Opening October 16th

Our friends at Vans just sent us an email about this contest - enter to win a trip for two to NYC!!!

“Join us for the House of Vans VIP launch party and hang with top Vans athletes and a who’s who of NYC movers & shakers, plus see a special performance from a secret artist.  Visit Vans’ Facebook page at facebook.com/vans to enter for the chance to win transportation to New York, three hotel nights, a $1,000 Vans gift card and a night to remember as our special VIP guest at the Vans party of the year!”

TAGS: Freebies

3rd Ward Open Call

3rd Ward is a New York City based arts organization that was founded on the principles of creating unique opportunities for artists and present innovative artwork.  Offering interdisciplinary art education programs, photo studios, wood and metal shops, media labs and office spaces, the facilities have been serving hundreds of creatives since 2006.

The 3rd Ward Summer 2010 Open Call is a juried international art competition for dynamic, inventive and provocative work of all mediums: sculpture, photography, painting, printmaking, illustration, installation, graphic design, video and more!  Submissions can include: completed work, works-in-progess and/or conceptual proposals. 

The Winning Artist will receive:

* $5,000 cash grant
* Solo exhibition in 3rd Ward’s gallery, complete with a massive opening reception
* Optional 3-month work residency at 3rd Ward including work studio & full facility access (photo studios, wood & metal shop, media lab, art education classes)
* Airfare & shipping to and from 3rd Ward for non-NYC residents
* 2-page spread in 3rd Ward’s Quarterly Magazine
* NYC exposure - postcards, fliers, press!

PLUS—The top 25 artists will be featured in 3rd Ward’s Quarterly Magazine and Online Gallery.

This opportunity is open to artists of all backgrounds and mediums.

DEADLINE: July 28, 2010 11:59pm EST

First submitted image is FREE with promo code: ThemeMag1
(This discount expires in seven days.)

Submit your best work now at: http://www.3rdwardopencall.com/?3wsum10theme1

Submissions will be evaluated by our distinguished panel of judges:
Alexis Hubshman, Founder & Director of Scope Art Show
Yuko Shimizu, Celebrated Illustrator
Alexa Chung, TV Personality
Jason Goodman, 3rd Ward Founder

Every entrant will receive a professional online portfolio and artists benefits valued at over $75, including big discounts for printing your art at CanvasPop.com!

TAGS: Freebies

Vans Custom Culture!

Here’s a really cool idea from our friends over at Vans. As a parent, anytime people use corporate structures to prop up something like the school system, I’m 110% for it! Enter your school now and spread the word.

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Know any art students, teachers or parents of high schoolers?  Please tell them about our Vans Custom Culture art contest.  Thank you!!!!

Vans Custom Culture is a nationwide art & design talent contest for high school art classes utilizing Vans sneakers as the canvas for their creative talents. The Vans Custom Culture contest culminates with an expenses-paid trip to Los Angeles in May for representatives from four schools from different regions of the US to take part in an art showcase and we hope that the program will create awareness for the importance of high school programs in an age of shrinking budgets for the arts, while at the same time inspiring young artists and designers. In addition to the showcase in Los Angeles, an on-line gallery will exhibit the complete collection of submissions for the world to see. Vans will also award the winning school a grand prize pack for their class including Vans products, tickets to the Vans Warped Tour in their area and a $10,000 donation to their school’s art program.

To find official rules and program information, visit http://www.facebook.com/l/f1fbe;vans.com/customculture.
To ask us questions about the program via our Facebook page, visit facebook.com/vanscustomculture.

TAGS: Freebies

Alleged Gallery

Unless you’ve been living under a rock you’ve probably heard something about the Beautiful Losers project. What started as a traveling exhibition turned into a book and then pieces of footage from all over were loving collected and crafted into a film of the same name by artist and filmmaker, Aaron Rose. Rose began documenting artists at his Alleged gallery in the Lower East Side of manhattan in the early ‘90s and that documentation is the backbone of this film.

We will be interviewing one or more of the artists next week - To WIN your very own copy of the BL doc on DVD, send us questions to ask Ed Templeton - we will ask pose a list of the top 20 questions and will credit you for asking the question. Think of it as your very own personal chat with mr Templeton! Send an email to with your suggested question and 10 winners will be chosen at random to win 1 of 10 signed DVD’s.

Barry McGee

Barry McGee

Here’s the full press release from Oscilloscope, the distribution company (owned by MCA) who is releasing the DVD.
“ New York (December 1, 2009) — Oscilloscope Laboratories is proud to announce the December 8, 2009 DVD release of Beautiful Losers, Aaron Rose’s celebration of one of the most influential cultural movements of a generation.
Featuring Shepard Fairey (Obey founder and creator of the Barack Obama “Hope” poster),
award-winning pro skater Ed Templeton, Harmony Korine (writer of the cult favorite Kids and director of Gummo and
Mister Lonely), and Mike Mills (director of Thumbsucker and designer of album covers for Beck, Beastie Boys, Sonic Youth and more). The film also stars Barry McGee, Chris Johanson, Geoff McFetridge, Jo Jackson,
Margaret Kilgallen, Stephen Posers, and Thomas Campbell. Based on the acclaimed art book “Beautiful Losers” by writer/director Aaron Rose, the film bowed theatrically on August 8, 2008 via Arthouse Films.

In the early 1990s a loose-knit group of like-minded outsiders found common ground at a little NYC storefront gallery. Rooted in the do-it-yourself subcultures of skateboarding, surf, punk, hip-hop, and graffiti, they made art that reflected the lifestyles they led. Developing their craft with almost no influence from the “establishment” art world, this group, and the subcultures from which they have sprung, created a movement that is transforming pop culture.

For more information, please visit:  http://www.beautifullosers.com

BEAUTIFUL LOSERS (DVD)
A Sidetrack Films Production
Specifications:
Street Date: December 8, 2009
Pre-Order: November 3, 2009
Run time: 90 minutes Rating: Not Rated
DVD Sound: 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound
Blu-Ray Sound: DTS HD Master Audio 5.1/Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
DVD SRP: $29.99
Language: English

DVD Bonus Features:
Clips from nationwide BEAUTIFUL LOSERS DIY Art Workshops:
“Sneaker Design” with Jesse Leyva, “Making Music” with Money Mark, “Poster Art” with Mike Mills, “Editing Video” with Lenny Mesina, “Paint a Deck” with Ed Templeton, “Find Art” with Jesse Spears, “Make a Zine” with Aaron Rose, “Character Design” with Kaws, and “Cinematography” with Tobin Yelland.

About Oscilloscope Laboratories
Oscilloscope Laboratories is a film production and theatrical distribution entity launched in 2008 by Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys. Yauch modeled the company after the indie record labels he grew up around, choosing films and then marketing them with the same artistic integrity with which they were made.  The company, which is an extension of Yauch’s recording studio of the same name, has an in-house DVD distribution and production arm, and the paper packaging is reminiscent of the heyday of LP record jackets. All of the company’s DVD packaging is (free of any plastic) printed on FSC Certified 80% post-consumer waste paper and produced in a carbon neutral, hydroelectric facility.  Other Oscilloscope theatrical releases include Yauch’s GUNNIN’ FOR THAT #1 SPOT, Irena Salina’s FLOW, Caroline Suh’s FRONTRUNNERS, Kurt Kuenne’s DEAR ZACHARY, Kelly Reichardt’s WENDY AND LUCY starring Michelle Williams, So Yong Kim’s TREELESS MOUNTAIN, the Academy-Award® nominated THE GARDEN from Scott Hamilton Kennedy, Anders Østergaard’s multi award-winning BURMA VJ, Nati Baratz’s UNMISTAKEN CHILD, and Laura Gabbert and Justin Schein’s NO IMPACT MAN. Upcoming releases include Oren Moverman’s directorial debut THE MESSENGER, Lance Daly’s award-winning Irish film KISSES, the re-release of Jules Dassin’s classic THE LAW, Gabriel Medina’s offbeat comedy THE PARANOIDS, and Michel Gondry’s personal family documentary THE THORN IN THE HEART.

TAGS: Freebies

littlefield, a new eco-friendly performance and art space, opens this weekend in Brooklyn’s Gowanus neighborhood! Housed in an old, 6200-square-foot warehouse, the venue uses green elements like a landscaped interior courtyard, soundwalls fromed from recycled rubber tires, a bar constructed from salvaged bowling alley lanes and energy supplied by the wind-powered grid. Check out the opening weekend performances with our friends from Golden Triangle!!

littlefield
622 Degraw Street between 3rd and 4th avenue

Opening Weekend
Friday, May 22 - 10pm Sisters 11pm Golden Triangle
Saturday, May 23 - 10pm Cruel Black Dove 11pm The Hundred in the Hands
Doors at 8pm / 21+ / FREE

TAGS: Freebies, Events, Good News!

215 Magazine is giving out FREE Roots Picnic Summer Getaway tickets, including transportation and hotel rooms for a friend and their guest to spend a luxe weekend in our fair city. Hook up with some of the best live music Philly has to offer. All you have to do is sign up at 215mag.com. Who doesn’t love a good sweepstakes? Winners will be announced May 29.

Enter to win tickets to the 2nd Annual ROOTS PICNIC and a VIP weekend package in Philadelphia, the home of The Roots! The Roots Picnic—held at the Festival Pier at Penn’s Landing on the waterfront—stars The Roots, Santigold, Kid Cudi, The Black Keys, TV on the Radio, Asher Roth and more, including a special feature performance by Public Enemy, playing It Takes A Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back, backed by Antibalas and The Roots.

Your prize weekend includes:
-Two free tickets and VIP access to The Roots Picnic and Picnic Pre-Party
-Round-trip transportation on Amtrak*
-Two nights hotel accommodation for you and a guest at the Hyatt Regency at Penn’s Landing
-Signed copy of the limited edition Philly 360° book featuring The Roots
-Dinner for two at one of Philly’s spectacular restaurants
-A gift basket filled with goodies from local boutiques and restaurants
*Roundtrip transportation provided by Amtrak on scheduled service from northeast corridor train station closest to winner’s residence served by Amtrak to Philadelphia.

TAGS: Freebies, Events

The wonderful folks at NPR have put up the entire Dark Night of the Soul album for your listening pleasure. Due to an ongoing dispute with EMI, this collaboration between Dangermouse and Sparklehorse with a book of photography by David Lynch may never be released. Featured artists include James Mercer of The Shins, The Flaming Lips, Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals, Jason Lytle of Grandaddy, Julian Casablancas of The Strokes, Frank Black of the Pixies, Iggy Pop, Nina Persson of The Cardigans, Suzanne Vega, Vic Chesnutt, David Lynch, and Scott Spillane of Neutral Milk Hotel and The Gerbils. Check out the full story over at NPR and stream the album!! Thanks Kay!

TAGS: Freebies, Things We Like

Being “friends” with PBS on facebook is kinda awesome. Today, PBS announced a new user-driven application on the Independent Lens website in conjunction with a great article about the state of arthouse cinema in the US. The web app allows viewers to submit their favorite art house/alternative cinema theaters to add to a publicly accessed map! Now, whether youre in Montgomery, Alabama or Ann Arbor, Michigan, you can catch an indie film while doing your good deed for the week! Support independent cinema!

TAGS: Freebies, Things We Like

In case you’re not jumping on a quick flight to Barcelona mid-June, Sonar, the huge Barcelona-based electronic music and arts festival is heading to New York. Celebrating it’s 15th year, Sonar is held at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Barcelona with over 30,000 people in attendance last year!

Their debut event in New York, SonarSoundNY, will showcase the best of Catalan and American artists, combining multimedia art ideas with experiemental electronica. The SonarSound NY bill includes installations by Marcel·lí Antúnez and ReacTable, featuring Ikue Mori; the mysterious ambient of Balago; the soundtrack, performed live, by Árbol and Fibla for a film by Taiwan’s Tsai Ming-Liang; the extravagant pop of Hidrogenesse; hip-hop in a trio format with the Del Palo Soundsystem; two sets by the Barcelona dj d.a.r.y.l.; the highly unconventional rhythm of the Americans (both ex-residents of Barcelona) DJ/Rupture and Prefuse 73; and visuals by No-Domain.

SONARSOUND NY

8pm - 1am
Baryshnikov Arts Center NYC
450 West 37th Street, Suite 501
New York, NY 10018

All performances are free but RSVP here.

TAGS: Freebies, Events

With the names of epic master painters; these turtles were my run-to after-school show. Michelangelo, Leonardo, Raphael and Donatello will be on the huge screen at World Financial Center Plaza tonight.

Did you know that they have been around for twenty-five years?? Get in line for their Party-Wagon; push your way through to get your face painted ninja turtle green and enjoy the masked hero’s favorite meal; pizza on the plaza, where the manhole covers will be glowing in tribute of the intense fighters.

I hope no one shows up wearing a Shredder outfit....

TAGS: Freebies, Events, Things We Like