Funti as the co-owner of Le Souk on La Guardia Place along with her husband Marcus Jacobs. He was reportedly an owner of Le Souk, a years-long thorn in the side of Avenue B neighbors, as reported and here ... and here.
In October 2009, the State Liquor Authority canceled Le Souk's liquor license. (Read the SLA release here.)
Media outlets previously identified Funti as the co-owner of Le Souk on La Guardia Place along with her husband Marcus Jacobs. He was reportedly an owner of Le Souk, a years-long thorn in the side of Avenue B neighbors, as reported and here ... and here.
In October 2009, the State Liquor Authority canceled Le Souk's liquor license. (Read the SLA release here.)
Despite the 2016 committee denial, Lamia's received the beer-wine license via the State Liquor Authority later that fall.
You can read Lamia's questionnaire on the CB3 website at this link.
• Little Rebel (K&L Hospitality LLC), 219 Second Ave.
A bar-gastropub called Little Rebel is in the works for the former Professor Thom's space on Second Avenue between 13th Street and 14th Street.
You can read more about the plans that owners Dermot Lynch and Jarek Krukow have for the space — as well as see a sample menu —via their questionnaire here.
Tonight's meeting starts at 6:30. You can find the Zoom info here.
Pizzeria primed for 128 2nd Ave. space
Not sure at the moment if they are related to Antonio's Pizza on Flatbush Avenue.
The space is already fitted for a pizzeria: Nolita Pizza left last June after a year for a newer outpost down on Kenmare Street.
Before that: Kati Roll Company bowed out here in April 2019 after just under three years in business.
The longtime previous tenant at the address, The Stage, the 35-year-old lunch counter, closed in March 2016. Stage owner Roman Diakun had been involved in an ongoing legal/eviction battle with Icon Realty, who had taken over as the landlord.
The longtime previous tenant at the address, The Stage, the 35-year-old lunch counter, closed in March 2016. Stage owner Roman Diakun had been involved in an ongoing legal/eviction battle with Icon Realty, who had taken over as the landlord.
Tuesday, April 13, 2021
The artist who captured the sounds of East Village community gardens during the pandemic
Over the past year, Japanese artist Aki Onda has been visiting East Village community gardens and making field recordings for his project "Silence Prevails: East Village Community Gardens During the Pandemic." (Find the video here.)
Although now back in Japan, his project has recently gone live, and I was able to talk with him about his work, the inspiration behind the project and what’s next for him.
I had an idea to do a project about the East Village community gardens for many years, although it took a long time, nearly two decades until I could work on it.
I started visiting NYC around the end of the 1990s and often stayed in the East Village. Back then, the area was home to artists and musicians. I had many friends and it was easy to hang out with them as well as sublet their apartment. I also loved watching avant-garde cinema at Anthology Film Archives, spent hundreds of hours there and met Jonas Mekas.
His film "Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania," which I watched in Tokyo in 1996, had a tremendous impact on my life and art practice. So, it was a big deal for me to meet him. I would visit him at his office, and he would offer a drink to toast even if it was morning. Then, we would go to lunch at his usual Italian restaurant nearby, or Mars Bar.
Mekas organized two exhibitions of my photographs at the Courthouse Gallery in the basement. I donated a couple of large-size prints, and in return, he gave me a small print of his still image, which I still have. I met so many filmmakers while I spent my time at the AFA, and that helped me to absorb the Downtown culture.
I found community gardens such as Albert’s Garden, Liz Christy Community Garden and 6 & B Garden around that time. Each had a very distinctive character and I sensed there was something to look into. My favorite was La Plaza Cultural, although the garden itself was rough around the edges and unpretentious, I found it a cheerful and festive space.
Much later, I learned that the garden was founded by Carlos "Chino" Garcia and fellow local activists. Their associations with Buckminster Fuller and Gordon Matta-Clark, and the intersection between art and activism, was also inspiring.
My work, both sound- and visual-based, are often catalyzed by and structured around memories —personal, collective, historical. So, the community garden was the perfect subject, and slowly over the years, I kept visiting those gardens and learning historical backgrounds.
Finally, I decided to embark on the project in 2019 and there was a strong twist. The original idea was to document the gardens by making field recordings, taking photos, and writing texts through the four seasons from spring 2020 to winter 2021.
However, the pandemic swept the globe, and as of March 2020, New York was its epicenter and under full lockdown. GreenThumb made a decision to close all community gardens until further notice. Only members were allowed to enter, and my project ground to a halt.
Nonetheless, I thought it could be interesting to document the gardens in these unprecedented times and began contacting individual gardens directly. In the end, I visited around 25 gardens in spring and summer 2020. Spending time in the gardens was somehow comforting. Those are sparsely populated outdoor spaces and there is low risk of catching the virus.
And, if I look back to the past, those gardens started as "green oases" by local residents when the city was going through a severe financial crisis in the 1970s. This was the hardest hit area with many low-income residents, and buildings descended into ruin. In that traumatized neighborhood, there was a strong need to improve lives and find sources of hope.
Somehow, in the midst of COVID-19 crisis, though it’s a different type of crisis, I saw a sort of cycle and thought it’s worth researching and how those garden spaces changed over the last half-century.
What was the most surprising thing that happened while you were recording?
When I was recording in Campos Community Garden, suddenly the wind blew, and the wind chimes hung from a tree, started making beautiful sounds and vibrations. It lasted until I pressed the stop button.
What were the reactions of others as you set up your equipment and recorded sound and images?
I use a handheld cassette recorder, only with a cheap attached microphone. It’s low-key and not like a high-end digital recorder with a fluffy expensive shotgun microphone attached to a long boom. The presence of my equipment is unobtrusive and people feel less uncomfortable. Taking photos is a bit different, and I usually ask them to get permission first as I don’t want them to feel uncomfortable.
What’s next for you as an artist?
I'm preparing my solo exhibition titled "Letters from Dead Souls" at Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA) in summer 2021, and as well as a few other upcoming exhibitions.
As for the community garden project, luckily, I developed good relationships with core members of the community garden movement during my research. It's a deep subject and there is a lot more to dig into. I'm planning to continue the research for the next several years and expand the project for another opportunity. Let's see what comes with it...
'Rats galore,' the video sequel
Today, we have a reader video report via 2ndAvenueSilverPanther showing a few rats frolicking among the discarded mushy boxes inside the lot...
Two Hands debuts on Avenue A
The first NYC outpost of Two Hands, a quick-serve establishment serving "Seoul fresh corn dogs," opened back on Friday here at 147 Avenue A between Ninth Street and 10th Street.
Here's a look at what to expect with their varieties of corn dogs...
They also serve dirty fries — deep-fried potato tater puffs with Two Hands Dirty Sauce and Cheetos powder. Find the menu here.
Hours: Open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., with an 11 p.m. close on Fridays and Saturdays.
Photo by Steven
Cooper Union's Urban Umbrella
Work permits point to a "renovation at the fourth floor."
The Urban Umbrella, made of recycled steel and translucent plastic panel, made its first NYC appearance in the fall of 2017.
Monday, April 12, 2021
Reader report: It's 'rats galore' at this long-empty 1st Avenue lot
An EVG reader shared an email with the subject line: "New tenants for 89 1st Ave?"
A bit of a misleading title, but it's rats, rats and rats galore. This "fence" (especially in quotes compared to the former grand one) is an invitation for garbage dumping, and the rat situation in the courtyards behind the building is dire.
This is just the sidewalk; the lot is a mess. Do readers have suggestions or tips for how to get the lot better secured from dumping and trespassing? Or who to call to come to issue a fine? Or how to get this turned into a community garden for the time being? It's only been what, 40-plus years?!
According to the DOB, the proposed building is six floors with eight residential units and ground-floor retail. In total, the structure is 8,183 square feet. The project is still awaiting approval.
This is the second time in recent years that plans have been filed for a new building for the address. In 2017, the city never approved plans for a similar-sized structure — eight units, six floors.
As previously reported, Florence Toledano was the owner of this lot. In 2013, public records show that the deed for the property was transferred from the Florence Toledano Living Trust to 89 First Avenue LLC. The DOB permit lists Daniel Toledano as the manager of the property. (We do not know the relationship between Daniel Toledano and Florence Toledano. One reader said Daniel is a nephew of Florence.)
Daniel Toledano is still listed as the property owner and developer of the project. (Toledano is also listed as the owner of the lot that housed the 2Bn2C sculpture garden at 231 E. Second St. between Avenue B and Avenue C. More on that space in another post.)
In December 2017, workers dismantled the sculpture fence that had lined the First Avenue lot for years (since the late 1980s, per one estimate). The fence was created at the former Gas Station (aka Art Gallery Space 2B) on Avenue B and Second Street by Claire Kalemkeris and Johnny Swing in collaboration with Linus Coraggio.
[EVG photo from 2017]
Previously on EV Grieve:
• Will this long-empty lot on 1st Avenue yield to affordable housing?
• Drilling and soil testing commence at the long-empty lot at 89 1st Ave.
• Workers remove the sculpture fence and prep lot at 89 1st Ave.
A good sign at Little Poland
In an Instagram post on March 10, the diner between 12th Street and 13th Street said that they were preparing to open its doors once again.... for the first time since the PAUSE of March 2020.
And in another positive sign, Little Poland is now hiring for several positions... 
It will be nice to have them back ... Little Poland first opened in 1985.
Thanks to Steven for the photos...
La Cabra opening a Scandinavian coffee roastery and sourdough bakery on 2nd Avenue
We are revisiting this city sooner than we expected. Back in February, we signed a contract for a beautiful location in East Village and our first location will be an open and beautiful sourdough bakery combined with a coffee bar.
We recently started the renovations and together with our local partner we look forward to welcoming you this summer with bright coffees, sourdough bread and handmade pastries.
The previous tenant here, Pure Green, which sold cold-pressed juices, smoothies and açaà bowls, closed in early 2020. They had several roommates — Wattle Cafe, Greecologies, PlantMade and the I.V. Doc — dating back to their opening in March 2017.
Thanks to Steven for the photo and tip!
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