JOIN ME FOR A COMMUNITY ART PROJECT ON 9/18 from 9:30am-5:30pm: "The Heart of Greenpoint: Chalk Quilting Bee"

Volunteers needed! If interested, email me at beawolert@gmail.com

Mock up for “The Heart of Greenpoint: Chalk Quilting Bee”, 2021

“The Heart of Greenpoint: Chalk Quilting Bee” is an action, a convening, a happening centered around process, play and mindfulness. It is an act of celebration, play, a passage and marking of time, a tribute to the park which served as an anchor and respite for the community during the pandemic. The rules of engagement are simple. Using traditional sidewalk chalk, all community members are invited to chalk the pavilion hexagons with bright colors to contrast with the surrounding greenery. The aim is to fill up as much of the hexagons as possible with vibrant colors. The project is akin to a large-scale quilting bee. Hexagons provide great geometric design possibilities. In numerous cultures, hexagons are symbolic of universal coherence, harmony, balance. They are found in beehives and are the most structurally stable shape for load distribution. They are utilized in cell phone towers to maximize surface area with no overlapping shapes. These concepts of stability and balance resonate with the project. Individual actions accumulate to showcase each participant’s contribution to the collective effort. It is my hope that the community’s gestures radiate outward and a memory of the experience remains, even whilst the colors wash and fade away. All are invited to participate.

This project is made possible through the City Artist Corps Grants program, presented by The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA), with support from the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME) as well as Queens Theatre.

PUBLIC ART WORK: Meet my cow, "In Transit" Created for God's Love We Deliver (GLWD) 2021 CowParade. She will be auctioned starting 9/1 through 9/30 to benefit GLWD

I’m excited to be a part of God’s Love We Deliver 2021 CowParade, which specializes in delivering meals to people living with HIV/AIDS, cancer and other serious illnesses. This is the first time in over 20 years that the cows are back in New York City. Over 70 artists and designers worked at the Artist Studio sponsored by CLEAR at Industry City to create the herd of cows. The finished pieces were placed in public spaces for viewing from August 18th through September 30, 2021. Click here to see "In Transit" and meet the rest of cows and artists.

“In Transit” is located at Bronx Community College (Bronx). Click here for to See the Pasture Map.

Starting September 1st through the 30th, the cows will be sold at auction by Heritage Auctions to benefit God’s Love. Click here to learn more about the auction and how to purchase a cow.

Click here to read coverage in Time Out New York.

Click here to read coverage in Gothamist.

PERFORMANCE: ATTEMPT AT A MEMORY: GRANDMA CUTS CABBAGE #003

Wolert’s maternal grandmother (H.C.), who survived two World Wars in Poland came to live with her family when she was an infant. Wolert was deeply influenced by her grandmother’s hand and sensibility which continue to inform her artistic practice. During World War II, H.C. found herself cooking for German soldiers as a means to survive. Gone now for a number of years, Wolert recalls the importance of preparing food and the way that H.C. made pierogi, pickled hand-picked mushrooms and sorted through buckets of hand-picked blueberries to make preserves. However, the most lasting impression was how H.C. cut cabbage on her chest. In 2006, Wolert created the "Attempt at a Memory: Grandma Cuts Cabbage" videos as a way to connect and recall process. It was an attempt to ultimately preserve a memory. This action led to cutting industrial spools of thread forming the ongoing Sliced Thread series...almost giving permission to do so. In her public performance on December 8th at Underdonk, Wolert recreated "Attempt at a Memory: Grandma Cuts Cabbage #003". In past iterations, Wolert’s desire was to recall and capture a memory, whereas, in this iteration, she invited participants to witness the cabbage cutting act while she attempted to embody her grandmother’s presence.

Click here to see video excerpt.

EXHIBITION RELATED PERFORMACE THIS SUNDAY 12/8: "Attempt at a Memory: Grandma Cuts Cabbage #003"

RSVP HERE.

Wolert’s maternal grandmother (H.C.) survived two World Wars in Poland. H.C. came to live with Wolert's family when she was an infant. During World War II, H.C. found herself cooking for German soldiers as a means to survive. The artist was deeply influenced by her grandmother, which continues to inform her practice over the years. Gone now for a number of years, Wolert recalls the importance of preparing food and the way that H.C. made pierogi, pickled mushrooms and sorted through buckets of blueberries to make preserves. The most lasting impression was how H.C. cut cabbage on her chest. In 2006, Wolert created the Attempt at a Memory: Grandma Cuts Cabbage videos as a way to connect and recall process, to ultimately preserve a memory. This led to cutting industrial spools of thread forming the ongoing Sliced Thread series.

In her public performance, Wolert will recreate Attempt at a Memory: Grandma Cuts Cabbage #003. In past iterations, she recalled and captured a memory. This time, she invites participants to witness the cabbage cutting act while she attempts to honor and embody her grandmother’s presence.

MEMORIES ARE STARTING POINTS SOLO EXHIBITION CURATED BY MELISSA AT UNDERDONK

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Underdonk is pleased to present Memories Are Starting Points: Iteration #001, a solo exhibition by Beatrice Wolert curated by Melissa Staiger. 

Wolert is a first-generation Polish-American mixed-media artist raised in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. She taps into her personal history to explore how individual memories and experiences change and develop over time, and in doing so, she invites participants to explore their own connections. 

In this unique installation, Wolert is combining her recent and past projects to show how the past is seen and how the future can be envisioned. By utilizing varied materials including tape, mylar, zippers, thread, fabric, cement, clay, carpet tufts, flowers, stones, and photographs, she creates tactile and temporal pieces. Weathered elements and materials such as dirt, unfired clay, rust, and flowers highlight the passage of time. Her photographs and highly textural works examine the fluidity of experience. 

By allowing residue from former projects and natural living elements to enter the conversation, a shift happens in the work itself. The ephemeral layers begin to interweave, forming a temporal narrative: bridging earth and sky, memory and tactility, individual and collective. 

Memories are not linear, but rather fluid and ever-changing by shared and lived experiences - they can be built upon. This re-contextualization as a whole is the foundation of reenvisioned, new and alternate futures, and the audience has a hand in shaping it.

PUBLIC PROGRAM PERFORMANCE: Sun, Dec. 8, 2019, 4-6 pm  

Wolert’s maternal grandmother (H.C.) survived two World Wars in Poland and came to live with her family when she was an infant. During World War II, H.C. found herself cooking for German soldiers as a means to survive. 

The artist was deeply influenced by her grandmother, which continues to inform her practice over the years. Gone now for a number of years, Wolert recalls the importance of preparing food and the way that H.C. made pierogi, pickled mushrooms and sorted through buckets of blueberries to make preserves. 

The most lasting impression was how H.C. cut cabbage on her chest. In 2006, Wolert created the Attempt at a Memory: Grandma Cuts Cabbage videos as a way to connect and recall process, to ultimately preserve a memory. This led to cutting industrial spools of thread forming the ongoing Sliced Thread series. 

In her public performance, Wolert will recreate Attempt at a Memory: Grandma Cuts Cabbage #003. In past iterations, she recalled and captured a memory. This time, she invites participants to witness the cabbage cutting act while she attempts to honor and embody her grandmother’s presence.

UNDERDONK
1329 Willoughby Ave #211
Brooklyn, NY 11237

Opening: Fri, Nov. 22, 2019, 6-9 pm

On view: Nov. 23 - Dec. 22, 2019
Performance: Sun, Dec. 8, 2019, 4-6 pm
Gallery Hours: Sat and Sun 1-6 pm, and by appointment.

ARTIST BIO
Beatrice Wolert is a first-generation Polish American visual artist. She was raised in Greenpoint, Brooklyn where she lives and maintains her studio practice. Wolert works between genres to explore concepts of impermanence, essentiality, and serendipity through the transformation of everyday materials and found objects. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Design from Adelphi University and a Master of Fine Arts in Painting from Pratt Institute.

Her work has been exhibited at venues such as ABC No Rio, A.I.R. Gallery, Artists Space, Denise Bibro, D.U.M.B.O. Art Center, Elizabeth Foundation for the ARTS, Feature, Inc., Ground Floor Gallery, Hudson Guild, HQ, Janet Kurnatowski, Lorimoto, NURTUREart, Park Church Co-Op, Roxbury Art Group, Trestle Contemporary Art Gallery, Trestle Projects, and Exit Art in New York. Nationally and internationally, she has exhibited at Woman Made Gallery in Chicago, Hera Gallery, Wakefield, RI, BLAM Projects in Los Angeles, The Aratoi Wairarapa Museum of Art and History in New Zealand, and Creative Innovation Center CIC, Taunton, England, amongst others. She has installed numerous public outdoor installations, given artist talks and partook in the Elizabeth Foundation for the Art’s shift residency, New York, NY, and the Bridge Residency, Los Angeles, CA. More: beawolert.com, Instagram @beawolert.
 

CURATOR BIO
Melissa Staiger is a New York City-based artist and independent curator. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Maryland Institute, College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland and a Master of Fine Arts from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. Most recently, Staiger co-curated the well-received exhibition “Pamela Colman Smith: Life and Work” with Colleen Lynch at Pratt Institute Libraries, Brooklyn Campus. For the past decade, she has curated multiple exhibitions and was selected to be the curator-in-residence at Trestle Gallery, Brooklyn, during 2016. Currently, she serves on the board of ABC No Rio, is a member of Underdonk, and a member of the American Abstract Artists. More: melissastaiger.com, Instagram @melissastaiger.

For more details, please contact Melissa Staiger at beawolert@gmail.com. Visit Underdonk’s at www.underdonk.com and on Instagram @underdonk and Facebook #underdonk

PIEROGI PROJECT LAUNCHES WITH GOS!

In alignment with GOS, I will be hosting Pierogi Project, a pierogi clay making participatory project aiming to capture stories of a food of unknown exact origin. On both Saturday and Sunday, 6/8 and 6/9 between 1 and 4pm, visitors can drop-by my studio and make a clay pierog. This is on a first-come, first-served basis until supplies last. I will also be collecting photographs, videos, audio stories and ephemera related to the traditions of pierogi making. Each contribution will be numbered and logged into the archive.

When mapping your destinations, be sure to include 67 West Street, Suite #304 located at the historic Greenpoint Terminal Market. View current drawings and sculptures, sample authentic pierogi and contribute to the archive! Visit Greenpoint Open Studios for more information to help map out your visits!

TOUCHSTONES FOR WOLF'S LANE PARK

A touchstone is a reference point from which other things can be evaluated. This work was inspired by the way people interact with their community and public park space. The work is meant to highlight how Wolf's Lane Park is a touchstone for the community. The two large-scale “TouchStones” use materials of various textures intended for the participant to interact with by viewing and touching the textures and experiencing the different temperatures. I am interested in how the reflective nature of the materials will engage with the existing natural elements and the changing light. The colors will be in dialogue with the changing seasons; the surface will change over time; the public will engage and refer back to the stones once the sculptures are removed – and the memory of the installation will serve as another form of touchstone. 

The work is installed across from the Metro North Railroad Pelham Station, at 1st Street and Wolf’s Lane in the Village of Pelham. The exhibition will remain on view through January 6th, 2018. The opening coincides with the center's weekend long festival, "Artsfest".  Click here for more details on the event schedule.

Public Art in the Park is Pelham Art Center's newest program to promote free arts access for the public, and is an extension of its established Public Art in the Courtyard, a series of 3-4 sculpture and installation exhibitions annually.  Located at the corner of Wolfs Lane and 1st Street, and adjacent to the Metro North Pelham train station, Public Art in the Park is a component of the newly renovated Wolfs Lane Park. The sculpture garden area, with signage and attractive seating, will allow the public to enjoy the works of various artists throughout the seasons.  As well as providing another reason for visitors and residents to visit the park, the public art program will bring the works of many artists to the public eye. The specially designated arts area will also allow Pelham Art Center to expand its impact in providing more free arts access and experiences to the public. Artists interested in proposing a site-specific piece can check out this link. 

BARTOW PELL'S GARDEN CENTENNIAL EXHIBITION OPENING

Please join me Friday, September 2nd at the historic Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum in the Bronx for a Garden Centennial Exhibition curated by Alyssa Frigden. I have a handmade ceramic tile piece installed in the gardens entitled "Memories of a Summer Garden in Bloom". For this site specific installation, I studied the colors of plants and flowers in bloom during the summer found onsite at Bartow-Pell's gardens. Replicating those colors in ceramics memorializes a specific time and place and engages the viewer to reflect on the phases of growth and decay during the changing seasons.

The opening reception is free and runs from 5-6pm followed by a performance by the Brooklyn Bluegrass Collective from 6-8pm. Click here for more information on artists, trolley service and tickets for the music. 

The exhibition is on view through November 6th. Look out for more news in the Fall on a show at BLAM Projects in L.A. and an upcoming open studio. 

UPCOMING EXHIBITION IN L.A. RECEIVES REVIEW IN ART AND CAKE!

I have been busy creating a piece entitled, Offering #1 for Shift and Fade curated by Dani Dodge and Alanna Marcelletti. It opens at BLAM LA on October 8th from 3-6pm.

The curators of “Shift and Fade” at BLAM didn’t want an exhibition that could be easily forgotten. Not by the people who saw it, and especially not for the artists involved. So Alanna Marcelletti and Dani Dodge invited artists they admired to be part of the show and asked them to create something new. And to dig deep.

“Explore material as a metaphor for personal history,” they said. READ MORE in this great piece in Art and Cake by Kristen Schomaker! Looking forward to sharing more once I get to Los Angeles!

Participating artists include: Heredia Hugo, Kio Griffith, Erika Lizée, Fran Siegel,Camilla Taylor, Bea Wolert Alison Woods Nadege Monchera Baer, April Bey, Arezoo Bharthania, Debbie Carlson, Paul Catalanotto, Jennifer Celio,Tom Dunn, Jenny Hager, Pete Hickok, Alexander Kritselis, Bhavna Mehta,Kristine Schomaker, Delbar Shahbaz, David Spanbock, Jesse Standlea,Vincent Tomczyk, Joe Wolek, Lena Wolek and Steven Wolkoff.

ABOUT BLAM: "BLAM is an innovative exhibition model focused on creating a synergy between artists in Los Angeles and Brooklyn.  These bicoastal, multiplatform exhibition spaces in downtown Los Angeles and the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn are designed to showcase a wide range of artists and curators from both sides of the country."

MOCAD 2015 GALA + ART AUCTION

I have donated Dots #3 and 4 to (MOCAD)'s 2015 Gala + Art Auction. The  auction is now live on Paddle8! Please share to support this great organization! They serve a great mission: MOCAD is where adventurous minds encounter the best in contemporary visual, literary, music, and performing arts. A responsive center for diverse audiences, MOCAD presents art that contextualizes, interprets, educates and expands culture, pushing us to the edges of contemporary experience.

Marsha Miro’s quotes resonates with me: “We needed a place that anyone would feel comfortable walking into. I’ve always believed art is critical for everybody, not just the artists, the people who can afford to buy it or those initiated in the intellectual ramifications of it. Art adds so much to you as a human being…” Find out more about MOCAD.

REUSE REMIXED: SMALL WORKS SHOW AT MFTA THROUGH MAY 9TH

Please visit Materials for the Arts in L.I.C. and see their small works show. I have three works included from the Repositioned series. The show is up through May 9th and the hours are Mon-Fri 10am-4pm. Visit http://www.materialsforthearts.org/smallworks/ for more info.

A NECESSARY SHIFT OPENS 11/15 AT EFA PROJECT SPACE

Nmber 15 - December 21, 2013 
Opening Reception: Friday, November 15, 6-8pm
Organized by: Michelle Levy, Lauren Bierly and Claire Barliant 

EFA Project Space announces A Necessary Shift, a special exhibition and event series highlighting the activities of the Shift residency. Formerly titled Residency for Arts-Workers as Artists, Shift is the first residency to support the artistic development of artists who work for New York City arts organizations and play significant roles through their service to the art community. This exhibition is an overview of work created by former and current residents, celebrating the residency's growing impact, now in its fourth year of development. The new official name is a gesture of commitment to the longevity of this important project.

Artwork included in A Necessary Shift reflects the benefit of giving artists/arts-workers a chance to recharge their artistic practice and realign it with their commitment to advocating for other artists and cultural producers. Since its inception, Shift residency has provided myriad opportunities for professional and creative growth. Several artists are collaborating on projects and events for this exhibition, as a result of meeting through the residency: Jonathan Durham andFrancis Estrada conceived a joint installation inspired by the spatial movements of martial arts; Felicity Hogan and Theresa Marchetta worked together on a series of paintings; and Elizabeth Hamby, Douglas Paulson, and Hatuey Ramos-Fermín arranged a bicycle tour through the economic underbelly of New York City. Most of the works, as well as the performances

and events, were created by the artists specifically for this show.

Fifty percent of all proceeds from works sold during the exhibition will go towards supporting this essential residency.

In addition, EFA Project Space will host a number of events organized by former and current Shift residents.Exhibition participants: Sean Carroll, Paul Clay, Jonathan Durham, Francis Estrada, Chantel Foretich, Howard Halle, Elizabeth Hamby, Amber Hawk Swanson, Felicity Hogan, Gisela Insuaste, Sidd Joag, Jamie Kim, Theresa Marchetta, Naomi Miller, Karen Ostrom, Douglas Paulson, Hatuey Ramos-Fermín, Sebastien Sanz de Santa Maria, Ellen Uzane Schneiderman, Carolyn Sickles, Chad Stayrook, Rachel Vera Steinberg, David Terry, Sarah Walko, Beatrice Wolert

Event participants: Elizabeth Hamby, Gisela Insuaste, Douglas Paulson, Hatuey Ramos-Fermín, Roddy Schrock, Todd Shalom, Chad Stayrook

Affiliated organizations include Abrons Art Center, Artists Alliance International, Bronx River Art Center, Bronx Museum, Children's Museum, Eyebeam Center for Art + Technology, Flux Factory, FreeDimensional, Henry Street Settlement, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Museum of the City of New York, Museum of Modern Art, New York Foundation for the Arts, Residency Unlimited, Time Out NY, Triangle Art Association, Vera List Center for Art + Politics at The New School, and Wave Hill.

For press inquiries, please contact Lauren Bierly, Assistant Director for EFA Project Space at lauren@efanyc.org

See exhibition installation images here.

PUBLIC TALK POST EFA RESIDENCY FOR ARTS WORKERS AS ARTISTS

 This was a great opportunity to present to the public the artistic growth and development that took place during the course of the yearlong program following the 2 week onsite residency. A big shout out to fellow artist and Director of the EFA Project Space, Michelle Levy. This truly is an invaluable program serving to provide artists with time, space and yearlong support and encouragement to push their artistic concepts and practices. This program breaks down stigmas of the artist as arts administrator. Given the

background of the professions of these artists as administrators, you naturally step into an environment of instant support. I experienced an instant willingness to help and share resources. My time shared with my cohort was invaluable. I know this program will continue to serve artists to come and I am honored to have participated and help inform the next iterations to come.

Learn more here.

ARTCRITICAL REVIEW: ART WORKERS OF THE WORLD UNITE...

A shout out to Abbe Schriber who met me to discuss the Residency for Arts Workers and learn more a=bout what I was doing in the residency.

Excerpt from the article: Asked about this resurging interest in the work of those “behind the scenes,” Beatrice Wolert, of the EFA residency, replied that it seemed symptomatic of a desire for community-building and a do-it-yourself attitude that has emerged, largely in response to the economic climate. This seems like an apt point, and

important to note in a wider art community that can be a struggle to negotiate for both artists and arts workers even in a booming market. As such, the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts Studio Residency Program for New York City Arts Workers is vital in providing the strong community and resources for those artists who straddle both art making and arts professionalism, proving that these do and always will deeply inform one another. Read the full article here.

RESIDENCY FOR ARTS WORKERS AS ARTISTS

 I am honored to have taken part in the inaugural launch of Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts RESIDENCY FOR ARTS WORKERS AS ARTISTS conceived of by artist and Director of the EFA Project Space, Michelle Levy. This truly is a unique residency program created specifically for artists who support their artistic careers as arts administrators.

“This program honors these individuals' longstanding commitment to supporting fellow artists-- one that necessitates sacrifice of time and flexibility-- with a unique environment to build on their own art practices. Seven residents are selected from nominations based on their outstanding contributions to the art community plus their potential for artistic growth in a shared interactive environment.”

This first season consisted of the following awesome artists and friends:
Tova Carlin
Sean Carroll
Paul Clay
Chantel Foretich
Felicity Hogan
Sebastien Sanz de Santamaria
Amber Hawk Swanson
Beatrice Wolert

When I first learned that I have been accepted to the program along with 7 others, I immediately felt a collective responsibility and ownership. The idea that the program was to be a time for self nourishment and was intentionally structured very loosely, felt very comforting. I had set up goals for myself before my arrival, but the freedom to stray from them allowed me to take different directions and approaches in my work. I enjoyed the level of intensity I set up for myself and the support I felt in working in an open environment with such a group of talented and knowledgeable artists.

This environment allowed for a close-knit community to form bonds naturally, it allowed for critical dialogue, self reflection and meshed nicely with my own personal work ethic. I most valued the time I had for self reflection and the time to really push my concepts further in such a concentrated time.

I explored ideas of masking and facades through layered masking tape drawings and through thickly impastoed paintings utilizing cake tips and decorating bags filed with oil or acrylic paint. I explored decorating with tips creating basket weaves, scallops, flowers, leaves and dots, all the while thinking about how decoration related to meaning and value.