Thousands of Art Enthusiasts Turn Out for Williamsburg Every 2:nd Friday Gallery Crawl and "Learn To Collect" Project

BROOKLYN, NY, Sept. 9, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Thousands of art enthusiasts from across the city walked gallery to gallery across Williamsburg tonight to see some of the finest contemporary painting, sculpture, glassworks and graphic design as part of Williamsburg Every 2:nd Friday gallery crawl and "Learn to Collect" project sponsored by AT&T and presented by ARTLOG.

Seasoned and budding collectors, artists, gallerists, community members and tourists alike joined galleries for opening receptions, artist discussions and performances. New this month, local art experts, including Amy Kisch, founder & CEO of AKART, and Manish Vora, founder of ARTLOG and GREYAREA, led tours through the Williamsburg gallery scene, which rivals any New York neighborhood in terms of the number of artists living and displaying their work there.

"Williamsburg has transformed itself back into the most exciting destination for emerging contemporary art on the East Coast," said Marisa Sage, director and owner of Like the Spice Gallery and co-organizer of Williamsburg Every 2:nd Friday. "With the sponsorship of Every 2:nd Friday by AT&T, we are able to showcase the re-transformation of this burgeoning cultural arts scene to a whole new group of art enthusiasts, collectors and young artists alike, making Williamsburg the art mecca it has always had the potential of being."

"Supporting the galleries, artists and arts organizations of Williamsburg, Brooklyn and greater New York has long been a focus for me," said Amy Kisch, founder and director of AKART and co-organizer of Williamsburg Every 2:nd Friday. "Being able to create programming that generates increased awareness of the diversity and quality of the artwork represented here is incredibly rewarding. Moreover, being able to collaborate with companies such as AT&T and organizations such as ARTLOG in assisting collectors to grow their collections is a unique and gratifying aspect of my job and company AKART. I look forward to the continuation of the 'Learn to Collect' project in the months to come."

"Congratulations to the organizers of Williamsburg Every 2:nd Friday for a truly successful evening," said Tom DeVito, vice president and general manager for AT&T in New York and New Jersey. "We were thrilled to sponsor an event that connects galleries with art enthusiasts in this thriving artistic community. AT&T is proud to support North Brooklyn's local businesses and local economy by recognizing and investing in one of its pillars, the visual arts. We are also more committed than ever to providing North Brooklyn and all New York customers with the best mobile broadband experience possible."

For this month's gallery crawl, Williamsburg Every 2:nd and AT&T continued the "Learn to Collect" project, which invites attendees to create their own "collections" by photographing artwork with their smartphones and uploading the pictures to the Williamsburg Every 2:nd Facebook page. The person whose collection is comprised of the greatest number of artwork from the most galleries will be awarded a smartphone.

In addition to Like the Spice, participating galleries included ART 101, Black & White Gallery, Camel Art Space, Causey Contemporary, Figureworks, Front Room Gallery, Parker's Box, Pierogi and Ventana244.

Among the shows that opened Friday was Reuben Negron's "This House of Glass" at Like the Spice. The artist's use of watercolor, a constant exercise in self-control and impending chaos, is the perfect choice for Negron's current series, in which focuses an introspection and the complexities of personal intimacy.

At Black & White Gallery, a show of sculptures by Adam Niklewicz called "Locus Communis" premiered. The gallery and performance space also staged an abridged performance of choreographer and director Noemie Lafrance's "White Box." Meanwhile ART 101 launched the fall season with a knockout exhibition of new work by Richard Timperio, whose abstract expressionist paintings fill the gallery with light, color and motion.

SOURCE AT&T Inc.