News Round-Up

Is This Recyclable Art? [Pisces Passion]

Pickle Spiced [Amatuer Gourmet]

Small Businesses Struggle [All About Fifth]

McDonaldization in Park Slope [Save the Slope]

Eight More Ways to Break A Date [Brokelyn]

All Summer Long Fifth Avenue Art Walk [OTBKB]

Welcome to Brooklyn [Foodies Social Worker]

Whole Foods Not Coming to Gowanus Anytime Soon [Daily News]

Reminder: Art Walk on Saturday August 1!

This Sat, Aug 1, 5th Avenue's Washington Park (aka J.J. Byrne Park) will host an art sale from noon to 6pm.

More than 100 artists have signed up to show their pieces. In addition, from 3:00-6:00, there will be a Kids Chalk Art Extravaganza on 4th Street & 5th Avenue.

Come on down to the park (5th Avenue between 3rd and 4th Streets) and have a look around. While you are out and about, feel free to look at the other pieces hanging in the shops, restaurants and bars along the avenue. Many of the artists will be on hand to sell their work!

To download a map of the 5th Avenue Art and Photo Walk, click here.

Art Walk Artist Bio 4

Sherry Ginsberg Davis: Sherry Ginsberg Davis resides in Brooklyn, NY with her family. Trained at the Brooklyn Museum Art School and at Brooklyn College, she has worked as a desktop artist. Sherry gravitates toward detail and precision, but is open to randomness as part of her process. Sherry welcomes the challenges of working with watercolor and painting on ceramic tile, as well as with stamps and stencils.  Her work has been shown through the Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition, and a number of local cafes. Also, in February 2009, Sherry won a competition with the Brooklyn Philharmonic to design a program cover for a series featuring the group Grizzly Bear. In addition to creating children's book illustrations, she is currently working on a ceramic tile series involving street-life in New York. 
 
You can find her work at 200 Fifth. While you are at it, grab a beer and a meal and check out the the work of Anthony DePrimo, Paul Edsall, Carly Goteiner, Matt Hill, Misha Jenkins, Cathie King, Michael Milton, Tony Orrico, Albert Trotman and Scott Weingarten, as well!

www.sherryginsbergdavis.com


 

All About 5th on Twitter

If you frequent the popular micro-blogging site Twitter, please take moment and follow us at www.twitter.com/allaboutfifth.

If want to announce an event that is taking place on or around 5th Avenue, send us a DM on Twitter or use the hashtag #whatsup5ave in your post, and we'll find it!

Tweet you later!

NY Times: Small Businesses Struggle

Back on July 20th, the New York Times posted a piece about the difficulties that New York City's local stores, bars and restaurants are facing in this recession. While the article focuses mainly on Manhattan, it is certainly applicable to commercial streets in the other four boroughs, like Park Slope's 5th Avenue.

You can read the entire article here.

Shop local!

Photo via NY Times

REMINDER: Art Sidewalk Sale!

The Park Slope Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District is sponsoring an art sidewalk sale on Saturday, August 1, 2009 to coincide with their Art & Photo Walk. The sale will take place in Washington Park (Fifth Avenue between 3rd & 4th Streets) from 11 am to 8 pm. All artists must be registered to participate.

TO BE A VENDOR, CLICK HERE.

News Round-Up

It's a slow news week along 5th Avenue. Even the bloggers are on vacation!

Park Slope Crime Blotter [Brooklyn Paper]

Get Fresh Table and Market [Brownstoner]

New York's Small Retailers Struggle [NY Times]

Sale at Bird! [Racked]

Up on the Roof

It's amazing what you can see when you are up on your roof in Park Slope!

No, we're not talking about Manhattan. We're talking about the interesting stuff that takes place in our neighborhood, every day, out of site from everyone except people on other roofs. For example, take the photo to the right. Yesterday, the Fire Department and the Department of Buildings were called to an unsafe building on Baltic between 5th & 6th. The FDNY broke down the front door and went in to inspect the 4 story brownstone and its roof.

Another example: This photo of workers on top of Key Food on 5th Avenue, laying down a brand new roof.

Do you have any interesting roof photos from the Park Slope Fifth Avenue area that you want to share? Let us know at whatsupon5thave@gmail.com. Please, no photos of nude sunbathers.

Art Walk Artist Bio 3

Carole K. Harris:I have been taking photos since my grandfather gave me an old Brownie camera when I was eleven. I continue to use a manual 35- millimeter camera, a Canon AE-1. This was a gift from my father, who taught me to have a keen eye for the flora and fauna of our native state, Virginia. Whereas some people may take photographs to escape the familiar, I take photographs to record what is startling in the everyday. I am currently writing a collection of essays on the topic of clichés in American short story writer Flannery O’Connor’s fiction. Clichés are overly used phrases that we tend to dismiss as dead expression. The word cliché comes from the French and was originally invented in the nineteenth century to designate the metal plate from which photographs were reproduced. O’Connor’s playful attention to verbal clichés resonates with the way I pause over an everyday image or scene–a motel, a café, a dormitory, a subway bench, a parking lot, a churchyard, a city block, a playground, a rooftop– and capture it in an unexpected and perhaps surprising light. These photos are from a larger series entitled “Route 441: Signs from Flannery O’Connor’s Milledgeville,” which traces my journey on foot from Andalusia, the family farm on the outskirts of O’Connor’s hometown (Milledgeville, Georgia), to Memory Hill, the cemetery in the center of town where O’Connor is buried. With her cartoonist’s eye for the absurd, O’Connor would have loved the clash of cultures I witnessed along Route 441–between mall and memorial, car wash and chapel, tattoo parlor and family farm.

See Carole's work at Bierkraft. To download an Artwalk map, click here.

OOPS! UPDATE!: Carole's work is actually hanging in Ellis Bar. Feel free to drop by Bierkraft, anyway!

For the latest Artwalk map, click here.

Fifth Avenue Sidewalk Sale

The Park Slope Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District is sponsoring an art sidewalk sale on Saturday, August 1, 2009 to coincide with their Art & Photo Walk. The sale will take place in Washington Park (Fifth Avenue between 3rd & 4th Streets) from 11 am to 8 pm. All artists must be registered to participate.

Interested in taking part in this event? You can download the registration form here.

Art Walk Artist Bio 2

ERIKA CLARK: “I believe if a photograph can change a mind, it can change the world.”

Park Slope native Erika Clark loves exploring the world with her cameras in tow. She just wishes someone would hurry up and invent a Star Trek transporter.

Erika has shot all over the world, including the Canada, England, France, Galapagos Islands, India, Mexico, & throughout the United States. She still enjoys coming home and photographing her own corner of the world.

After a recent trip to Kashmir, she found the focus of her work changing from the beauty of landscapes to the stories people can tell you about a place. Going back to her social service roots, Erika hopes her photographs help teach that where ever we are on the globe, we are one community.

Contact:eclarkphoto@gmail.com

News Round-Up

Park Slope Crime Blotter [Brooklyn Paper]

Bamboo Uniforms for the Cyclones! [Brooklyn Paper]

Tapas for Fifth Avenue[Brownstoner]

Get Fresh part of NY Mag's Cheap Eats[Daily News]

5th Avenue Street Shots

Photographer Erika Clark hit the streets yesterday to take some photos of 5th Avenue's commercial streetscape. Click here to enjoy!

Art Walk Artist Bio 1

Over the next couple of weeks, we will be posting bios of the artists that are featured along Fifth Avenue's Art and Photo Walk.

JONATHAN BLUM: Jonathan Blum considers himself to be first and foremost a portrait painter, and his work ranges from the fanciful to the classically realistic. He can trace his painting career back to a cartoon he created for Stuff magazine in Boston in 1986. The cartoon depicted a forehead—a caricature of his own face from the eyes up. From there he started painting “forehead portraits” which captured his subjects only from the eyes up. He’s left the cartoon element behind, but his focus on the top half of the face remains. Jonathan’s forehead portraits since then have included real people, imaginary people, historical figures (Chairman Mao and Duke Ellington, for example), dogs and cats, and, until 1998, Sesame Street's Bert. (How could he pass up such a long and pointy forehead?) Jonathan has had a number of gallery shows over the years, but has made his living largely by selling artwork directly to the public at outdoor markets, art fairs, and on city streets all over the world.

Contact: www.jonathanblumportraits.com

Park Slope Electronics Recycling Event

This July 18, from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m., join Park Slope in welcoming PerScholas to their new home in Brooklyn with a Community Used-Electronics Recycling Event.

Now it's easy to do your part to beautify New York City. Turn in your used electronics at 88 9th Street between 2nd Avenue and Smith Street on July 18. A small fee (such as $5.00 for each computer) covers all expenses. Data removal is also offered ($10).

Operating under the highest standards of excellence, PerScholas, a non-profit organization, will save your electronics from landfills (where their toxins soak into the earth). Electronics will either be refurbished and offered to low-income families, or recycled to comply with ISO 14001 regulations.

If you live in Brooklyn (or nearby), drop by!

For more information, please call Louis A. Berrios Jr., Director of Business Development, PerScholas: 718-772-0655, or Kenneth Wheeler at 1-800-MrRubbish.

via 3rBlogging

News Round-up

New Gallery Space on 5th Avenue and 10th Street [OTBKB]

Fifth Avenue Fatality Shows That This Road Needs to Be Safer [Brooklyn Paper]

The WORD Interview with Dave Reidy [Word Brooklyn]

Mayor Bloomberg and Speaker Quinn Announce Housing Asset Renewal [RealEstateRama]

Fifth Avenue Street Safety [All About 5th]

Brooklyn Cries Foul Over Atlantic Yards Architect Switch Daily News [Daily News]

Welcome to Brooklyn [The Foodie Social Worker]

Fifth Avenue Art and Photo Walk [OTBKB]

Readin’, Writin’ and Rubble — Council Approves Demo of Slope’s PS 133 [Brooklyn Paper]

Found on Flickr 2

This photo of 109 5th Avenue was taken by ThreeCee.

Check out his photo page here. He seems to have a real knack for capturing Brooklyn's streets!

Fifth Avenue Street Safety

A few days ago, the Brooklyn Paper covered the issue of bicycle safety along Park Slope's Fifth Avenue. We think it is worth reposting, especially given the recent death of a 72-year old cyclist just blocks away from where Liz Padilla was killed in 2005.

You can read the article here. Photo via Brooklyn Paper.

The Last Word on the 4th of July

Irene LoRe, Executive Director of the Park Slope Fifth Avenue BID and the owner of Aunt Suzie's Restaurant recently sent this message to other merchants, regarding the 4th of July.

Sure, the 4th is over, but her message is a good one to remember:

Happy Fourth Everyone!

I hope you all got to celebrate a day of joy and freedom.

How lucky we are to live in this country. Many of us are close enough to our own immigrant roots to have heard over and over the reasons for coming here.

I love living in NY, I love living in Brooklyn and I love this country. When they play the Star Spangled Banner or God Bless America, you can count on me for a few tears.

God Bless America!
Irene

Brooklyn Paper Weighs In on Bike Lane

Daily cyclists, delivery persons, and personal vehicles grapple with sharing the space that stretches between the streets that is the two lanes and parking spaces of Fifth Ave. The issue is one that everybody is aware of and concerned about, as it is discussed in the blogosphere and is hopefully of concern to the Department of Transportation, since they unveiled the Park Smart program.

Now, Brooklyn Paper is weighing in and will introduce the discussion into the mainstream audience. We will keep a vigilant eye on developments as they arise.

Pre-Bash for the Fourth on Fifth

Fifth Avenue is not just home to amazing restaurants, clothing boutiques, jewelry stores, toy stores, and so much more, but it is a burgeoning location for exciting events, like live music, public readings, and community building activities. Naturally, everyone is excited about celebrating the Fourth of July in style with a little barbecue with the family, but don't forget about the exciting list of events that are taking place Thursday and Friday nights. And, definitely be sure to keep visiting the businesses along the avenue that are participating in the 1st ever Fifth Avenue Art Walk. What other avenue in New York would turn businesses into one-long art gallery?

Check out this list and let us know if there is something we forgot. Also, be sure to e-mail us if you have suggestions for future events that you know about, we would love to give you some pub!

Ongoing Events:

Art Walk on Fifth Avenue

• Location: Participating Merchants on Fifth Avenue
• Time: Various
• Cost: FREE

Thursday Night Events:
SpeakEasy: Stories from the Back Room

• Location: Belleville Bistro, 332 Fifth Street @ Fifth Avenue
• Time: 7:30 PM
• Cost: $8, No cover if unemployed, though there is a one-item purchase minimum

Maria Taylor + Morgan Nagler

• Location: Union Hall, 702 Union Street (around the corner from the gym)
• Time: 8:00 PM
• Cost: $12 (Day of show), $10 (Advance)

Brooklyn Idol

• Location: Ginger's Bar, 363 Fifth Avenue (between 5th and 6th Streets)
• Time: 8:00 PM
• Cost: FREE

Cage CD Launch (Thursday and Friday)

• Location: Southpaw, 125 Fifth Avenue (between Sterling and St. Johns Places)
• Time: 8:00 PM
• Cost: $15/night

Friday Events:

Perch Cafe Storytime

• Location: Perch Cafe, 365 Fifth Avenue (between 5th and 6th Streets)
• Time: 10:00 AM
• Cost: FREE

Live Mariachi Music!

• Location: Piramide Restaurant Bistro, 499 Fifth Avenue (between 12th and 13th Streets)
• Time: 7:30 PM-10:30 PM
• Performing during dinner service

Saturday Events:

Play Date & Storytime

• Location: Ellis Bar, 627 Fifth Avenue (between 17th and 18th Streets)
• Time: 2:00-5:00 PM
• Cost: $4 Bloody Mary's, Margaritas, and Screwdrivers

Sunday Events:

Tearing the Veil of Maya (Comedy show)

• Location: Union Hall, 702 Union Street (around the corner from the gym)
• Time: 7:30 PM
• Cost: $7

The Entrance Band + TK Webb and The Visions

• Location: Southpaw, 125 Fifth Avenue (between Sterling and St. Johns Places)
  
• Time: 9:00 PM
• Cost: $10

Details on The 5th Avenue Art & Photo Walk

The 5th Avenue Business Improvement District (BID) has teamed up with artists from across the borough to sponsor the first annual Art and Photo Walk in Park Slope.

“We are very excited about this initiative,” said Irene LoRe, Executive Director of the BID, “the walk represents a real fit for a neighborhood teaming with artists and small businesses deeply attuned to their community.”

As part of the walk, art installations will be exhibited along Fifth Avenue from Dean to 18th Street and feature a variety of artists. “With computer art, oil paintings, mixed media, ceramic tile, and photography,” explained participating photographer and BID Board Member Erika Clark, “the walk offers a range of artists an opportunity to exhibit their work in non-traditional settings while bringing more people to neighborhood to support the local economy.”

An event of this scale is unique, even for Park Slope. “We have over 70 participating merchants, 40 artists and approximately 200 pieces,” said Albert Trotman, curator for the event, “and the list keeps growing,” With artwork that includes local luminary Jonathan Blum, a cultural pillar of the Avenue for almost a decade, the event promises to be a success.

“Summer is a time for strolling,” said LoRe, “and we want to give people another reason to stroll down the avenue." So hit 5th Avenue and take a look. And keep checking the BID’s blog, All About Fifth, for new details over the summer. The walk will officially launch on the 4th of July and last until Labor Day. With art as dynamic as the Avenue itself, the public installation promises to bring unique energy to an Avenue long accustomed to setting new trends.

For a map a detailed map of the Artwalk, click here (please note, some details are subject to change).

Fifth Avenue Photo

Park Slope resident, Betty says "One of my favorite stores on Fifth is 3r Living because they always have great things that you don't find elsewhere. I fell in love with Bucky the first moment I saw him. And he's much nicer to hang over my fireplace."