SEEING FOR OURSELVES

OPENING RECEPTION & FILM

"IN A WHOLE NEW WAY"

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9TH

1 PM SHOWING

FOR IMMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Islip Arts Council (IAC) and Seeing for Ourselves (SFO) are pleased to host in the IAC Gallery at the South Shore Mall this game-changing exhibit and film:

SEEING FOR OURSELVES

PARTICIPATORY PHOTOGRAPHY IN NEW YORK CITY 2010 - 2020

Wednesday, September 6, 2023 the exhibit opens at the IAC Gallery and runs through September 29^th. The media is invited and encouraged to arrange for a private tour.

Saturday, September 9^th at 1:00 “In a Whole New Way”, the award-winning film that documents this participatory photography project of young people on probation will be shown. 

Gallery hours are 11am-4pm Tuesday through Saturday, and admission is free. 

This exhibit, several years in the making, is curated by Denise Bibro of Denise Bibro Fine Art, Manhattan and produced by master printer and fine art photographer Holly Gordon.

This exhibit showcases the work of the Bay Shore nonprofit Seeing For Ourselves, SFO, founded in 2010 with the mission of empowering marginalized people to tell their own story by documenting their lives photographically.

SFO’s first effort, on behalf of NYC public housing residents (2010-2013), led to the publication of their first book, Project Lives: New York Public Housing Residents Photograph Their World (powerHouse, 2015). The global acclaim greeting the work, reinforced by gallery exhibits of the work around the city, encouraged the city and state to restart public housing support and led the city to ask the nonprofit to conduct a similar program for New Yorkers on probation—another marginalized population. Thanks to the advocacy of New York’s Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) helped fund this effort. 

In a Whole New Way, the half-hour film documenting New Yorkers on probation (2018-2021), continues to receive acclaim on the film festival circuit—honored by 200 festivals around the world in 2021-23. The film has won over 60 awards, including Best Documentary, Best Human Rights Film, Best Black Lives Matter Film, Best Social Justice Film, Most Original Idea, and Most Inspirational Film. (The Love Wins International Film Festival in Patchogue was a local win.) Viewing the documentary as a unique cultural asset, the national probation industry will be utilizing the film to help reform America’s criminal justice system. Here is the film’s trailer. Gallery exhibits around the city punctuated this initiative as well. The companion book, “In A Whole New Way” was published in June (Prospecta Press).

Meanwhile, SFO has embarked upon its third effort, “My Climate Future: High-Schoolers Picture Their World to Come.” A proof-of-concept was successfully conducted in Cape Elizabeth, Maine this past spring and a selection of these photographs is also part of this pertinent exhibit.

This IAC Gallery exhibit includes a selection of photography from all three programs and the books Project Lives and In a Whole New Way will be available.

Lynda Moran, Executive Director of IAC, had this to say:

“The IAC is proud to host this exhibit showing the power of participatory photography. We believe that all those interested in the arts and/or social justice will find this exhibition and film enlightening.” 

George Carrano, Bay Shore resident and co-Executive Director of SFO, said the following:

 

“We are thrilled to be partnering on this exhibit with IAC, which has built a reputation for innovative programming on the South Shore. The support shown by this arts organization in our backyard will be very helpful in expanding the audience for participatory photography, and the cause of helping those whose voices have not been heard to be heard.”

For more information:

Lynda Moran, Executive Director, Islip Arts Council

Katrina Kuan, Gallery Administrator

https://www.isliparts.org

lynda@isliparts@gmail.com

katrina.isliparts@gmail.com

631-888-3525

George Carrano and Jonathan Fisher Executive Directors, Seeing for Ourselves

https://www.seeingforourselves.org

https://www.projectlivesbook.com

https://www.inawholenewway.com

georgecarrano@yahoo.com

    917-855-4909          914-413-5378 

FEATURED ARTIST

JESSICA RODRIGUEZ

ON VIEW Sept 1 - Oct 1

ARTIST'S RECEPTION: SEPT. 16, 1-3PM

Jessica Rodriguez is a local artist, born in Brooklyn to Puerto Rican parents, and raised on Long Island from the time she was 4. Living on the Island all her life, she spent 20 years working at one of Long Island’s top radio stations as a graphic artist, while also running an online bakery shipping goods throughout the US. All while also being a single mother to three children. After a merger with the company, she decided it was time to do something different. Being a self-trained chef, she decided to open her own restaurant wth her husband, EmpanadaVille, which is currently open.

The artist says that painting portraits is what feels truly gratifying for her. Creating mixed media backgrounds that reflect the person being painted is one aspect she loves about what she does. What started as a hobby has since grown into her passion, and over time, another small business. People commission her to paint special portraits of their loved ones using personalized items in the background that reflect the subject, their life, and their personality. Her preferred medium is acrylic.

VISIT ISLIP ARTS TABLE AT

THE ARTS ON TERRY FESTIVAL

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 17

1 - 5 PM



Arts on Terry is a contemporary art fair for all ages highlighting 300+ artists from a variety of Long Island arts organizations, of which Islip Arts Council is a cultural partner exhibiting a curated selection of works representing the community in one of the 17 different pop-up galleries.

AOT will also include a full day of art exhibits, demonstrations, PAC Paint Showdown, live painters, family-friendly activities, live music, poetry, and performances, all on Terry Street, Patchogue’s official arts district.

Arts on Terry is presented by the Patchogue Arts Council in partnership with the Pat-Med Library, Greater Patchogue Chamber of Commerce, and the Patchogue BID. AOT is the signature event of the Patchogue Arts Council’s PAC P.O.V. Festival Season. AOT is made possible with special funding from Suffolk County & NYSCA. 

ADRC ANNUAL ART EXHIBITION

OPENING RECEPTION: WORLD ALZHEIMER'S DAY SEPT 21 / 1-3pm

EXHIBITION SEPT 18 - 30

For this exhibition IAC partnered with the Alzheimer's Disease Resource Center in East Islip, NY, to feature work from artists who are experiencing cognitive decline. The art is from a year long program that included more than 100 artists across LI.

SYNERGY

LGBTQ+ VOICES

ART EXHIBIT. poetry. drag.

October 11th, National Coming Out Day, will be an evening of sharing poetry, stories, and artwork. Selected poets will be able to read during the reception. There will also be a live drag performance, "I AM WHAT I AM," rescheduled from June.

Deadline to apply: September 29

CLICK FOR DETAILS

LIMITLESS: Healing Cancer with Art

EXHIBITION OCTOBER 7 - NOVEMBER 1

Open Call for Cancer Survivors

Deadline to apply: September 30

CLICK FOR DETAILS

LONG ISLAND VEGAN POP UP IS BACK!

Sunday, Oct 8, 2023 / 12-6pm at IAC Gallery, South Shore Mall, Bay Shore, NY

Let’s celebrate fall with this FREE outdoor, family and pet friendly event. The Long Island Vegan Pop Up was inspired by the hip Vegan scene in NYC. Long Island has a large Vegan community, and this is the first event on LI that caters to it. LI Vegan Pop Up's goal is simple: create a welcoming 100% Vegan market space where anyone can learn, shop, eat, drink and have fun.

Art vendors, delicious Vegan food, and a Live DJ are all a part of this exciting event.

CURRENTLY SEEKING VENDORS / Deadline to Apply: Oct 5 / Fee: $45