We have an interesting group of new artist members including Jordan Brooks, an art student studying fine art and illustration, Zeenie Malik and Catherine Chiara, emerging talents in fashion design and Diamantina, a leather hand bag designer. Visit AFP's artist directory for information and media from all of our members or you can search for artists by genre by choosing that option.
Our fashion contingent is looking quite strong these days. You can check out the latest from our fashion guru's on September 21st at "Fashion Interaction". The exciting details can be found in our events section above.
AFP is pleased to announce the participating artists for "Critical Mass" on Friday, October 15th at Headquarter's Gallery in Tribeca:
Adam Cohen, Berette Macaulay, Chris Soria, Ione Citrin, Fareeha Khawaja, Jak, Jeanne Wilkinson, Juan Manuel Pajares, Gabe Kirchheimer, Kenneth Yee, Lance Dehne, Marina Reiter, Max Greis, Philip Simmons, Sima Schloss and Yuriy Bobrykov
August 14th
Join AFP's DJ Gatto, Grammy Nominee Jay-J, Scott Wozniak and Sal Leone for a FREE after-work dance party on Friday, August 20th. Pier 84 (West 44th & West Side Hwy) is the spot for happy hour, fresh beats and dancing under the stars.
Our fall event line-up will be commencing soon with "Fashion Interaction 2010" on September 21st. Twelve amazing designers and five unique accessory designers will be selling their latest work at AFP's first shopping party, but there's a lot more happening on the 21st. From 11am-1pm breakfast and bellini's will be served while you enjoy classic and brazilian jazz. The evening will feature music performances, a wine tasting and many other surprises.
AFP's "Critical Mass" visual art show is taking place on Friday, October 15th in Tribeca. Style Curator Natalie Kates and AFP are collaborating on this intriguing event featuring original artwork from some of AFP's best including Juan Manuel Pajares, Philip Simmons, Gabe Kirchheimer, and Max Greis. Submissions have been more than exciting as many of AFP's newer artists are participating in this show.
August 4th
Summer's flying by and before you know it the leaves will be falling from the trees. But fall is a beautiful time in the city.. everyone is back in town and ready to enjoy a great time of year.
According to the calendar, summer doesn't end until late September. Isn't it odd that most people consider summer over after Labor Day?? The weather is still very nice into October.
AFP will be ready for a fall filled with great art, exciting events and new partnerships. We're looking forward to it. We hope you're ready to enjoy all of it.
This month's featured artists are now live on the site. It's a young, very talented group. While some are newer members, designer Luis Gamble has been a member for many years. We look forward to seeing Luis's latest in September.
AFP now has over 200 supporting members! With access to affodrable health insurance, a credit union, complimentary admission to events and other benefits, a basic membership has a lot to offer. Check out the details by clicking on the "membership" button above.
We're working out the details for an exciting visual art event in October. The date is set for October 15th and the them for the event is "Critical Mass".
Critical Mass- (noun)
The smallest mass of a fissionable material that will sustain a nuclear chain reaction at a constant level.
The amount of matter needed to generate sufficient gravitational force to halt the current expansion of the universe.
An amount or level needed for a specific result or new action to occur:
In these uncertain times it seems the world is reaching a “Critical Mass”? What will be the tipping point for a new order or action to occur and will it be in the name of evolution or revolution? I am asking you to ask yourself what is your “Critical Mass” and how will you manifest this into an original work of art?
July 8
AFP's first artist interviews are live on our new blog featuring visual artists JAK and Berette Macaulay. Jak has a show opening tonight in Soho (see our member calendar) and Berette's been working on several new projects while spending some time in Jamaica. Guest bloggers will kick off soon so check out the blog regularly for different features etc. There's a link at the bottom of the page!
Last night we had the opportunity to check out Ivan Neville and his band at Brooklyn Bowl. They sound great! Circus Soul was also impressive. We hope they raised a good bit of money for the fisherman down in the gulf region.
Our next event will be fashion focused in September followed by a visual arts event in October.
Our fiscal year is ending this month and we're happy to tell everyone that AFP continues to grow despite this very difficult economic environment.
June 15
We're kicking back and enjoying the summer weather right now after our busy spring.
AFP has a new blog which will feature AFP artists, events, guest bloggers and visual art auctions. If you're interested in being a guest blogger, contact Allyson via e-mail at allyson@artforprogress.org for the details.
We have quite a few things brewing for the fall and the remainder of the year. Be sure to check out all of the featured artists right here on the site. Our new featured artists will be live on the site in the next day or two.
Everyone at Art For Progress is proud of the growth and success of our art education program. With each year AFP continues to build on it's current relationshsips while developing new relationships and increasing the program's impact on children across the five boroughs of NYC.
We've recently completed our third highly
successful school year at Landmark High School in Manhattan where we developed two visual arts electives and worked with over 150 students in grades 9-12. In the second half of the school year we were able to move a talented group of students from the basic course through the advanced elective.
AFP's "Literacy Through Music" program
has sparked great interest and enthusiam
at the Academy for Conservation and
the Environment in Brooklyn. So much so,
that students are now signing up for personal instruction during their lunch hours.
If your school needs an art, music or fashion design program, send us an e-mail (admin@artforprogress.org) and we'll be happy to discuss it with you.
May 26
We're back from San Francisco after a great event at Project One! We enjoyed visiting our many friends and meeting a lot of new artists on the west coast. Thanks to Diageo, Nitevibe, and Project One for their support. Special thanks to Daniel Maldonado for curating the films and helping out with the event. Check out Shorts & Beats Photos.
Our next major event will be in September for fashion week. In the meantime, enjoy the sunshine and a vacation or two!
May 12
As you can see we've launched our new home page! After much work, we're really excited about the new design. You can find features artists in each genre on the home page. We'd love to hear your comments and suggestions. Please e-mail us at admin@artforprogress.org. Special thanks to Seiji Nakano for all his efforts!
With the launch of the new home page, we've also updated our audio players. It's a big improvement.
Our event schedule continues to be very busy with an event on Friday night @ Sullivan Room in NYC and an event next Saturday in San Francisco @ Project One.
April 26
We're close to launching our new home page and new audio players as we continue to improve the AFP web site!
Don't miss Plays for Progress spring performances this weekend!
Check out all of the new artists!
April 12
Art For Progress partners with Corel to offer outstanding prices on Corel Painter and Corel Draw. Members can access the offer by logging-in to the site!
April 7
Our featured artist is Chris Soria! Chris took 1st place in this year's "Clash of the Artists" competitions. To truly appreciate Chris's work you must see it in person.
Though we could use some rest after Clash, we're not going to get much! On Saturday, May 22nd AFP's "Shorts and Beats" series hits the west coast. Check out the calendar for more details.
Fashion Design- 1st place, Kari Smistek- 57 votes:: 2nd place, Savannah Shreves- 52 votes:: 3rd place, Anna Janiszewski- 38 votes
DJ's- 1st place, DJ Jago- 77 votes:: 2nd place, Kyle McNeill- 40 votes:: 3rd place, Brett from Boundless- 33 votes
Creative Winner- Yui Terai
March 22
We apologize for the web site problems the last couple of days, but everything is back to normal now. As a courtesy, we extended the $20 ticket price through today. You can go directly to Brown Paper Tickets to purchase tickets or you can check out all the details on the event page.
We are extending the $20 ticket price through Monday.
March 19
Brazilian jazz greats Zé Luis Quartet to perform at the after party for Clash 2010.
JP Solis will also being spinning a nice blend of funky beats.
Your ticket to the main event includes access to the after party. You can still purchase $20 tickets through tommorow.
See them live on Saturday, March 27th at Drom, NYC
Ticlets are $20 through March 20th. $25 after.
March 11th
The online voting portion of the competitions is now complete! We are currently reviewing/confirming all of the voting for security purposes and the final results will be posted this afternoon.
Thanks to everyone who participated in the competitions. Next year will be our 5th annual Clash of the Artists and we'll be looking forward to another exciting year.
By later today, we'll have our finalists page up on the site which will feature work and information on the finalists. We'll also have our honorable mentions listed.
If you're in the NYC metro area you don't want to miss this exciting interactive event! We extended the date for $20 tickets to March 20th.
March 3rd
With one week remaining, in many of the categories the competitions have gotten much closer. It's exciting to see the diversity and high level of talent across the various genres. With each year (4 years) Clash of the Artists continues to grow and reminds us that the world is filled with exceptional artists. And with the finals event, everyone gets the opportunity to experience it and take part in the outcome.
Everything is set for the finals event which will take place on Saturday, March 27th at Drom in NYC. Tickets are now available and can be purchased by visiting the event page in our drop down menu above.
We'll have our finalists on March 11th so check back and find out who can potentially win Clash of the Artists 2010!
February 14th
We're working on a new look for the AFP home page. With this new design we'll have monthly features in each genre accessible from the home page. Our new membership promotion is going well. We've received quite a few new membership applications. This offer will be available through April.
It's an exciting time to join AFP's artist community as we have many great projects in the works for 2010 and beyond. Despite these difficult times, AFP continues to grow and evolve while others are closing their doors.
Art For Progress is a grass roots, organic project run by a small group of dedicated artists. We receive no funding from the city or state. Where many other non profits have lost a good part of their funding because of cutbacks in budgets for the arts, we were never dependent on these funds. Though we are small, we continue to grow by 10-20% a year.
"Clash of the Artists" has been a successful fundraiser for us over the years. We hope you'll join us on Saturday, March 27th for the big event in NYC. It's a unique experience for our guests. They get the opportunity to participate in the outcome by choosing their favorites in art, fashion, music, film etc.
Tickets will be on sale this week. Check back for updates.
February 1st
"Clash of the Artists" Voting will be live on the site by 10:30AM Eastern Standard Time.
Make sure you also check out our new marketing and PR program which will also be launched at the same time. Also, we'll be offering AFP artist memberships for $50 a year for the next 3 months! We want our memberships to be affordable for all artists and budgets. We hope you take advantage of this incredible offer. Of course, you'll have to be approved first.
January 30
We're getting ready to launch the voting segment on Monday- Clash of the Artists 2010! With this we'll be making a couple of HUGE announcements!!
Clash of the Artists 2010! The fun is just beginning.
January 18
Happy MLK day! Dr. Martin Luther King is a true hero of mankind. If we only had more men with the courage and strength of this great man, the world would be a much better place.
There's only one week left to submit for Clash of the Artists 2010. We're very excited about this year's competitions and we look forward to presenting all of the great work on February 1st.
AFP is offering a new, valuable prize ($600) for this year's competitions. Our top level Marketing and P.R. package for first place winners. We'll be soon launchin g these new services for members and non-members. Stay tuned.
January 4th
It's a new year and we're pleased with our growth and accomplishments for 2009!
In 2010 we have set some very important goals and we are determined to reach each goal this year. We have plans to expand on many of the benefits and services we provide
our members. An important goal for AFP in 2010 is to continue to grow our art education program and impact even more children's lives in the NYC Public School System. We'll be sharing all of our plans for 2009 in the coming weeks so check back often for this exciting news.
There's never been a more exciting time to join the AFP artist community! Did you know our artist members have access to one of the most affordable and comprehensive health insurance programs in NYC?
Clash of the Artists 2010 is open for submissions.
Get on board with the most unique artist competitions in the universe!
Submissions end on Januray 25th. On February 1st voting kicks off in visual art, film, fashion, live music, DJ, and creative competitions.
We have many exciting projects were working on and we're looking forward to sharing the details with you soon.
November 25
Please vote for AFP so we can get a $25,000 grant!
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
We've upgraded the web site with a new feature for viewing art and watching films. When viewing artwork, the image has greater definition, color enhancement and a closer view. If you enlarge the image further you can really get a close-up view of the work. Also, all of the films now stream on the site regardless of your browser or settings. Enjoy!
November 20
We have some cool things to share with you. First off we updated our virtual subway platform event page the other day. If you haven't seen it, it's pretty unique.
Also, we have some great shots from Central Park. Click on "Sunset Jam" in the events menu above. Thanks to Berette who came out to shoot the event!
We just finished our exhausting schedule of events, but we still have some things in the works. Check back for more on what's next.
Clash of the Artists 2010, submissions begin November 3oth
November 5
Check out our new featured artist for November, Kristina Zallinger!
Here's a link to an important article about art education: Arts and Smarts
Join us on Saturday at the best park in the world- Central Park! Put your dancing shoes on and meet us in the mall in front of the Naumberg Bandshell. The music gets started around 1:30 with DJ's JP Solis, Nickmatic, Dennis Sebayan, Gatto and guest Sal Leone. JP Solis. Our newest member of AFP, JC Cassis will be performing some of her new tracks while Royce Bannon and Albrto Hernandez paint live.
This party follows up a host of recent events over the past several months, where AFP has gained a lot of ground in the areas of visual art, music, theatre, and performance. From the Urban Arts Fest in Brooklyn, the AFP Grooove Cruise, The Drop 2012 exhibition in Chelsea, and the most recent AFP Artists Loft, AFP is poised to bring the public a day of celebration. We invite the community to come out and get involved in a day of art, music and dance at this free party! The Bandshell is located mid-park, from 66th to 72nd Streets behind Summerstage.
October 12
Join us on Saturday night for our latest Artists' Loft event- featuring the return of Plays for Progress, a photography and mixed media exhibition and several music performances from our pool of artists.
You can find all of the information on this event in our events menu above. The cover is just $10 on our guest list. RSVP to events@artforprogress.org.
October 3rd
We have two huge events today! The MBP Urban Arts Fest, a benefit for Art For Progress and The Drop, an event focusing on art, the city and the environment. These are two great events that you don't want to miss. All of the details can be found above in our event calendars.
We are finalizing the details for our next Artists' Loft event coming up on Saturday October 17th. With this event we will be re-launching Plays for Progress, featuring artwork from several AFP artists and a diverse selection of music performances. The cover charge will be $10 with an RSVP to events@artforprogress.org.
September 15th
It was a little soggy in the seaport on Saturday, but that didn't stop us from spending some valuable time with the kids who came out for the art workshops. We were able to create several wonderful paintings and we have some really nice photos to share with you soon.
"Fall Grooove Cruise" tickets are now for sale right here on our site. So don't wait! There are only 200 tickets to this event. Visit the event page above in our events section for tickets and all the details.
We're ironing out the final details for our next "Artists' Loft" event coming up in October. AFP's new theater group will be performing it's first piece. This event will also serve as AFP's pre-CMJ event and we'll have several music performances and a photography exhibition. All the details and tickets will be available soon.
On October 3rd we'll be at the Urban Arts Fest in Brooklyn as AFP has been selected as the community beneficiary. This is going to be one massive event that you won't want to miss and everyone's welcome. AFP will be hosting some cool workshops for kids during the day and once 9PM rolls around it will be time to hit the dance floor!
As if this is not enough for one day, AFP is also involved in The Drop NYC: Urban Art Infill. AFP fashion designers will be creating an interactive piece using recycled garbage and found objects. The event includes art installations, performances and much more.
Let's not forget about our sunset jam at Central Park! We're going to close out the Fall in style at the nation's best park.
September 5th
Everyone at AFP is really excited about halcyon's 10 Year Anniversaryparty next Saturday, September 12th!
It's a fun-filled day at the South Street Seaport Water Taxi Beach. It all begins at Noon on Saturday as AFP will be hosting art workshops for kids from Noon to 3PM.
You can expect exceptional music, fantastic art from several NYC based artists, and great vibes.
We're fortunate that Ricardo and Shawn chose AFP as halcyon's community beneficiary for the event. Make sure you click on the links for all the details.
It's going to be a very busy Fall. Take a look at our event calendar and save these dates in your little blackberry things.
We're really enjoying our "Toasty Tunes" party at Porch. Many AFP artists have stopped in to say hello and grab a brew or two. We've also met a host of other artists and people in the community who are interested in AFP. Stop in our next one on September 3rd, and get your holiday weekend started early!
Recently, there's been a tremendous outreach in the community in support of our education program, and we are very happy to see that we are starting to get some serious recognition for the work we are doing. We're very proud of our achievements and we will have an even bigger impact in the upcoming school year.
On Monday evening August 31st join AFP as I.A.M entertainment hosts "Pop Art". 6PM - Midnight. Pop Burger Midtown.14 East 58th Street. No Cover. Artists who are interested in exhibiting work can contact Antonia @ antonia.floyd@gmail.com.
*Part of the proceeds to benefit AFP's Art Education Program.
We had the pleasue of checking out the HBO NY Latino International Film Festival last night at the Clearview Chelsea Cinemas. AFP Filmmaker, Daniel Maldonado screened his new short, "Lalo" to a packed house. "Lalo" is a funny, creative film that really highlights Daniel's growing talent, and we weren't surprised to find out this morning that "Lalo" has won "Best Short Film" of the festival. Hat's off to Daniel!
"Toasty Tunes" got extra toasty last night at Porch. Thanks to DJ Victor Simonelli for playing a superb set. We're looking forward to our next night on August 6th. Things are heating up in a big way.
We are very pleased to announce that Epiphany 34 will be hosting a fashion event titled, "J'Adore: The Fashion Show" on Thursday, August 6th, 6PM at BLVD in Manhattan. The group will be donating the proceeds from the event to AFP.
For tickets contact productionsbyepiphany@gmail.com.
November 7th will be here before you know it and you want to mark your calendars as AFP takes over the Naumberg Bandshell at Central Park for a day of music, art and performance. Many more details to follow.
That's it for now! Enjoy the better weather!
July 7th
The Summer is flying by and we plan to make it another memorable one indeed. We have some fun events coming up and if you haven't stopped in to see us at the Porch, Thursday may be the right time. Dan and Ken from Comandante Zero will be our guest DJs. I'm curious to hear what they will be playing. Gatto's back from Vegas and the weather looks really nice.
On November 7th, AFP takes over the Naumberg Bandshell in Central Park for an afternoon of music and performance.
We just posted a slide show of photos from this past school year at Landmark High and The Academy for Conservation and the Environment. Click on the "Art Education" button in the menu above to see work from our students. We're currently planning a work shop with the Police Athletic League in Harlem!
Please sign-up for our mailing list to receive our monthly newsletter that's packed with local events, artist news and opportunities.
June 15
Jeanne Wilkinson is our new featured artist. Jeanne is a Brooklyn based artist who has been working on her current project, "Painted People" since the early 2000's. Recently, Jeanne began animating her digital collages. You can find several of them in her artist gallery. You definitely want to check those out.
June 11
Just a quick update of a few things happening here at AFP.
We have our bi-weekly party tonight- "Toasty Tunes" at the porch.
We're still waiting for a really nice day of weather, but it's been a lot of fun anyway. What's better than good music, cool people to chill with and cheap drinks? Tonight we have our friend Sal Leone joining us on the decks.
We'll be stopping by a little art exhibition up the street featuring work from AFP's Michael Lorenzini. Details are above in our member calendar.
AFP's art education program is about to complete another vert successful school year working with Landmark H.S. and The Academy for Conservation and the Environment. We are now looking at some opportunities to work with some groups over the summer. We want to thank our teaching artists who have done an excellent job!
We have so many things coming up in the next couple of months including our next "Artists Loft" event. Please check back often for updates.
May 21st
Sunny days always make me smile...
Michael Musto was yucking it up over at Webster Hall(Obie Awards)the other night. Quite funny..
Fashion Designers Prizy Sebastian, Selma Karaca, Iliana Quander and Allyson Jacobs featured some of their designs during the evening. The Village Voice posted a very nice photo as part of their slide show and Gawker.com featured another.
There's so much to write about I'm not sure where to begin. AFP's art education program, in it's third year, continues to grow. We recently launched a small music program along with our arts and humanities initiative at The School for Conservation and the Environment in Canarsie Brooklyn. As another year winds down, we will be looking forward to the next school year and how we can have an even bigger impact in the community.
I have been holding back on talking too much about our latest project/goal, but things are developing and I hope to be able to share all of the details soon.
We're discussing the possibility of another Grooove Cruise this Summer. Lots of people are asking about it.
One that is on the calendar is Saturday, November 6th. AFP will be taking over the Central Park Bandshell with live music, DJs, dance, and more.
Our bi-weekly DJ focused event, "Toasty Tunes" has been fun. If you haven't come out, you're missing a good time!
May 8th
AFP is pleased to announce that four of our NY-based fashion designers will be featured at the after-party for the Village Voice's Obie Awards on May 18th. The party titled, "Creative Block" is a multidisciplinary event with music, art, fashion and performances from many great artists and organizations in NYC.
AFP designers Allyson Jacobs, Selma Karaca, Prizy Sebastian, and Iliana Quander will be featured. For more details and tickets check out our events calendar above.
May 6
We're getting ready for our next Artists Loft event coming up in June. This event will feature a small theater performance, photography, and music performances.
AFP will soon be accepting submissions for our group show in Montreal next year. Members will receive the details next week.
AFP just surpassed 100 supporting members! It's a great way to support AFP and take advantage of our health insurance program and get access to our credit union. Our basic memberships start at $50.
Join us for "Toasty Tunes" next Thursday as we celebrate DJ Gatto's birthday with special guest Dennis Sebayan. Plus, the outdoor deck opens up for the Summer!
April 18
What a fun night at the porch on Thursday night! Great music, thanks to Gatto, Rob Paterson and Jeannie Hopper. We can't wait for the outdoor space to open in the coming weeks. We have a lot of great guest DJ's coming up too.
April 15
Join us on Thursday evening at the Porch for a night of quality dance music spun by AFP's Rob Paterson, Gatto and LSL's Jeannie Hopper. No cover. 9pm.
We're now planning our next Artists' Loft event for May. We'll be sharing all of the details soon.
Also, Art For Progress is pleased to announce an upcoming group art exhibition in Montreal in Summer/Fall 2010. Members will soon receive the guidelines for submissions for this exciting development.
One of our new visual artists, Sarah Valeri asked that we share this imprortant information with everyone.
"Unfortunately many of the upcoming city budget cuts are going to effect those people who are most in need and do not have a support network to rely on when their resources run out. One of the upcoming budget cuts will obliterate all of the recreational therapy programs at all shelters in NYC including homeless families and children. Those cutting the budget may feel that recreation is not a necessity, but many creative arts therapists (CATs are mental health practitioners working through the modalities of art, music, drama, or movement) are working in shelters under the title of recreational therapist. They may take people to movies and arrange game nights, but they are also working to provide therapeutic and creative experiences to people who are weary and often traumatized. They have training to respond to mental health issues as well as build a supportive environment. Many of them are also in consistent daily contact with the people they work with, which builds a consistent and stable relationship in a time of chaos. If the programs are cut, these relationships will also end. Please contact the Mayor and remind city officials that cuts for short term emergencies create long term crisis. Contact information can be found at http://www.nyc.gov."
March 23rd
Here's a link to the photos from Clash of the Artists 2009.
Thanks to photographer Stuart Kristallin for his work.
March 16th
Oh, what a night! Over 200 people came out for the finals event on Saturday night. Unfortunately, we had to turn some people away at the door downstairs. The room reached capacity around 9:30PM and unless you had advance tickets we could not accomodate any more people.
Well, here are the results for Clash of the Artists 2009:
Visual Art: 1st- Ron EA Powell 2nd- Rocco Alberico 3rd- Henry Caserotti
Music: 1st- Comandante Zero 2nd- Alex Schein 3rd- Buffalo Alice
Film: 1st- Jesse La Flair 2nd- Aitama 3rd- Terence Morea
Fashion Design: 1st- Iliana Quander 2nd- Laura Haywood
DJs: It was a tie! Dennis Sebayan and Rob Paterson
Creative: Georgia Wall
Thanks to everyone who came out to the event and we look forward to next year.
We'll have photos posted from the event soon.
March 9th
Our big event is coming up on Saturday night. You can purchase tickets by clicking on the event in the "events" drop down menu above.
If Saturday doesn't work for you, you can stop in and say hello on Thursday night at the porch. Our new night, "Toasty Tunes" will debut and take place every other Thursday. As it warms up, you'll want to be hanging out with us at the porch enjoying their great outdoor space.
We're about to launch a new partnership with Education Affiliates Credit Union!
In the coming weeks we'll be rolling out a great new program for AFP members. Are you a little tired of all these big banks charging outrageous fees, cutting your credit, and raising the rates on your credit cards? Well, we are. We're opening a new account with Education Affiliates in the very near future, and as an AFP artist these services are available to you. Some of the features the credit union offers are FREE checking accounts, 8 FREE ATM transactions every month and special loan programs. The credit union is insured by the National Credit Union Administration for up to $250,000.
We are close to finalizing the partnership and we'll let you know as soon as possible so you can join us and save $$$.
Details for "Clash of the Artists- Finals Event" will be posted on the site this week. Advance tickets for the event will be available for purchase on Monday, February 23rd. If you plan to come to this event, we strongly suggest that you by a ticket in advance. They will sell out.
We have big announcement coming this week. We are partnering with a NYC credit union to provide banking services for our members. Free checking, bridge loans, and great rates on credit cards are just some of the benefits. We are very happy to offer this service and we will be closing our accounts with the dreaded Chase Bank and Bank of America as soon as possible. These banks could not care less that AFP is a non profit!
February 10
Check out this slideshow of photos from AFP's Art Education Program at Landmark H.S. in Manhattan.
February 2
AFP's Artists' Loft was a blast on Saturday night. Our guests were treated to a fantastic night of screenings curated by AFP's Daniel Maldonado. Commandante Zero's debut with AFP was a big hit too. Overall, a great night of film and performances from our artists. Our next Artists' Loft event will be announced soon.
Important Announcement..
Art For Progress Partners with PMP Studios to Provide Short and Long Term Live/Work Space for Artists
PMP Studios is now renting out the Palace Penthouse Suites. There are three studios available immediately. The penthouse offers men and women's bathrooms and a shower. It also includes a communal kitchen with a Wolf stove, dishwasher and refrigerator.
Our studios are live/work and are functional. They are ideal for use as professional offices, design studios, showrooms, rehearsal space or production facilities. Each studio has a unique view of the city and they are conveniently located in Midtown Manhattan, just a block away from Penn Station and Port Authority. Studios may be rented by the hour, day, week, month or longer terms. We are flexible. Serious inquires only. No brokers fee required.
Other items of note: Great light, 11 foot ceilings, 24 hour access, elevator building, freight elevator availability, and special rates on event space rental.
Contact: By telephone 212-563-2047, by e-mail pmpstudios@yahoo.com
January 30
We just finished listening to Empire City Motorcade perform "Welcome" on 101.9FM with Matt Pinfield. Congratulations go out to last year's winners of Clash of the Artists music competition.
January 28
We hope you've had the chance to view some of the work, watch films and listen to music from the many artists who are
participating in Clash of the Artists 2009.
It's quite a diverse array of international talent and we're impressed with the overall quality.
As of yesterday, we tallied over 3,000 votes already. Be sure to invite your friends over to hang with us. It's fun to listen to music while viewing the visual art. We hope you take advantage of it. We have a month left for voting.
The finals event is on the calendar for March 14th at 320 Studios on New york City's West side. If you have any interest in our sponsorship packages contact events@artforprogress.org.
January 22
Clash of the Artists 2009 is live! Check out all of the great art, fashion, music and film from around the world.
You can access the competitions by clicking on the banner above or clicking on the events menu.
January 20
Because of some technical difficulties we have a short delay in the voting process commencing for Clash of the Artists 2009.
We are implementing a new, more secure voting system and we have run into a couple of issues, but we expect everything to be live soon. Check back and vote!
January 6
The "Artists' Loft" series returns and January's edition will be at Glasslands Gallery in Brooklyn.
We'll be featuring short films and music this month. Many more details coming.
Saturday January 31st is the date.
January 2
Happy New Year to all..
I wish you were all with us on New Year's Eve as we celebrated at Onda. It was a smashing affair. Onda is a beautiful place and when you fill it with wonderful people, exceptional music, and good vibes, you can't ask for a better way to bring in the new year. Alessandro and his partners new restaurant and bar is going to be a big hit. The food is excellent.
December 27
Tickets are selling fast for our New Year's Eve party at the soon to open Onda Restaurant in the Seaport.
We checked out the menu for Wednesday night and it looks outstanding. Tickets are selling fast so don't wait until the last minute to get your tickets. Go to the event page from the menu above and get your tickets before they sell out.
We're in the process of planning our next "Artist Loft" event for January. The focus for this edition will be short film and of course we'll have great music. We'll let you know all of the details as soon as we can.
Your last chance to submit your work for "Clash of the Artists 2009" is January 9th!
December 9
We're getting some great submissions for "Clash of the Artists 2009" and the prizes are growing by the day. Get on board, get international exposure, and win fantastic prizes!
We have a big announcement for New Year's Eve coming. If you don't have plans yet, this is the exclusive party for you.
November 23
"Clash of the Artists" submissions are live! You can click on the banner above to check out all the details and to submit your work.
November 11
Our featured artist this month is filmmaker Michael Brettler. Michael won our film competition as part of "Clash of the Artists" earlier this year. Please view his film, "Levin: Maladies of Death" and you'll see why Michael has a bright future in film making.
Submissions for "Clash of the Artists 2009" begin next Monday November 17th. We are so proud of what we have been able to achieve through these unique virtual and real world competitions. Check back soon for all of the details!!
We have quite a few new artists who are coming on board as a result of our membership promotion. We also have many new supporting members who are taking advantage of our new health insurance program.
October 29
We just launched a new music newswire! The link is above in the pink text.
This resource for musicians and bands offers an inexpensive outlet for music news that connects with over 30 top music web sites. AFP has used this resource on numerous occasions to promote our music events. It's also a great source for finding out the latest in music happenings.
Our $99 membership offer is winding down. If you still want to apply, we will honor and applications we receive through the 31st.
We've decided to have our second "Artists Loft" event after the holidays. It makes sense given evereyone's busy schedules with all of the upcoming holidays. Our next event will focus on film and music.
The big post-halloween boat party is coming up on Saturday night! You can expect great music from Jeannie Hopper and Kervyn Mark and lots of surprises. Discount tickets are now available for $25. Check the link above in the "events" section for the details.
Believe it or not, submissions for Clash of the Artists 2009 begin on November 17th. This will be our third year and we expect it to be bigger than ever. Art For Progress is the only organization in the world to hold competitions in 6 categories at one time. Our site had over 15,000 visits in January 2008 during the competitions which featured some of the best emerging artists from around the world. Anyone interested in getting on board as a sponsor this year please contact us at admin@artforprogress.org.
October 20
Thanks to all who made it to our first "Artists Loft" event. It was a fun filled evening with great art and music. Thanks to Gabe Kirchheimer and Max Greis for their hard work. We also want to thank Yukari Roja and Aliza Hava for their beautiful performances. We'll soon have details for next months exciting event.
In other news, we got a nice recommendation from our friend Fiona Bloom in a recent interview with the online artist community Ill-Literacy. You can read the interview here: Fiona Bloom Interview
Fiona gives props to AFP as an organization that independent artists can turn to for more exposure. Fiona is one of AFP's partners and our musical artists have access to her services. Check out our "partners" section for information.
October 7th
Join us on Thursday night for our new collaboration with Liquid Sound Lounge. We're hosting a viewing party for the film "Downtown Calling". It's a film based on the 70's and 80's NYC club scene.
DJ Jeannie Hopper will be spinning along with AFP's DJ Gatto and special guest Shan Boogie. No cover. 9PM. 52 Walker Street.
On October 18th AFP will present it's first "Artists Loft" event with an outstanding night of art and entertainment.
Burning Man photographer Gabe Kirchheimer will present a slideshow capturing his 10 years of photographing Burning Man. An exhibition of his photography spanning these 10 years will also be on display.
Mixed media artist Max Greis will also be exhibiting some of his powerful work.
We have two musical performances. The always delightful Roja will be performing along with special guest Aliza Hava.
DJ's JP Solis and Gatto will keep you grooving all night. $10 cover on our guest list. RSVP to events@artforprogress.org. You must be on the guest list to get in to this event.
AFP partners with Art Calendar Magazine to provide subscriptions to the magazine to our members along with discounts to Art Calendar's webinar series for artists. These are exciting developments as the webinar series are important tools for educating artists on the business of art.
Check the calendar for the LSL Day of the Dead Boat Party on November 1st. Part of the proceeds to support AFP!
September 19
"Fashion Interaction" was great fun, but now we're getting ready for our new monthly series titled, "Artist's Loft".
"Artist's Loft" is new monthly series of private events kicking off in mid-October. These events will feature artwork, film screenings and performances from AFP's talented pool of artists. These invitation-only events will take place in a loft in downtown New York City and bring together artists and industry folks for a night of experience and discussion.
AFP's Art Education Program is expanding its new arts and humanities initiative at Landmark High School this year. Beginning next week, we'll be providing two visual arts electives at the school with additional programming coming later in the school year.
These are exciting times at AFP! We are now working on our group art exhibition coming up later this year.
September 3
Fall is upon us and we are keeping busy with our next event "Fashion Interaction" which is coming up next Tuesday at 320 Studios. We are very excited to be presenting an alternative event this year featuring 6 great designers. Public Acts of Decency will also be performing in the evening. We have many more details in our "events" section above. If interested, drop by for a glass of wine, but make sure you RSVP first.
August 22
We just posted photos from the Grooove Cruise. You can find them on the "Summer Grooove Cruise" event page in the "events" drop down menu above.
Thanks to Amanda Adams-Louis for the photos!
August 9th
Thanks to everyone who came out for AFP's Summer Grooove Cruise on Thursday night. It was so much fun!
Our next big event is coming up on Tuesday, September 9th during New York Fashion Week when AFP presents "Fashion::Interaction", an alternative fashion week event at 320 Studios in NYC.
Many more details coming next week.
August 3rd
We're just a few days away from AFP's Summer Grooove Cruise and we decided to give away 50 T-shirts to the first 50 people who board the Star of Palm Beach. These are limited edition T-shirts from AFP artists($25 value).
If you haven't bought your tickets yet, what are you waiting for?
Weather forecast: 85 degrees and sunny.
3 hours of live music, dance performances and DJ's spinning on two levels.
Advance tickets will be on sale through Wednesday. Come out and support AFP and enjoy a beautiful night on the water!
July 23rd
Art For Progress Launches New Health Insurance Program
Art For Progress is pleased to partner with Atlantis Health Plans and Vista Health Solutions to provide affordable access to health insurance for AFP artists and their families.
Art For Progress was able to negotiate directly with the health plan to assure some of the best rates available to self employed individuals. All of the application and processing fees have been waived for AFP members. You can apply on-line without having to file most of the tedious paperwork commonly found with similar programs.
If you have any questions about the program, feel free to contact Vista Health Solutions by telephone at 845.753.2320 or by e-mail at info@nyhealthinsurer.com.
Art For Progress Soon to Launch a New Health Insurance Program for Artists.
Art For Progress will be launching a new health insurance program that will provide access to affordable health insurance for our artist and supporting members.
Through a partnership with Atlantis Health Plan we will be offering health insurance to individuals and familys at some of the lowest rates in the State of New York.
We will have more details in the near future.
July 11
Grooove Cruise update..
Thanks to Ommegang Beer we have an open bar from 6 - 7pm. We'll also have some light food on board for our exciting ride around NYC.
July 1
We're pleased to announce two dance performances to be showcased at AFP's Summer Grooove Cruise" on August 7th:
>SHBA Danceworks
>Nina Buisson Contemporary Move Dance Company
>collaborating with SeBiArt: Photographic Evolution
We have more to come. Check back for more information.
June 27
Tickets are now available for the Grooove Cruise on Augsut 7th! You can find the link by taking a look at the event page located in the drop down menu above.
We have many exciting announcements still to come including sponsors and giveaways.
Stay tuned..
June 19
We just added the lovely Miz Metro to the line-up for our Summer Grooove Cruise along with reggae band Thunda Vida. AFP's Barry Komitor will be playing with the band.DJ Dennis Sebayan has also been confirmed as well as performances from SeBiArt.
We checked out the Global Frequencies boat party last night headlined by DJ Luke Fair. We had a great time and it reminded us of how much people love boat parties!
Of course, our event will be quite a bit more diverse. We're super-excited for this one and we'll have music to suit anyone's taste. Tickets will be available this week.
June 9th
Our Summer Groove Cruise is starting to shape up with the confirmation of two bands and a few DJ's too. Winners of Clash of the Artists 2008, Emperor City Motorcade is set to play along with our newest music act to join the AFP roster Encursus. On the dance music side of things, we have Rob Paterson, Jimmy Sky and Doug Gomez confirmed. We'll have many more details to come over the next few days so check back for the latest updates.
The Art For Progress Grant Program was launched last week! We're pleased to be able to offer grants to our artists as we continue to expand our program.
We have several new artists who have joined AFP recently. They include sculptor Rocco Alberico, painter & illustrator Amy Rowland, mixed media artist Kerri Alycia Daniel, painter Joseph Manutti and a new band Encursus.
AFP's Summer Groove Cruise is coming up on Thursday, August 7th. Tickets will soon be available here on the site. You won't want to miss this event.
Our new health insurance program is set to launch soon along with other new member benefits.
May 24th
Summer is finally upon us and this is typically a quiet time in NYC as everyone heads to the beaches. Though, everyone at AFP will be working hard this summer on our developing art education program.
After much success piloting our arts and humanities education initiative at Landmark High School this school year, we are planning to offer this program to many schools across NYC over the summer. We believe this is a GREAT opportunity for our program and we are excited for what's ahead. Along with our outreach to schools we are beginning a major recruiting program for teaching artists and artists who are interested in possibly becoming a teacher. We are in the process of putting together a rather nice package of incentives for artists who work in the program. Some of these include free AFP memberships, special events featuring our teaching artists and other great stuff.
If interested please contact Annie Branson, our art education coordinator, via e-mail at annie@artforprogress.org.
Our next big event will be the Art For Progress "Summer Groove Cruise" which will take place on Thursday, August 7th after work. The evening will feature musical performances, performance art, and DJ's from our fine roster of artists. Many more details coming soon. Let us not forget September fashion week is quickly approaching too and we are going to put together something different this year. We think it will be very exciting!
AFP's Artist Grant Program is soon to be launched too. A lot of exciting stuff happening at AFP. The launch of our new health insurance program is just arounf the corner.
Enjoy the beautiful weather! Ciao.
May 6th
We're sorry to report the cancellation of our symposium which was scheduled for May 13th. A number of factors contributed to this decision and it was a difficult one. We apologize to our fine group of panelists and we hope we will have the opportunity to work with them in the future.
Artist Membership Program News: We recently added two new partnerships for our artist members. The first is Zipcar and the newest is with Moo Cards.
The Zipcar deal is a good one. They are waiving $50 of the membership fee and giving our members discounted hourly and daily rates. The membership is international so you can use it wherever you may travel. Oh, and insurance and gas are included. Good stuff.
Moo Cards is offering our members 10% off of their first purchase. If you haven't heard of this company, they are a little different than your average printer.
Here's a few details:
1. They use a special printing technique that allows every single card or sticker in a pack to carry a different image. So you can choose a selection of photos or designs in one pack, rather than just one
image, as with all other printers.
2. They're products are of the highest quality. The printing and the card and sticker stock that we use is first class.
3. Moo Cards is truly global. Not only do we ship all over the world, but we have a flat rate to anywhere in the world.
More details here: http://www.moo.com
On another note, we just received an e-mail from Legros Cultural Arts
Legros Cultural Arts, Inc is seeking film/video project submissions for the Queens Youth Multicultural Film Festival. We are seeking submissions from youth and young adults ages 14-23.
More information can be found here: www.legrosculturalarts.org
One more thing: Art For Progress will soon be launching its artist grant program that will provide grants up to $500 for small community based art education initiatives implemented by AFP artists. All of the details are forthcoming on our site by May 31st.
Art Education Program Update: We're pleased to announce that our pilot art and humanities education initiative is receiving great reviews and we will be expanding the program to accomodate several new schools for next school year.
We are currently recruiting teaching artists for our program. If interested in participating and possibly becoming part of our artist in residence program, please send us an e-mail with your resume to arteducation@artforprogress.org. More information can be found above in our "art education" section.
Next Event: AFP's Summer Boat Party featuring live music performances, performance art, and DJs spinning on different levels. It is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, August 7th with many more details coming.
Enjoy the sunshine!
April 13
We're packing and getting ready to move our headquarters in the coming weeks. After five years in Little Italy, we'll be relocating to the East Village in the summer. Little Italy has treated us well and it's been great having a 1,300 Sq. Ft. loft in the heart of downtown NYC, but the rents keep going up and we've had enough!
We ask everyone to join us on Friday and Saturday April 25th and 26th for a special art sale from 6PM until 9PM both evenings. Much of the work will be affordable with prints available for as little as $25.
So come by and have a drink with us, check out the art and maybe we'll wrap something up for you to enjoy for years to come. This sale will ONLY be for people who receive our regular mailings and e-mails. If you're not on that list, sign-up for our e-mail list right away and you will get an invite.
We are very excited about our upcoming sympsoium at NYU Law School on Tuesday, May 13th. All of the details can be found in our event section.
April 1
We had to take a couple of weeks to relax a bit from our busy schedule, and the timing was good as we were able to attend some of the art shows this past weekend.
We checked out The Armory Show and Bridge Art Fair. The Armory Show was impressive as always, but Bridge Art Fair left a little to be desired. Also, the $25 fee was a bit hefty for the size and scope of the show.
AFP will be hosting its first symposium on Tuesday May 13th at NYU Law School. We are excited to have this opportunity to present a fantastic panel of speakers and we think the subject matter is refreshing. With the fall of the almighty dollar, art is becoming even more attractive as an investment, but this isn't the only reason to buy art. We will be covering a whole range of topics that explore why people purchase art and what to look for when buying artwork.
Our confirmed list of panelists includes:
Christel Dahlén, Director of International Relations, Chelsea Art Museum
Giovanni Garcia-Fenech, Communication Manager, 2008 Armory Show
Peter Reginato, Sculptor, Instructor
Michael Mendelsohn, New York Collector/Art-world Consultant/Briddge Art Strategies
Paige West, Mixed Greens Gallery Owner/Author of “The Art of Buying Art: Insider’s Guide to Collecting Contemporary Art”
Helene Forbes, Forbes Fine Art Consultants
Peter Hastings Falk, Hastings Art Management Services
Our moderator for the evening will be Mr. Michael Cohn of the Appraisers Association of America and Michael Cohn Asian Antiquities LLC.
We'll have more information in our events section very soon.
March 17
We have our winners for Clash of the Artists 2008!
Fashion:
Ricardo Ramos
Prizy Sebastian
Ritu K. Yellai
Visual Arts:
Juan Salgado
Berry Breene
Ana Canet
Live Music:
Emperor City Motorcade
Redheadphone
Film:
Michael Brettler
Ryan Ullman
Arth
DJs:
Jimmy Sky
Nickmatic
Kym Serrano
Congratulations to all of these artists and everyone who participated in Clash 2008.
After several months, many rounds of competition, and the big finals event on Saturday, we have a whole new crew of Art For Progress' artists. Everyone at AFP is excited to have this new group of artists on board as we approach 100 members.
In addition to these great artists we also have some other exciting new members who joined during and after the competitions. We also had the opportunity to meet quite a few artists who participated in Clash at the event on Saturday. We appreciate your support!
We believe that every artist who participated in this unique virtual and real world competition is a winner.
Thanks to all of our sponsors, volunteers, interns and everyone who came out on Saturday!
Our next event is Art For Progress' Young Art Collector's Symposium at NYU Law School in May. With a distinguished panel of curators, writers, artists and consultants, this promises to be an incredible evening. The specific details are coming soon right here on our site.
March 2
Tickets are selling fast for our big event on March 15th! Come out, support and make your vote count!
This is our one and only art education fundraiser for 2008. Our program is now making a difference for New York City kids through our work in the classroom and after-school. AFP artists are teaching in Manhattan and Brooklyn and we are receiving new program opportunities every week. Now that Art For Progress is a vendor for the Department of Education, we plan to expand our program next school year with hopes of placing artists-in-residence throughout the five boroughs of NYC.
If you're an artist and you're interested in working with us, contact Annie Branson, annie@artforprogress.org.
We have many updates and a new artist grant program that we'll be rolling out in the next few weeks.
February 21
The results are in and we have our finalists for Clash of the Artists 2008. Everything will be posted later tonight along with our honorable mentions. We will also have more information about the finals event on March 15th. Advance tickets will be on sale tommorow.
We snuck out to the Shinjo Ito opening last night at Milk Studios. If you have the opportunity to see this exhibition you must see it. This work has never been viewed in the U.S. before. Go to the events menu above for more information.
February 20
We have just over 24 hours left to vote. It's not too late to make your vote count.
March 15th - 320 Studios - Clash of the Artists 2008 - Fashion, Music, Visual Art, Film, Performance.
February 13-
We need everyone to vote! There's only one week left to vote in Clash of the Artists.
We're proud to announce that AFP will be supporting the upcoming Shinjo Ito exhibition at Milk Studios. The exhibition opens February 21st, and from what we've seen it's going to be an incredible show not to be missed. You'll be seeing many more details about the exhibition right here in the next couple weeks.
Let's not forget Clash of the Artists event is coming up on Saturday, March 15th. 320 Studios is the spot this year. Emerging artists, views across the Hudson river, sponsored open bar all night, continuous entertainment and many surprises.
February 8
Thanks to everyone who came out to nublu last night! We had a great time chilling with everyone and hearing some top quality music from Ze Luis Quartet, Roja, Barry Komitor, and Zef Noise. Thanks to the good people at nublu as well. We hope to be back soon for another AFP night.
It's already February so our big 'Clash of the Artist's' event is coming up soon. We are determined to make this event even bigger and more exciting than last year. The venue, 320 Studios in Manhattan, is an incredible space with views of the Hudson River and a beautiful terrace. We are thankful for John Stavros support.
Also, we have several new artists who have joined AFP in the last few weeks. Mookrulz, MaRiinX, Jan Alpert, and Cheryl Tapp.
Dates of Interest:
March 15, Clash of the Artists
March 25 - 30, Winter Music Conference, Miami Beach
May 13, AFP's Young Art Collectors Symposium, NYU Law School
January 20-
We hope you're enjoying all of the great art, music, films and designs. Voting for 'Clash of the Artists' will continue through February 20th.
As you can see on your left, our featured artist is Drew Maillard. Drew is a Brooklyn based artist who was recently part of our group show in November.
Join us on Thursday, February 7th at nublu for a night of live music featuring Art For Progress' artists. Check the event section for details.
January 16-
For the past two months, emerging artists have been sending Art For Progress(AFP) their best, and now it's time for the virtual art community to do its part. AFP's annual arts competition, Clash of the Artists, is the first of its kind, where artists in six categories compete in an interactive on-line environment. People from New York to Japan can visit the AFP site and vote for their favorites while viewing short films, listening to music, and seeing new work from emerging artists and fashion designers. The top three artists in each category will compete on Saturday, March 15th at a live finals event in New York City.
In 2007, over 5,000 people voted on-line, and over 300 people attended the memorable live event. The five-week voting period begins January 15th and runs through February 20th.
January 5-
Check out our video for Clash of the Artists!
It's a new year and it brings so much excitement for the folks at AFP.
