The entrance to 1717 Troutman Street during a previous edition of Bushwick Open Studios (all photos by the author for Hyperallergic unless indicated otherwise)
If you thought the launch of the fall art season was overwhelming, brace yourself: Bushwick Open Studios (BOS) 2017 is upon us. The city’s largest event of its kind is once again bringing together hundreds of artists’ open studios, dozens of performances, plenty of pop-up exhibitions, and all manner of special events spanning from East Williamsburg and Bed-Stuy to Maspeth and Ridgewood.
The hallway at 1533 Myrtle Avenue, with the studio building’s cat-in-residence, Garfield.
As per usual, the core focus of the weekend-long extravaganza is visiting artists in their workspaces. The best approach for doing so time-efficiently is to focus on a particular cluster of spaces or a few major buildings like those around the Morgan Avenue stop on the L train (56 Bogart, 119 Ingraham, 41 Varick, 117 Grattan); spaces surrounding the Jefferson Street L stop (1182 Flushing, 1329 Willoughby, 347 Troutman, 449 Troutman, 382 Jefferson); the cluster within the triangle formed by Metropolitan Avenue, Grand Street, and Morgan Avenue (1013 Grand, 1027 Grand, 1040 Metropolitan, 274 Morgan); or the incomparably vast 1717 Troutman Street. For those feeling more adventurous — or averse to overcrowding — try venturing further afield to those outlying or isolated spots on the BOS map, like the Fruit Exchange Studios, 238 Melrose Street, 1533 Myrtle Avenue, 853 Onderdonk Avenue, and 1642 Weirfield Street. While the weekend’s focus is on artists’ studios, if you happen to pass by and stop in some of the neighborhood’s galleries, it won’t be the end of the world.
From Jihyun Hong’s installation at Bushwick Open Studios in 2015 (Hrag Vartanian/Hyperallergic)
And then of course there are the innumerable special events, performances, and pop-up shows. Bizarre Black Box Gallery, for instance, has a weekend-long exhibition of Meryl Meisler’s photographs from the final performance of the Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus. Artist Jen Durbin will be showing off her sculptural, 1,500-square-foot investigation into the infamous Zapruder film of JFK’s assassination at 109 Ingraham Street. Roving absurdity trainers will be offering 60-second lessons throughout the neighborhood all weekend — and classes each day at 1pm at 315 Seigel Street. The Ravacon Collective will be screening video installations and short films all weekend long — and promise free popcorn — at 96 Bogart Street. And though it’s not strictly speaking a part of BOS 2017, if you happen to stop off at the annual festival of drag and queer performance and music at the Knockdown Center, Bushwig 2017, you certainly won’t regret it.
The coordinators of the neighborhood-wide art spectacular, Arts in Bushwick, are also plotting special events throughout the weekend, starting with the official kick-off party (and opening for an accompanying group exhibition) at Beyond Studios on Friday, September 22 (7–10pm). All weekend-long, artworks will be installed in the storefronts of businesses along Graham Avenue thanks to a partnership between Arts in Bushwick and the Graham Avenue Business Improvement District. On Saturday, September 23 (noon–6pm), the collective of native Brooklynites Color Scenes will show Deface Vs Displace, an exhibition showcasing images of graffiti and street art on buildings in rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods, calling attention to art’s instrumentalization in that process. Finally, fittingly, on Sunday, September 24 (9pm onward) Arts in Bushwick will throw a closing party at House of Yes, so that exhausted artists and studio-goers can dance off any remaining energy.
Performance art on Bogart Street during Bushwick Open Studios 2016 (photo by Hrag Vartanian/ Hyperallergic)
When: Friday, September 22–Sunday, September 24
Where: Hundreds of locations throughout Bushwick
More info here.
Hyperallergic is a media sponsor of Bushwick Open Studios 2017.
