photo by Maximus Commissar

One of the places I was the most excited to see this BOS was the Schoolhouse. Housing thirty artists in live/work loft-type spaces within an actual former school, this incredible space did not disappoint. I walked in to find Willy Muse in a linen suit playing a Matel guitar from the 80s while roller-skating in circles. Wandering through, I met Eliot Kurtz, a screenprinter and candy maker, offering beautiful paintings and handmade ginger/mango/ghost pepper lollipops. Upstairs Mariette Papic displayed text-as-art William Blake pages strung about, and Chris Chludenski’s studio was hung with quirky and haunting found-object mobiles. And that’s only a fraction of all the art on display at this marvelous space!

Click through for a Q&A with the artists!

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There are folks out there who cannot tell a joke to save their lives. I should know–I’m notorious for killing both jokes and sarcasm.  (Yes, it is possible to kill sarcasm. My former college roommates can confirm.)  However, I’m pretty good at laughing at jokes. If you’re like me and prefer to leave the joke-tellin’ to the experts, those practiced individuals who are innately funny persons—join the crowd at Fort Useless TONIGHT, 9pm for Spit-Take Friday, a series of comedic acts put together by George Flanagan.  I suppose you can be a funny person and still join the audience….

Here’s the line up:

- Alice Wetterlund
- Arden Myrin
- Robbie Collier
- Sara Schaeffer
- Joe Cocozzello

I’ve seen 2 Spit-Take shows at Fort Useless this year.  The people leading the laughter create stories about everything–from Bushwick to Obama,  seagulls who deliver trail mix, and frozen pizza. Make sure to catch one.

Clouder playing at Fort Useless, photo via Maryanne Ventrice

Jeremiah McVay, organizes both Stereoactive NYC and Fort Useless, one of the BOS’11 Hubs. Below, he answers a few questions about ongoing focuses, music in NYC + out-of-state and the Bushwick scene. Just ask him about good shows around town–he’ll give you plenty, maybe even more than your average click through L magazine.

AT: Tell us about your current projects for Stereoactive NYC.

Jeremiah McVay: Since Fort Useless began hosting shows in late 2009, booking shows there have been the primary focus for StereaoctiveNYC. We’ve been planning a relaunch of our website at www.stereoactivenyc.com to begin, once again, listing shows by our curated list of local artists and shows and documenting shows through photos and video, as well as featuring mp3s–hopefully that will be ready to go live sometime this summer. We’re also co-sponsoring a showcase at Spike Hill during the Northside Festival.

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For BOS ’11 Interstate Projects will act as one of several Hub Spaces, which are sites for visitors to congregate for information about BOS. Pop into the space and say “howdy,” during the festival, or visit during Interstate’s regular hours on Saturdays 12-6.  They are located at 56 Bogart Street, right across the street from the Morgan Avenue stop of the L train.

Through Interstate Projects, Tom Weinrich brings the work of contemporary artists from all over the nation into Bushwick. In this profile, we get to glimpse the type of energy it takes to bring that all together.

Audrey Tran: Tell us about your current projects.

Tom Weinrich: Our current exhibit is the first solo show by Natalie Westbrook, a recent MFA graduate from Yale.  She makes really incredible paintings and drawings of tropical plant life.  The show explores her progression from large baroque allegorical works to her more recent experimentation with abstraction.  The next show, Composite Factor, opens on Friday June 3rd, and features Justin Berry, Arielle Falk, Jesse Hulcher, and Alyssa Taylor Wendt.  We’ll also be doing an outdoor video project at night during the whole weekend of BOS called “Videos on the Front.”  There will be more than 30 artists involved from all over the country.  The videos will be projected onto the wall of a steel yard across the street from the gallery at the corner of Bogart St. and Grattan St.

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