A MID SUMMER NIGHT'S DRAW

Come on over to HALLWALLS Contemporary Arts Center, 341 Delaware Avenue in Buffalo. This Wednesday evening, starting at 7 PM, you'll have the chance to watch 34 artists drawing live in two 45 minute sessions. The completed works will be silent-auctioned with an opening bid of $38 (in honor of Hallwalls years in operation). It's a great lineup of Buffalo artists giving their all for the cause. Just $5 to get in the door. Music and a cash bar. I've decided to keep to black, white and 50 shades of grey. Got my graphite tools all ready to go. See you there!

LUCKY 13

Opening on Friday, July 13th, is the always popular Hallwalls Members’ Exhibition. The party carries on from 7:00 - 10:00 pm and the exhibition runs until Friday, August 24th. My entry this year is a piece from my ‘Toyology’ series. It’s based on a Barbie doll I found on the Eastside and photos I took of Central Park Plaza. Barbie stands in her box with ‘Fashionista Ken’ at her side and the plaza wall and trash behind her. Graffiti seen on a nearby house is painted on an outside panel. Central Park Plaza is a 27-acre desolate eyesore close to Amherst Street. After sitting basically abandoned for years, the property was just purchased by the Strickler Development Group LLC. Louis Ciminelli plans to “environmentally remediate and secure the site” and then work with the community to come up with the best plan. The immediate neighborhood is one of the most degraded in the city. It’s great to hear any positive news coming out of this area. Maybe it just got lucky?

THE SIDEWALK WALKS

In 2010 the City of Buffalo notified us that the sidewalk in front of our rental property on Whitney Place needed to be replaced by concrete. The old sidewalk was composed of large slabs of magnificent Medina Sandstone, each one a unique shape, 3 to 6 inches thick, and uneven on the bottom. Since the house was built around 1875, the slabs must date at least that far back. The stones leaned against the house on Whitney for 2 years while we decided what to do with them. Then Hal had the brilliant idea to put them under the pergola he had built 10 years ago at our home in North Buffalo. He worked with a true artist, Scott Pedley of Restorff's Landscaping to change a mudhole into a real patio. Thank you City of Buffalo for not smashing it up the stones and letting them have a second life.

BUFFALO REUSE – ALWAYS INSPIRING

I stopped down to visit Buffalo ReUse this week to find some interesting old molding to turn into frames. Their new location is 296 East Ferry in Buffalo, one block east of Jefferson Avenue. Buffalo ReUse acquires materials through ‘green demolitions’ and donations from the community. Their aim is to “help you save money, protect the environment and serve the community.” The huge old building is a dynamic space, giving everyone a chance to see the past broken down into bits and pieces, ready for creative renewal.

SHE’S READY FOR THE WNYBAC MEMBERS’ EXHIBITION

The Fourth Annual Members’ Show opens this Friday night, June 22, at the Western New York Book Arts Collaborative. WNYBAC is located at 468 Washington Street in downtown Buffalo. If you have never been there, this could be the right moment. It is one of the most unique resources in Western New York. My inspiration for this painting was an old photo in an album thrown out on the Eastside. The picture was dated from the forties so I imagine that she might have worked for the war effort in Buffalo. Type on the side and top are lines from a song about Rosie the Riveter. I did her portrait in spray paint and acrylic. The wood for the frame came from Buffalo ReUse, always a great place to get inspired. Buffalo ReUse has a new and even better location at 296 East Ferry Street in Buffalo. Hope to see you Friday!

BUFFALO "SCULPTURES"

Exploring around the city it's common to find vast old hunks of metal. Perhaps they were too big to be easily hauled off to the scrapyard. Perhaps a property owner just didn't get around to it yet. Anyway, they often just sit in the sun like sculptures. Actually they are amazing sculptural forms - designed for some specific purpose no longer needed. I invite everyone to keep their eye out for other "sculptures" and perhaps post them on Facebook or otherwise bring them to public light. Perhaps there should be a Buffalo Sculpture Park where a whole group of these monsters are brought together and displayed as the great designs they are. I can imagine a group of them down by the the bikepath along the waterfront with little plagues telling tourists of their significance. Anyone else have ideas on this?

BETHLEHEM STEEL'S NORTH OFFICE - IT MATTERS

A great mixed group of committed preservationists are working hard to stop the scheduled demolition of this 111-year old Beaux Arts style building. As the organization Preservation Buffalo-Niagara declared in a statement, “Bethlehem Steel’s North Office represents the vital need for a strategic approach to dealing with our region's underutilized, irreplaceable historic assets.” Sounds like a great idea! Important places shouldn’t get to such a crisis point. It’s amazing that the company that purchased the property failed to maintain the building and apparently encouraged decay. And the city of Lackawanna allowed it. For more news on this situation, follow David Torke’s blog, http://fixbuffalo.blogspot.com/