There are still artists in Williamsburg — and they have studios to prove it.
Two weeks after Bushwick artists held the popular, if transit-challenged, Bushwick Open Studios, Greenpoint and Williamsburg’s artists are throwing open their studio doors for their own event, Northside Open Studios, beginning on June 17.
The festival dovetails with the Northside Festival, a musical extravaganza of more than 250 bands over the same weekend.
Kim isn’t concerned the music festival will keep people away from visiting studios and attending art parties.
“People will be around to see a music show or around to see an art show,” said Kim. “It’s just what people prefer and we’re not worried either way.”
With so much going on, it’s easy to get overwhelmed — but Kim has a few pointers.
• On Friday night, head to Church of the Messiah on Russell Street for the film series Art 21, which features 10 clips of emerging artists from the neighborhood.
• Head back to Greenpoint on Saturday and hit the major studio buildings, such as Fowler Arts Collective’s West Street studios, the Pencil Factory on Franklin Street, and dozens of crafty studios inside the Greenpoint Manufacturing and Design Center at the end of Manhattan Avenue.
• Stick around on Saturday night, when the festival hosts the Launch Party featuring live performances and a reading series at Greenpoint Avenue’s The End, beginning at 6 pm.
• Then on Sunday afternoon, head to the end of India Street where Councilman Steve Levin (D–Greenpoint) and Brooklyn artists will celebrate the two-year anniversary of the India Street Mural Project with a giant street party.
Unlike Bushwick, the trains will be running normally — and there’s even a free ferry making stops in Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO, Williamsburg, and India Street.
So there’s really no excuse to miss it.
Northside Open Studios, June 17-19. For a list of events, visit www.northsideopenstudios.org.
