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Daily Archive

June 2009
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Monthly Archive

June 8th, 2009

LES Wedding Chapel

The LES installation/event space "Grand Opening" on Norfolk Street has a proposal to make. Next month, they'll become a quickie wedding chapel, Vegas style. You'll be able to get married by a Universal Life Church minister, with 20 or so of your closest friends looking on. The whole thing is explained in this video on Kickstarter.

June 8th, 2009

FEATURED ARTIST: LostLES Creator Michael Brown

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IMG_0774 We stopped by the opening of LostLES, Michael Brown's debut art installation, at Tiny's Giant Sandwich Shop on Rivington Street Friday night. He teamed up with longtime friend, Tiny's owner Kevin Gregor, to create a panoramic mural inspired by the camera obscura photography of Abelardo Morell. That's Kevin and Michael above- Michael is showing us a "tiny" example's of Morell's work on his IPhone.

The shop, which has two plate glass windows looking out on one of the neighborhood's more lively corners, seemed like the perfect venue for, as Michael puts it a celebration of the "vivid character of the Lower East Side through its distinct architectural heritage." Michael projected an image of a tenament building on Orchard Street on the wall and ceiling of the shop — a guide for the scenic artists who actually painted the mural. As he told EV Grieve, "The resulting effect will appear as a cast silhouette, or reflection,
of the old architecture that has redefined the sculptural space of the
restaurant."

You can see the installation at least through September at Tiny's Giant Sanwich Shop, 129 Rivington Street.

June 8th, 2009

Egg Rolls & Egg Creams

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IMG_0803 It was a beautiful day for New York's most creatively named block party. Lots of people came out to experience the Museum at Eldridge Street's "Egg Rolls & Egg Creams Festival" yesterday. There were arts & crafts tables for the kids, mahjongg, special performances and, of course, lots off egg rolls and egg creams. The festival celebrates the two cultures, Eastern European Jews and Chinese, who have called Eldridge Street home for more than a century.

June 8th, 2009

“Just Dance,” at the Educational Alliance

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Teens did the mambo… seniors danced to Lady Gaga at the Educational Alliance Friday afternoon. It was an intergenerational dance performance in the Mazer Theater. The event brought together teens from the Edgies Teen Center with adults from the Optimal Life and Health Club for a spirited, energetic event.

A reminder: Wednesday afternoon at 4pm, a coalition led by the Educational Alliance will rally at City Hall to press Mayor Bloomberg to reverse his decision to eliminate 88 community-based after school programs. To sign a petition in support of the campaign to save the programs or for more information check out the Educational Alliance's web site. And read more about what's at stake if the Edgies Teen Center loses its city funding  here.

June 8th, 2009

Monday News Links

A New York Post analysis shows some encouraging early signs from a controversial program that pays students who improve their performance on standardized tests. The Post story mentions P.S. 188 on Houston Street, where: "76 percent of fourth-graders met or exceeded state benchmarks in
English — 39.6 percentage points higher than last year, when the kids
were in third grade."

The Gotham Gazette has an in-depth piece on the future of community boards in New York, exploring whether how they will fare in Mayor Bloomberg's assessment of city government.

An Choi on Orchard Street debuts its backyard and adds items to the menu.

The Post profiles "The Dressing Room," on Orchard Street, declaring it's part of a "fusion bar" trend — combining shopping and drinking.