Long Island City event round-up; February 17th-20th

Flux Factory is back with “House Broken” collaboration exhibition, LIC

Wednesday 2/17

• ‘Town Hall’ Wed night at Manducatis Rustica, with the MTA & Council Member Van Bramer. “This will be an opportunity for members of the community to speak directly with members of the MTA on all issues concerning the 7 subway line and transportation issues in general.” RSVP necessary, email AJacobs@council.nyc.gov. 6:30 -8:30pm. 46-33 Vernon Blvd, LIC, 718.937.1312

Thursday 2/18

• Concerto of Illumination, a virtual collaboration of LIC artists, musicians, poets, dancers and performance artists, runs from February 18th to March 17th at m55 Gallery. “The gallery will be open for visual and performance artists, generating a spontaneous collaboration that will create a ‘concerto of illumination.’” The show will feature “video installations screened through m55 Gallery storefront windows and projected on the brick wall across the street as virtual graffiti. During the exhibition dates, performances will take place in and around the gallery 24/7.” 44-02 23rd St, LIC, 718.729.2988

Friday 2/19

• Jazz and Italian eats in Long Island City: the Adrienne Hindmarsh Jazz Duo is playing Vernon Blvd’s Manducatis Rustica on Friday, February 19th from 6:30-10pm, and again on March 19th. 44-02 23rd St, LIC, 718.729.2988

• Flux Factory’s HOUSEBROKEN is the first major exhibition in their new LIC space and also the largest collaboration in their 15 year history. It will “inaugurate the space as a complex, ever-evolving, multimedia, radical work of art: an installation to the scale of a full building,” and in short, they’re “putting the flux back in the factory,” so don’t miss it. Eclectic performances and unparalleled reverie start at 8pm. There’s a $15 tax-deductible suggested donation and a 21+ open bar courtesy of Campari. RSVP to rsvp@fluxfactory.org to get in on it. HOUSEBROKEN will remain on view every Saturday and Sunday from 12–6pm until March 21st. 39-31 29th St, LIC

Saturday 2/20

• Another round of Secret Burlesque (their 7th edition, actually) returns to the Secret Theatre‘s Little Secret, tonight @ 11pm with sassy performances and their Dead of Winter BBQ. Buy tickets online, the last event sold out! 44-02 23rd St, LIC, 718.392.0722

• PS 1‘s Saturday Sessions series continues today with YEMENWED, Light Asylum, and Sabine Gruffat, organized by Michael Bullock, from 4-6pm. 22-25 Jackson Ave @ intersection of 46th Ave, LIC, 718.784.2084

• Green Space Dance Studio presents Take Root at 8:30pm with KineticArchitecture, tickets $10. “This work explores the marriage ritual through an environment ranging from quirky and confrontational to tender and intimate.” 37-24 24th St, LIC, 718.956.3037

• CrossFit LIC is still holding their FREE Saturday classes at 11am – no CrossFit experience required. “The training session takes about one hour and consists of a warm-up, skills required for the exercises to be performed, workout and stretches” and you can sign up using their Online Scheduler. Another free class coming up on February 27th. In addition, sign up for their next Foundations Program here. 5-26 47th Ave, LIC, 646.415.8363

• History Roundtable at the Greater Astoria Historical Society. “This month will focus on our 16th President and the war that divided our nation,” FREE at 1pm. 35-20 Broadway, 4th FL, LIC, 718.278.0700

Sunday 2/21

• Green Space Dance Studio presents Fertile Ground at 7pm featuring Owen David, Megan Bascom, Luke Murphy, Sarah A. O. Rosner, and Amy Larmier, tickets $15. 37-24 24th St, LIC, 718.956.3037

Continuing

• Now playing at the Secret Theatre: ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ at the Big Secret running February 17th-20th @ 8pm; matinee on Feb 20th @ 3:30pm, tickets $15. “Wilde’s final and perhaps most recognized play is by all accounts a masterpiece of modern comedy. A century later, it strikes a wonderful balance by remaining both a respected and studied piece of literature, as well as a favorite with audiences.” 44-02 23rd St, LIC, 718.392.0722

• Now playing at the Secret Theatre: ‘The Servant To Two Masters’ at the Little Secret (their original, smaller space) running February 17th-20th @ 8pm; matinee on Feb 20th @ 3:30 pm, tickets $15. “This production will be a brave, fresh, and irreverent tribute to the beloved play about a servant who tried to serve two masters… Come ready to play!” 44-02 23rd St, LIC, 718.392.0722

• Alex Sax’s ‘Various Amusements’ at AES Gallery through February 19th. “Inspired by Gertrude Jekyll’s book, ‘Children and Gardens,’ first published in 1908, Alex expands on her historical fiction project Menagerie Recovery featuring mixed media cast paper and bronze animal sculptures.” 44-02 23rd St, LIC, 718.249.9359

• Exhibitions in the Silks Building: Putting-It-All-Together: Collage, Montage, and Assemblage at Climate/Gallery through February 21st, and an exhibition of new work by Mira Aldridge and Kit Brown runs at Dutch Kills Gallery through February 28th. Both located in the same building – Climate/Gallery at Suite 406, Dutch Kills at Suite 402. 37-24 24th St, LIC, 718.784.2737

• Mayo Sandoval Projects presents:
 A Million and One Thanks – An Interactive, Community-based, Social Media Installation at Local Project through February 21st. “The goal of the project is to ask participants to explore their feelings, connect with others and celebrate the people, places or things that make their lives richer and fuller and to ultimately say THANKS!” Anyone can still contribute – find out how on their website. 45-10 Davis St, LIC

• New art exhibition ‘Urbanesque’ is installed in the 6 lobby showcases in the atrium of the Citicorp building. In this exhibit, sponsored by Women in the Arts Foundation, Inc., 4 artists explore the urban landscape, with several paintings of the LIC area included as well. Works by Carole Barlowe, Elinore Bucholtz, Diane Waller and Sharon Florin, who curated this exhibit, will be on view through the end of March. Hours are Monday-Friday, 7am-7pm. One Court Square, LIC

• New photography exhibition at Court Square Wines & Spirits running 8 weeks from February 11th featuring the work of J. Mitchel from ScenesofNewYork.com and Brianne Zulauf. Pricing is accessible: many pieces at just $35 and some ranging up to several hundred. “The work consists of photography but goes beyond the typical print, with many images on unusual substrates such as canvas, wood and metal.” 2420 Jackson Ave, LIC, 718.707.9911

• Josh Smith’s On The Water now on view at Deitch Project through March 28th, 2010. Smith painted 47 paintings directly on the wall to “create a show of paintings that looked like something else. The intention was to make ‘art without an art object’ and to take the commodity out of the art.” 4-40 44th Drive, LIC

• Leopards in the Temple continues at SculptureCenter through March 30th, 2010. Named after the Franz Kafka parable, “the group exhibition of the same name [featuring a number of increasingly prominent European artists] focuses on moments of metamorphosis, paradox, and formal adjacency, borrowing from the parable an ability to promote multiple readings of succinct forms and extraordinary occurrences.” 44-19 Purves St, LIC, 718.361.1750

• Socrates Sculpture Park‘s EAF 09: Emerging Artist Fellowship Exhibition is on view through March 2010, featuring 16 artists awarded fellowships with the Park to create and exhibit their work in the outdoor studio. 32-01 Vernon Blvd (@ Broadway), LIC, 718.956.1819

• P.S. 1‘s fall exhibitions are now on view, including ’1969′ and ‘Between Spaces’. Exhibitions run through April 2010. 22-25 Jackson Ave @ intersection of 46th Ave, LIC, 718.784.2084

Upcoming Events

• LICBDC is hosting a Queens Agency Breakfast on February 25th from 8-9:30am at Queens West’s Riverview Restaurant in LIC. “Come and meet three leading City officials and learn about the Administration’s plans for these vital areas of civic infrastructure.” Networking and continental breakfast, $20 for members, $30 for non-members. Contact Indra Smith at 718.786.5300 x 21 or register online.

• Upcoming performances at the Secret Theatre: ‘Cosi Fan Tutte’ at the Big Secret running February 24th-28th, presented by Pocket Opera of NY. Another round of Forward Motion Theater’s RE:Vision on February 24th @ 8pm. Also: ‘In My Free Time I Self-Destruct’: three plays by Gary Ferrar, running February 25, 26, 27 and March 3, 4, 5 @ 8pm, with a matinee on February 29th @ 4pm; “In three diverse pieces, metatheater and multimedia pull the audience through the 4th wall, deep into the humanity, humor, and surreality of the hyper-aware mind.”

• Upcoming at Chocolate Factory Theater: Andrew Schneider’s solo performance WOW+FLUTTER, February 25th-27th at 8pm, tickets $15: “In Schneider’s surreal world, time loses linearity. Using a mix of live and prerecorded media, the past and the future poke holes in the present.”

• AES Gallery presents Josana Blue: paintings and installations from February 25th to March 27th, with an opening reception on March 5th from 6-9pm. “New York-based artist Josana Blue will be exhibiting her recent paintings and installations combining influences drawn from the fine arts and fashion worlds.”

• Second Sundays at the Noguchi Museum coming up on March 14th featuring Dirt: Screening and Talk with Bill Logan: “Arborist and author Bill Logan will screen and discuss the new feature-length documentary based on his book, ‘Dirt: The Ecstatic Skin of the Earth.’ Narrated by Jaime Lee Curtis, ‘Dirt’ brings to life the environmental, economic, social and political impact that the soil has.” 3pm, FREE with museum admission.

Arts events postings are sponsored by O’Connor Capital Partners.