Which neighborhood in Broolyn has the best art? It’s a question that has led to knife fights on the streets, with partisans of Williamsburg and Fort Greene battling it out with violence we haven’t seen since the Civil War draft riots. Not that they’re picking sides, but BRIC is starting their BRIC Biennial (take that, Whitney Museum!) tonight with a survey of artists that live in Downtown, and nearby neighborhoods like Fort Greene and Boerum Hill.
The BRIC Biennial: Volume 1 contains the work of 27 artists who make Downtown and its surrounding areas their home. It’s a fitting neighborhood to pick, since the BRIC House (647 Fulton Street) itself is there, which also means it’s probably easier to move the art in.
Whatever the reason BRIC picked Downtown for their first big show, it still means that whenever you walk into the BRIC House from tonight through December 15, you’ll be able to see art in a variety of mediums, dealing with themes like the human body as cultural identity and narrative all at once, landscapes (including of course Brooklyn) and the collision of history and memory. The art will be displayed all over the BRIC House, from the main gallery when you first walk in, to the walls and even spilling over to Humanities Gallery at LIU, where there’ll be a sculpture from artist Katie Bell.
In addition to all the art, there’ll be related programs featuring artists in the show, like tonight’s gala opening. You’ll find us at Dread Scott‘s presentation on November 4 at 7pm, when he chats with three of the Biennial’s featured artists about which three or four songs, one luxury item and one book they’d bring to a desert island with them. Always a good discussion, and a chance for you to grouse when no one chooses Rush’s “2112.” It’s so long, it could give you hours of entertainment!