Nestseekers International | Long Island City Real Estate
Mar 11 2010

Long Island City art spaces roll out the welcome mats for Armory Fest

Flux Factory’s ‘Housebroken’ exhibition, 39-31 29th St, Long Island City

Despite the many changes our little-nabe-that-could is constantly undergoing, Long Island City’s arts community still finds a way to endure – always seeming to discover new ways to express itself. Last week’s Armory Fest did much to drive this point home, especially on a Long Island City Night art-hop from gallery to unique gallery, all within walking distance. For one, ever-evolving artist collective Flux Factory offered up a tour of their new 8,000 SF space and the colossal ‘Housebroken’ exhibition that takes place through every room (they even have an aviary!). Flux’s is another story of artistic triumph – they’ve reinvented themselves yet again, and on an even grander scale, after being pushed out of their previous space back in ‘08.

Aside from Flux’s open house, LIC’s many other art spaces »

No Comments
Feb 26 2010

Armory Arts Week 2010 exposes Long Island City’s rich & diverse art scene

‘Not Another Long Night’ from The Space’s Museum of Fake Art, LIC

Last year had Vanessa Beecroft and Kanye rumors. This year has special tours, multi-venue exhibitions, a silent & live auction, and the spankin’ new debut of the LIC Art Shuttle. Yes, friends, it’s that time again: Armory Arts Week is upon us, and Long Island City is having its very own Armory Fest next week from March 3rd-7th.

Many of LIC’s established and relatively newer galleries are in on it »

1 Comment
Jan 25 2010

PS1 MoMA will bring pole dancing to Long Island City this summer. Finally.

‘Pole Dance’ rendering from SO-IL for PS 1 courtyard, Long Island City – Photo

2009 whizzed by in a flash, and another summer in Long Island City will be here before we know it – at least that’s what we keep telling ourselves. Thankfully, PS 1 and its Young Architects Program once again give us something to look forward to: the annual summer installation in their courtyard, the setting of their storied Warm-Up parties.

This year, the winners of the coveted courtyard crown is Brooklyn architecture firm SO-IL. Their entry is called ‘Pole Dance,’ and although it seems oddly apropos given all the strip club drama in the hood lately, it’s actually “a metaphor for these uncertain times.” Interestingly, SO-IL’s pavilion is also “more pliant than anything yet staged” in PS 1’s courtyard, and the most expansive as well »

No Comments
Dec 21 2009

Now on view at LIC’s artsy heavy-hitters: Noguchi, Deitch, PS 1 MoMA

Tranquil ground floor gallery at Noguchi Museum, Long Island City

As we round out the end of 2009, we decided to bump around the neighborhood and check out the current exhibitions of three of Long Island City’s legendary – and very different – art institutions: the zen/industrial aesthetic of the Noguchi Museum, the spacious waterfront warehouse that is Deitch Studios, and, of course, the school turned modern art repository, PS 1 Contemporary Art Center. Here’s what’s going on »

No Comments
Nov 30 2009

5Pointz owner gives up the fight: LIC’s Crane St Studios closed for good

Crane Street Studios are now closed, Long Island City

It’s the end of an era, it seems – or at least the conclusion of the six years Long Island City graffiti mecca 5Pointz housed dozens of artists in what was known as its Crane Street Studios. 5Pointz’s recent tragic saga has finally come to a close, as the building’s owner has decided to close the art studios permanently »

15 Comments
Nov 20 2009

LIC artist works with DOT for art installation on the Pulaski Bridge

Joel Voisard’s ‘Bridge that Binds’ stencil graphics on the Pulaski Bridge

Long Island City 3-D artist Joel Voisard held a press conference yesterday evening for his art installation on the Pulaski Bridge, ‘Bridge that Binds.’ Voisard worked with the Queens Committee of Transportation Alternatives in partnership with the NYC Department of Transportation’s Urban Art Program to create stencil graphics along the divider of the pedestrian/bike path, and also a bench-like wooden structure at the center of the bridge between Greenpoint and Long Island City to symbolize the meeting of the two communities »

No Comments
Sep 9 2009

Chocolate Factory hosts District 26 City Council forum on the arts in LIC

Socrates Sculpture Park’s Broadway Billboard, Long Island City

The District 26 City Council candidates have discussed issues relating to housing, zoning, small business, and new development in LIC, but what about the arts? This especially integral part of the Long Island City community is up for discussion by the candidates at an arts and culture forum organized by arts service organization Fractured Atlas, and LIC’s Chocolate Factory Theater.

“The forum provides the candidates an opportunity to outline their plans for nurturing, sustaining and advancing the arts in Long Island City, the epicenter of the borough’s creative community »

47 Comments
Aug 17 2009

Long Island City arts & community event round-up, August 18th-23rd

Tuesday 8/18

Wednesday 8/19

  • LAST DAY: Socrates Sculpture Park’s FREE summer Outdoor Cinema series ends with Italy’s ‘Gomorrah’ at 7pm. 32-01 Vernon Blvd (@ Broadway), LIC, 718.956.1819

  • The Space presents their own Movie Night, featuring Werner Herzog’s ‘The Wild Blue Yonder.’ Short films will be screened sporadically accompanying movies. 42-16 West St, LIC, 718.752.0331

  • Media Jam at Dutch Kills Gallery, 8-11pm. Bring your own projector, show up & plug in. Questions: info@dutchkillsgallery.com. 37-24 24th St, Suite 402, LIC, 718.784.2737

Thursday 8/20 »

9 Comments
Jul 29 2009

Something we never thought we’d see: LIC’s 5Pointz gets stripped

5Pointz gets a new coat of paint, Jackson Ave, Long Island City

Yesterday a very concerned and frantic tipster alerted liQcity that the infamous walls of 5pointz graffiti gallery were being painted over with a fresh coat of yellow paint. Sure enough, that was the case, but fear not (or cheer not, depending on your perspective), 5pointz is merely getting a free canvas reset, as the owners of the building were required to repaint as part of the necessary renovations after the recent stairwell collapse.

The builiding owners and the City are still disagreeing »

30 Comments
Jun 17 2009

Shakespeare literally kicks booty at Long Island City’s Secret Theatre

Who said Shakespeare was for sissies? ‘Macbeth’ at the Secret Theatre, LIC

When was the last time you strolled off the streets of LIC and into a rigorously choreographed punk rock Shakespearean street fight? Well lucky for you, the Secret Theatre’s latest production of ‘Macbeth’ is offering up the kind of environmental theatre that effectively draws the audience in on the action, save for actually picking up a weapon and jumping into the fray.

Director Richard Mazda, who is also the Secret Theatre’s Artistic Director & Founder, made an interesting choice »

9 Comments
Jun 2 2009

QCA’s Queens Art Express & LIC Art Center’s Open Studios dazzle

Sculpture by Eun Nye Yang, LIC Art Center Open Studios

This weekend was a big one for Long Island City, and Queens in general: the LIC Artists Open Studios, the kickoff of Queens Council on the Arts’ Queens Art Express, and the 100th birthday of LIC’s favorite bridge – the good ol’ Queensboro.

LIC Art Center’s Open Studios reflected the sprawling diversity of Long Island City’s artists »

2 Comments
May 29 2009

Long Island City Friday afternoon linkage

Warm weather this weekend, for all the LIC Arts and Queensboro Bridge Centennial events. Don’t forget about the Grucci Fireworks happening off Roosevelt Island on Sunday evening at 9:15. Hunters Point waterfront is one of the prime viewing locations. There are no 4th of July fireworks on the East River this year, so this is the only chance to get your fix.

Also, there was a rumor in the comments a while back about the supposed elimination of the Hunters Point fire station, and nothing really came of it. Until now. The anonymous commenter made reference to the FDNY getting ready to announce cuts, and as far as prophecies go, this one seems to be manifesting accordingly. Hope that is not the case.

7 Comments
Mar 27 2009

Long Island City weekly arts events round up March 26-April 1

  • The Chocolate Factory’s new show, Red Metal Mailbox – [ ] opened Wednesday, and is running until this Saturday only. Directed by Sarah Maxfield. Performed by Jillian Sweeney and Rachel Tiemann. Designed by Chloe Z. Brown, Brad Kisicki, Mary McKenzie and Jason Sebastian (Also featuring video by Chocolate Factory Artistic Director Brian Rogers). March 25-28, Wednesday-Saturday, 8:00pm, $15, 5-49 49th Ave., LIC, 718.482.7069

  • Antigone is in its final week at The Secret Theatre. Read liQcity’s review here. March 25-28, 8:00pm, $15, 44-02 23rd St, LIC, 718.392.0722

  • Yo Miss: Teaching Inside the Cultural Divide, a multi-media production described as “part documentary, part music, part poetical autobiography, Yo Miss looks back on Judith Sloan’s twenty years of teaching in prisons, alternative schools, and universities,” will be presented at the La Guardia Performing Arts Center Thursday night. Opening Act: Mahina Movement Thursday, March 26, 8:00pm, $5, La Guardia Community College, 31-10 Thomson Avenue, LIC, 718.482.5151

  • The current exhibition at the Fisher-Landau Center for Art, FIVE DECADES OF PASSION Part One: The Eye of the Collector, 1968-1988 is closing in a week and a half. January 4-April 5, 2009, Thursday through Monday, 12:00-5:00 pm, Admission Free, 38-27 30th Street, LIC, 718.937.0727

more events: New York Irish Center, Lucky Mojo, Thalia Spanish Theatre, Blackbirds, and The Greater Astoria Historical Society »

3 Comments
Mar 24 2009

Long Island City’s theater scene delivers Greek classic ‘Antigone’

Antigone at the Secret Theatre, Hunters Point, Long Island City

You don’t need to go to Broadway, or even Brooklyn, to see great theater. Hunters Point boasts two excellent theaters, The Chocolate Factory whose new show, Red Metal Mailbox – [ ], is opening tomorrow night, and The Secret Theatre, whose latest production with The Queens Players, Sophocles’ Antigone, directed by Greg Cicchino, liQcity attended this past weekend.

The two theaters couldn’t be more different in terms of vision, approach, and repertory. While The Chocolate Factory excels in presenting new experimental and multimedia work, The Secret Theatre presents classics from the theater repertory, whether it’s Vampire Lesbians of Sodom, produced beautifully last fall with just the right proportion of kitch, or the classic Hamlet, coming up in April.

Within a few minutes of the Secret Theatre’s Antigone »

10 Comments
Mar 18 2009

Seen Performance at Rèst-âü-Ránt in Long Island City / Astoria

Seen Performance performs ‘Box Shy’ at LIC/Astoria’s new Rèst-âü-Ránt

Last week, liQcity attended a fundraiser for Seen Performance, an Astoria-based modern-dance/interdisciplinary performance collective headed by Esther Palmer, held at a relatively new wine and beer bar, Rèst-âü-Ránt, on the border of Long Island City and Astoria at 30th St and 35th Ave.

As for Rèst-âü-Ránt itself: the atmosphere was cozy, with lots of dark wood on the walls; the sandwiches were tasty (the menu consisted mostly of Paninis, salads, and appetizers); but the beer and wine flights were exceptional. And Rèst-âü-Ránt has also started a series of “Live Music Thursdays,” featuring “diverse and talented musicians from across the globe,” FREE starting at 8:30 pm on Thursday nights. In lieu of a website, you can call them at 718.729.9009.

Palmer has taken a web 2.0 approach to defining community »

4 Comments
Mar 9 2009

Armory Arts night in Queens reveals Long Island City’s thriving art scene

Vanessa Beecroft at Deitch Studios, Armory Arts Week, Long Island City

On Friday, liQcity checked out the art studios and galleries in Long Island City participating in the Armory Arts Week. There was so much happening at once, it was hard to catch it all. Despite skipping legacies like Noguchi, PS1, Sculpture Center, the studios and galleries visited revealed a remarkably wide spectrum of contemporary art available in the hood, from the internationally acclaimed to the local and underground. All of it within walking distance of each other and inside the elusive boundaries of LIC.

At the Deitch Studios, interspersing white nude female sculptures with live nude models painted white, international sensation Vanessa Beecroft brought some high-concept art to the table with her performance and sculpture exhibit ‘VB64′. The viewing scene was just as interesting as the exhibition: against the night skyline backdrop, hundreds of people walking back and forth on 44th Drive, and hovering poker faced around the performance. The live models resembled the static statues interspersed among them, and would move occasionally, giving the visual effect of sculpture in motion.

Beecroft frequently collaborates with Kanye West, who was also rumored to have been in attendance. The sculpture exhibit is still on display, with video of the live performance from Friday.

Another highlight of the show »

10 Comments
Mar 3 2009

Armory Arts Week hits Long Island City on Friday, March 6th

Chocolate Factory Theater, Long Island City

Chocolate Factory’s (re)develop (death valley), Long Island City

This Friday is a big day for Long Island City arts. It’s the Queens day of the Armory Arts Week, which will be touring most of the LIC arts scene. Here’s the local Hunters Point line up »

13 Comments
Feb 12 2009

Only in Long Island City: Tibetan Blessing and a Dance for Real Estate

Tibetan Blessing tonight at the Dean Project, Long Island City

1) In celebration of the book release “King of the Dharma: The Life of Je Tsongkapa”, the Dean Project is hosting a closing reception and blessing ceremony performed by Monks in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. The blessing ceremony will begin tonight at 7pm. Dean Project, 45-43 21st St, LIC. 718.706.1462

2) The new Chocolate Factory production redevelop (death valley) opens tonight »

6 Comments
Feb 6 2009

Afterparty like it’s 2009 this summer at PS1 MoMa WarmUp series

“The Afterparty, 2009 PS1 summer installation, Long Island City. –photo

It’s that time of winter again, when we start looking towards the summer… though it still does feel a little far away. Not for PS1, who announced their winner for the 2009 Young Architects Program’s design for this summer’s courtyard installation. If you’re not familiar, PS1’s Summer WarmUp parties have been happening for over a decade, and these days are met with mixed perspectives »

5 Comments
Dec 4 2008

Long Island City 2009 Calendar by Art-o-Mat; Opening Party at Domaine

Long Island City calendar, Art-O-Mat

Art-O-Mat, the LIC gallery and artisan craft store on Vernon Blvd, has released a Long Island City 2009 calendar exclusively featuring the work of local artists.

There will be a Opening Party for the calendar this Sunday, Dec 7th, from 7-10pm at Domaine bar a vins, 50-04 Vernon Blvd. The artwork featured in the calendar will be on display at Domaine for two weeks following the Opening Party on Sunday. Refreshments will be served, but of course.

Here’s a taste of the works in the calendar »

4 Comments
Oct 17 2008

Zikrayat performs at the Secret Theatre

No Comments
Oct 8 2008

New hotel ‘Verve’ in Dutch Kills; LIC in Zagat; Girls play football around here

20081004-DSC00649-1

New Development Long Island City/Astoria, near Vernon Blvd

Some quick LIC linkage coming at you right now »

9 Comments
Sep 8 2008

‘Swimming Cities of Switchback Sea’ in LIC by way of Swoon

Swoon, Cities of Switchback Sea, Deitch Studios, Anable Basin, Hunters Point, Long Island City, LIC, Queens, NYC, 11101

Swoon’s ‘Swimming Cities of Switchback Sea’ at Deitch studios, LIC — photo credit

Don’t let it be said that development is depriving LIC of its artist community… ok, well someday that might happen, but for now LIC still has some un-condofied industrial spaces currently left to the whims of local artists »

56 Comments
Aug 26 2008

Pigs Fly in Long Island City. We knew it would happen someday.

Pigs Fly in LIC, 5th St & 49th Ave, Hunters Point, Long Island City, LIC, Queens, NYC, 11101

Pigs Fly on 5th St, between 49th & 50th Aves, Hunters Point, LIC

Well, if Pigs were going to Fly anywhere in NYC it would be here »

7 Comments
Jul 22 2008

The north corner of LIC beckons: Socrates Sculpture Park Film Festival

Socrates Sculpture Park, Outdoor Cinema 2008, Long Island City

Socrates Sculpture Park Outdoor Cinema 2008, Long Island City

Every Wednesday night through the summer, Socrates Sculpture Park presents an outdoor international film festival, featuring a film from a different country each night, along with food and occasionally a related live performance.

Such is the case tonight »

No Comments
Prev Entries