Random Roundup

• Beacon Art Supply will be hosting a closing party on Wednesday, Feb 11 from 6-8pm. Details are at beaconite.ning.com. A silent auction will be held for a selection of items, and there are deals a plenty on the remaining inventory, as the party will mark the beginning of 60% markdowns on art supplies an remaining items from Burlock.
• Erica Hauser is opening up shop again at 469 Main. From Feb 9-14, you can stop into the Valentine Cupcake shop for handmade goodies, edible and not- for that special cupcake in your life. The approximate hours for the shop are: Feb 9-13, 2-6 pm. Feb 14, 1-8 pm.
• Daniel Weise of Open Space has been named one of the Greater Souther Dutchess Chamber of Commerce's Top Under 40 for 2009 as part of the organization's 4th Annual Shaker Awards. We're not talking about this kind of Shaker. The Shaker awards recognize folks under the age of 40 who are committed to shaping the region in a positive manner. A reception for which will be held on March 9th.
  
• Be sure to stop into Van Brunt Gallery to chew a bit of gum. Steve Rossi is casting other people's ABC gum as part of the endeavors taking place at the HFA Goes Inside at the Gallery.
  
• Harry Shearer's Silent Echo Chamber on view through today at the Aldrich Art Museum in Ridgefield CT was included as a feature on CNN last week. The piece was also featured on a segment on NPR's Talk of the Nation program in January.
• Via the Artful Manager, a compilation of content on the renewed debate of Federal funding of arts an culture vis a vis the economic stimulus plan.
• Because I'm lazy and I usually have more than enough on my plate already, I can't always hunt down new information, and things fall away from my attention. The Ann Street Gallery in Newburgh represents such an instance. The website for the gallery points to a static business card type placeholder with location and phone number, and emails from the gallery have either stopped coming to me, or they've been swallowed by my spam filter. But I've found a better portal through which to get news of the gallery which is the gallery's parent organization, safe-harbors.org Currently, the gallery is showing Art Brut, an exhibit of work by Bob Justin, Bill Marlieb, Dickie Peterson, Matt Sesow, Susan Ward and William Yost.
• In a similar vein, for anyone who's been frustrated in learning too late about upcoming art related lectures and events at Vassar, the college has a new online calendar that should prove more effective (definitely not perfect, but it's an improvement).
• Last week when I posted info on the Newburgh Art Supply, I neglected to include information on the store's custom picture framing services provided by Eric Jarmann. Jarmann's presence at the art supply store is by appointment only, so contact him at 845 238 7640 or by email at eric[dot]jarmann[at]gmail[dot]com.
• Ty Marshal of Floor One Gallery posits the concept of an arts covenant.
  
• Finally, it's becoming exceedingly evident that Facebook is reaching a critical mass here in our fair community, potentially causing ideological rifts between those who FB and those who FB not. Evidence of the sweeping phenomena could be found in a conversation had this weekend between five unnamed artists regarding the true implications of getting poked and the most effective way to evade the attention of a possible grade school stalker emerging from the fog of one's past.
  Below is a glimpse into Facebook's ethos transposed into real life. (I found it on Peter Iannarelli's profile.)

I love the smell of Newburgh in the afternoon.

This past Thursday I journeyed over to Newburgh for the first time in a long time. I met a friend for lunch at the Moo and Oink on Liberty & Washington; a cool joint that gifted one with a mouth watering aroma upon entering.
Later, I stopped into the Newburgh Art Supply Store at 87 Liberty St. and spent time chatting with owners Gerardo Castro and Michael Gabor. The Newburgh Art Supply is similar in size to that of the Beacon Art Supply - may it rest in peace. Michael and Geraldo want to make sure their stock is as appealing as possible to the area's artists. If you have a special request, let them know and work on getting it in for you. The store is stocked with an ever growing selection of environmentally friendly products. They also carry the new line of Golden Open Acrylics which I'm anxious to try.
The duo are understandably passionate about supporting the growth of their community and have an extensive calendar of arts events happening in Newburgh on their website. They're also active in developing joint Newburgh/Beacon events related to the 400th Anniversary of Hudson's journey up the river.