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Geometric Realism: An Immersive Journey
The West Harlem Art Fund is proud to presentCarlos Mateu for its fall exhibition on Governors Island in Nolan Park. Carlos Mateu’s paintings invite viewers into a symbolic world where geometry becomes a language for storytelling. His distinctive style, which he calls Pop Geometric, combines the structural discipline of Cubism with the clarity of Realism, while drawing on…
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Forgotten Printmaker in the New Deal Era
Dox Thrash (1893-1965) He was born in Griffin, Georgia, on March 22, 1893. Dox was the second of four children in his family. Thrash left home at the age of fifteen in search of work up north. He was part of the Great Migration (African American) looking for industrial work in the North. The first job that Thrash…
African American life, American artist, Army Veteran, Art Institute of Chicago, artist, Buffalo Soldiers, carborundum mezzotint, Carborundum printmaking, Chicago, Dox THrash, Elevator Operator, Federal Art Project, Georgia, mezzotint, National Negro Music Festival, New Deal Era, Pioneer, printmaker, Tra Club of Philadelphia, WPA, WWI
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Harlem Sculpture Gardens Summer Wine List 2026
Curated by Eric White, Manager The Winery NYC257 West 116th St.New York, NY 10026 List of Black Winemakers: Cape Red “Umsasane” 2022 Aslina by Ntsiki Biyela for $39.95/ btr. Grape: 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc, 10% Petit Verdot. Region: South Africa> Western Cape> Stellenbosch. Notes: 16 months French Oak (30% new). Filtered, not fined.,…
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Lost World Literary Genre
According to Wikipedia, The “lost world” is a subgenre of fantasy and science fiction centered on the discovery of isolated, unknown civilizations or prehistoric lands out of time. Popularized in late-Victorian and Edwardian literature, stories often feature perilous expeditions to uncharted, cartographically sealed regions like deep jungles, isolated plateaus, or the hollow earth. The genre originated…
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Nannie Helen Burroughs, Trailblazing Black Teacher And Labor Organizer
Reprinting this article about an amazing woman. Author: Danielle Phillips-Cunningham During Jim Crow, she forged career paths for Black girls. DANIELLE PHILLIPS-CUNNINGHAM – AUGUST 31, 2022 Editors’ note: This archival post, which we are highlighting in honor of Black history month, was originally published on Aug. 31, 2022, during a spate of union drives and strikes. This…
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Remembering Unity Ribbon 2010
I remember how this wonderful sculpture was presented and then violently destroyed. Art has that kind of power. To invoke fear, joy, curiosity or a feeling of loss. Created by Scherezade Garcia, a graduate student at the time. She was attending City College of New York’s MFA program. Installed on what is now called the…
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DEEP ALTARS
Deep Altars, an evocative meditation on ritual, is a solo show by OTERO FUENTES, curated by Alitza Cardona, opening on Governors Island, June 20, 2026. This body of sculpture ponders how cultural beliefs serve as a counter for hope in the face of today’s transactional behaviors. Otero Fuentes sculpts material into possibility. Each piece is…
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Artist Spotlight – Photographer Phil Buehler
Through my work I look to transport viewers to important places or moments in time. Starting in 1973, when I rowed out to then-abandoned Ellis Island to photograph its ruins, I’ve researched and documented many places of historic, cultural, or political significance through photographs, books and immersive photo-based installations, hoping to bring their stories into…
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Harlem Sculpture Gardens launches May 2nd 2026
Visit our official site : https://harlemsculpturegardens.com For the third year, West Harlem Art Fund and NY Artist Equity Association present 21 sculptures across six venues in West Harlem. The exhibition opens May 2nd and runs through October 30, 2026. Venues that will display art are as follow: Morningside Park Featuring Joseph Iacona, Elizabeth Knowles, Eunkyung Lee, Elizabeth…
Atu Ram, Brett Cook Dizney, Broadway Mall Association, Chris Sancomb, design, Dianne Smith, EK Lee, Elizabeth Knowles, Elizabeth MacWillie, Harlem Sculpture Gardens, Joseph Iacona, Luke Schumacher, Michael Levchenko, Michael V. Poast, Moses Ros, Natalie Colette Wood, NYAE, NYC Parks, NYC Parks & Recreation, Peter Miller, public art, Savona Bailey-McClain, Savona Bailey-McClain curator, Ted Salmon, Tonia Kennedy, West Harlem Art Fund, Z Buehl, Zihao Zhang
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History of Macy’s Fireworks
The first-ever Macy’s fireworks show lit up New York skies in 1958, but not on July Fourth. The “pyrotechnic extravaganza” took place over the Hudson River on July 1 as a celebration of the department store’s 100th anniversary. About a million people showed up to watch. That early antecedent was replaced by the show we…
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Environmental Monitoring is ready to launch this spring
Northern Manhattan has formed a huge partnership to monitor the environment in its local parks. This collaborative effort focuses on monitoring land, air, and water quality. To engage the community, they are creating opportunities such as nature and trail walks, as well as novice paddling excursions on the Harlem River, offering unique views of Highbridge…
Broadway Mall Association, City College School of Architecture, climate change, Columbia Climate School, Columbia School of Engineering, Columbia University, Dana Thomson, Drone Cadets, environmental impact, environmental monitoring, Exalt Youth, Harlem River, Highbridge Park, Humanitarian Open Street Map Team, J.Max Bond Center for Urban Futures at City College, Jackie Robinson Park, June Moses, Kytt McManus, Landscape Architecture Program, Morningside Park, New York Restoration Project, NYU Gallatin Wetlab, resiliency, Slum Dwellers International (SDI) federated network, St. Nicholas Park, The Brotherhood Sister Sol, Washington Heights, West Harlem, West Harlem Art Fund
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Peter C. Bunnel changed photography forever
Photography as an art form began in 1839 with French artist Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre (1787–1851). He called his invention the daguerreotype, a one-of-a-kind image on a highly polished, silver-plated sheet of copper. Samuel Morse, American inventor and painter, brought the invention to NYC and the first studio opened in 1840. Key developments included 19th-century Civil War…
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Furniture Design with Marie Burgos
As we observe the accomplishments of women this month, we focus on luxury interior design with Marie Burgos. Marie Burgos is a French-born interior designer and Feng Shui expert based in New York. Known for creating harmonious, luxurious, and functional residential and commercial spaces. She founded Marie Burgos in 2007, blending her Martinique heritage with Parisian…
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Contemporary Black Artists – Late 20th to 21st Century
Today, there is a real threat of erasure. Once again, our past is under attack. However, our present and future are also at risk. We have made gains. Also being trashed is the growth of our humanity. Those gains have not been reflected upon. Our fear of losing our past is keeping us from seeing the gems that are right…
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DESIGN WEEK NEW YORK
New York City’s annual, citywide design festival, was inaugurated in May 2012 to showcase the city’s, and the world’s, creative talent across various disciplines. Founded as a municipal initiative by the Bloomberg Administration and NYCEDC, it has grown from a local effort into a premier global event, now operating as an independent non-profit. Following a survey highlighting…
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Cornelius Tulloch an Artist Spotlight
Cornelius Tulloch is a Miami-based interdisciplinary artist and architect. His work transcends the boundaries of photography, fine art, and architecture, exploring the importance of cultural identity within built environments and how space shapes culture, which in turn cultivates landscapes. Cornelius’s work has been presented in institutions such as CUE Art Foundation, New York; Locust Projects;…
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Black Graphic Designers
We wish to take a moment to reflect on the different styles Black people have used to express their humanity during Black History Month 2026 in the US. A tribute to Gail Anderson, Charles Dawson, Laci Jordan and Emory Douglas. They are not household names, but their work has had a profound impact on American…
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Reading List for Black History Month
These books came recommended by the National Wildlife Federation Blog. The Home Place: Memoirs of a Colored Man’s Love Affair with Nature Written by J. Drew Lanham Author, poet, birder and wildlife biologist, J. Drew Lanham explores the story of his love of nature and how its impacted by being a Black man in a…
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Building Capacity
The definition of citizen science is below. Citizen science is the partnership between professional researchers and the public, where volunteers (citizen scientists) collect, analyze, and share data to advance scientific knowledge. Anyone can get involved to help monitor the environment, identify species, or classify images, often contributing to large-scale, long-term studies. There is a need to…
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Betty Boop is now public domain
The Real Betty Boop Baby Esther Jones Esther Lee Jones (a.k.a. Baby Esther) was born in Chicago in, or around, 1919. Because she was billed as a “kiddie” act, staying childlike for as long as possible was central to her marketability. This meant that her exact age was kept purposely fluid. As a result, today…
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Black Landscapes Matters
As we approach the centennial celebration of Negro History Week now known as Black History Month, we wish to spotlight the first Black Landscape Architect in America. David Augustus Williston (1868–1962) was the first professionally trained African American landscape architect in the United States. He designed many campuses for historically black colleges and universities, including Tuskegee University. He also taught…
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It’s that time of year again with Harlem Sculpture Gardens 2026
New York, NY… The 3rd rendition of Harlem Sculpture Gardens (https://harlemsculpturegardens.com) presented by West Harlem Art Fund and NY Artist Equity Association will feature more women artists and academic teams, this year. Joining the lineup is Natalie Colette Wood, a seasoned artist who uses recycled materials that are turned into botanical forms. Harlem-based artist Dianne Smith will bring a…
broadway-malls, Dianne Smith, Jackie Robinson Park, Maggie’s Garden, Michael Gormley, Michael Levchenco, Montefiore Park Plaza, Morningside Park, Natalie Collette Wood, NY Artist Equity Association, NYC Parks, public art, Savona Bailey-McClain, sculpture, St. Nicholas Park, temporary public art, West Harlem, West Harlem Art Fund
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Artist Spotlight
“I have no color on the brain; all I have on the brain is paint.” — Robert S. Duncanson Landscape Artist Sharon Sorrels Sharon Sorrels built careers in the arts and education in Washington, DC before relocating to the Myrtle Beach area. She earned a BFA in Design with minors in Art History and Education from…
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New Partnership
West Harlem Art Fund has formed a new partnership with NYCXDesign. During Design Week in mid-May, Harlem Sculpture Gardens will be a featured tour for NYC residents and the design community. Harlem Sculpture Gardens 2026 will be presented across six venues this year. The roster of artists are quite diverse. Additional partnerships are in development.…
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West Harlem Art Fund teams up again with The Drawing Foundation for Master Drawings Week 2026 to create a stunning new panel — literally
New York, NY… At the National Arts Club, The West Harlem Art Fund will present a panel for the third consecutive year with Master Drawings NY. A site most suitable for its ornate stones, stained glass, and wood carvings. In addition to the jewelry focus, the event will feature a packed panel that will explore…
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Asia Week New York Proudly Unveils Its 2026 Dealer Roster
We are thrilled to announce the exceptional roster for Asia Week New York 2026, returning for its 17th year from March 19–27! This highly anticipated annual celebration continues to be the preeminent gathering for Asian art worldwide. It will showcase 25 esteemed galleries, including three online exhibitions, 27 museums, and six major auction houses—Bonhams, Christie’s, Doyle, Freeman’s, Heritage Auctions, and Sotheby’s,…
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Animation First returning
View ProgramBuy Festival Pass Schedule Tuesday, February 3, 2026 – Sunday, February 8, 2026 This February, join us for the ninth edition of Animation First, the biggest animation festival in the United States! This year’s festival will run from Tuesday, February 3 through Sunday, February 8, and will present six feature-length films and eight short film programs, with a special…
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Stargazing
Star-gazing has been around for thirty thousand years before Christ. Babylonians and Mesopotamians (modern-day Iraq and Syria) studied the stars along with early Chinese, Central American, and European cultures. Astronomy was used by early cultures for timekeeping, navigation, spiritual practices, and agricultural planning. Now, moving forward to present times, Black Americans have historically faced systemic exclusion and racism…
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Orozco’s impact on printmaking
Together with Diego Rivera and David Alfaro Siqueiros, Orozco was one of Mexico’s three most influential muralists. The most dedicated printmaker of the three “giants,” Orozco completed some thirty lithographs and twenty intaglios during his career, printing etchings in his own studio This print comes from a series of lithographs that Orozco created based on…
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MASTER DRAWINGS NEW YORK 2026 EXHIBITORS
Master Drawings New York (MDNY), the premier art fair for exhibiting and celebrating exceptional works on paper in the United States, is pleased to announce the exhibitor list for the 20th anniversary edition of the fair, which will be held across thirty-five galleries on the Upper East Side of Manhattan from January 30 – February 7, 2026. The exhibitors of Master…
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GLOSSARY OF TERMINOLOGY RELATED TO SILVER
Have you ever wondered about your mother’s or grandmother’s silverware? Did you know that African Americans have been silversmiths from the early 19th Century. Read the biography of Peter Bentzon by Dr. Synatra Smith and then learn more about silver. Peter Bentzon Nineteenth-century silversmith Peter Bentzon was born circa 1783 on the Caribbean island of St. Thomas.…
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Greg Tate Horus in Harlem
West Harlem hosted a mural unveiling and celebration of the visionarywriter, bandleader, and cultural theorist Gregory Stephen ‘Ionman’ Tate, whose work reshaped Black music and thought. The day featured a major new public artwork by acclaimed artist Brett Cook as well as live performances and from Melvin Gibbs for Honk NYC! and Burnt Sugar The…
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Governors Island Fall Art Show – The Painterly Eye
This fall, immerse yourself in an unforgettable exhibition that celebrates the power of painting. Autumn’s vivid colors come alive through the extraordinary talents of artists Shenna Vaughn, Linda Griggs, and Allen Hansen, who transform our space on Governors Island into a vibrant haven of creativity. Experience Shenna Vaughn’s captivating abstracts, Linda Griggs’s evocative object-inspired paintings,…
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Public Art can help address climate change
The Burrow and Reflections on Sunnyslope The citizens of Phoenix Arizona came together to create Sombra, a public art exhibition that creatively deal with the rising heat index in that city. With support from Bloomberg Philanthropies, nine artists were selected to present temporary public art. The ¡Sombra! artists are experimenting with innovative materials and processes,…
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METAMORPHOSIS: Chinese Imagination And Transformation to Open at China Institute Gallery
A new contemporary exhibition at China Institute Gallery this fall will explore how artists approach issues of profound change ranging from experiencing powerful spiritual journeys to calling attention to serious environmental issues. Metamorphosis: Chinese Imagination and Transformation will be exhibited from September 10, 2025 through January 11, 2026. Many of the works are on view…
Ah Xian, art, Bingyi, Bouie Choi, China Institute, Chu Chu, Cui Fei, Fiona Wong Lai Ching, food, Fung Ming Chip, installation, Irene Chou, Jennifer Wen Ma, jewelry, Kelly Wang, Lin Guocheng, Liu Xiaodong, Lu Yang, Lui Shou-Kwan, Man Fungyi, Ming Fay, painting, photography, Ren Light Pan, sculpture, Su Xiaobai, Sun Xun, Tao Aimin, video, Wang Tiande, Yin Xiuzhen, Yun-Fei Ji, Zhang Jian-Jun, Zhang Yu, Zheng Chongbin, Zheng Lu
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Harlem Sculpture Gardens 2025 Highlights
Images of three works in Harlem Sculpture Gardens that caught the imagination of viewers. Skateboarding Cat by Eunkyung Lee in Jackie Robinson Park. The Beacon at Montefiore Park by artist Shervone Neckles and the Beam Center, a youth based organization in Brooklyn. Then we have the Gates at Morningside Park by Motohiro Takeda.
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Curator Azu Nwagbogu
Azu Nwagbogu is an internationally acclaimed curator, interested in evolving new models of engagement with questions of decolonization, restitution, and repatriation. In his practice, the exhibition becomes an experimental site for reflection, civic engagement, ecology and repatriation – both tangible and symbolic. Nwagbogu is the Founder and Director of African Artists’ Foundation (AAF), a…
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History of Land Art
Land Art is an artistic movement that emerged in the 1960s, using nature as both material and the primary setting for creation. Land artists sculpt, transform, or directly intervene in natural landscapes to create works that are often monumental, ephemeral, or permanent. This movement transcends the limits of galleries and museums, questioning our relationship with nature…
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Romance in the Garden
Nika Antuanette will animate on Saturday, August 16th at 2 pm, the sculptural installation Romance in the Park with a 20-minute dance, embodying the spirit of romance woven into the artwork in Morningside Park, Harlem. Inspired by the fleeting, joyful encounters that Romance in the Park celebrates, the performance is an ode to the elation, excitement,…
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The meaning behind the 3 Sisters
Dianne Hebbert takes us on a journey to her indigenous culture. Her family is from Nicaragua and she shares her traditions and heroes in several paintings that compliments the Native history on Governors Island and the site specific work of Elizabeth Knowles. Corn, bean and squash were grown together as companion crops which sustained Native…
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Harlem Sculpture Gardens presents Ukrainian culture and art to Morningside Park
Post-Tango by artist Mikhailo Levchenko, is a sculpture about the aftermath of human devastation. The state where one has to face unpleasant circumstances, where emotions may have passed, but the body still remembers the physical pain. It is about the search for form after destruction — about a dance turned into an architecture of survival. …
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Harlem Sculpture Gardens expands this summer to the Broadway corridor with two new important works
This summer, Harlem Sculpture Gardens will expand to reach residents along upper Broadway in Manhattan with the help of new partners. As part of a collaboration between the Beam Center, a youth-based organization, fabricator Gary Linares, and the Lewis Latimer House Museum, NYS Senator Cordell Cleare and the Broadway Mall Association sponsored the works, Trinity…
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Convergence on Governors Island
Artist Statement by Elizabeth Knowles Installation can be seen on Governors Island, Nolan Park, Building 10B/West Harlem Art Fund through August 31, 2025 Natural patterns inspire my work. Some are biological patterns atthe cellular level of organisms. Others are geological patternsfound in the earth’s natural landscapes. By working site-specifically with a variety of media in…
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Notable Women from Harlem
On Friday, June 6, 2025, NYC Department of Transportation in partnership with artist Fitgi Saint-Louis and the West Harlem Art Fund will unveil the sculp- ture “Aunties” on the 124th Street and Lenox Avenue median. The work presents three figures, each standing 6.5 feet high, 6 inches deep, and 16 inches wide. This sculpture is…
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Public Art in Harlem and Beyond
This Friday, at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, panelists will discuss how contemporary presentation styles for public art affect urban communities like Harlem today. Among the panelists are Kendal Henry, Assistant Commissioner, Public Art, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, and Harlem-based artists Fitgi Saint-Louis and Dianne Smith. The West Harlem Art Fund’s…
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Amoako Boafo is now at Gagosian London
I make paintings that allow me to celebrate where I come from and what I aspire to be, while sharing unique perspectives and understanding. —Amoako Boafo Gagosian is pleased to announce I Do Not Come to You by Chance, an exhibition of new work by Amoako Boafo. Titled after Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani’s 2009 novel, it marks…
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South African artist James Delaney
James Delaney is a multidisciplinary artist with a current focus on sculpture and art as a tool for placemaking. Standing at the intersection between art and landscape, James creates pieces that bring their surroundings into relief, highlighting how the spaces we inhabit, be they city streets, wild spaces or man-made parks, affect and are affected…
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Tribute exhibition for Denis Brihat (1928-2024)
is honored to present an online memorial exhibition for the celebrated French artist Denis Brihat, who passed away last month at the age of 96 in Bonnieux in the Luberon region of Provence, where he had lived for over sixty years. A pioneering figure in the history of photography, Brihat was one of the first to…
and National Foundation for Contemporary Art, Centre Pompidou, Denis Brihat, French artist, London; the Musée des Beaux Arts, Maison Européenne de la Photographie, Marseille; and the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, MoMA; the Center for Creative Photography, Nailya Alexander Gallery, nature works, Neuchâtel; the Musée Cantini, Paris, photographer, photographic engraving, photographic paintings, printmaker, Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie festival, Tucson; the Victoria and Albert Museum
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Botanical Drawings
As we begin to celebrate daylight savings time, we thought it would be great to note individuals who gently shared their love of nature. Francesca Anderson is a botanical artist who specializes in natural history drawings in pen and ink. Her illustrations have been featured in prominent scientific publications, field guides, as well as books…
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Moody Nolan
Moody and Associates was founded in 1982. The office’s first location was in Columbus, Moody’s hometown. Years later, Howard Nolan, an engineer, teamed up with Curt Moody to form Moody Nolan. That firm eventually grew into a massive enterprise with more than 350 employees and 12 different offices. In 2021, it was the recipient of The…
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