Spring is Finally Here.. with New Open Art Sessions and Guitar Lesson programs at the Center!

After a long, cold winter.. CAC@SJB is back with some new community programming being offered youth and adults at the Center!  Although we were informed that St. John's parish leadership made the unfortunate decision to close the parish center down on Saturdays, we at CAC@SJB will continue to be dedicated to serving the community, and will be offering new, afternoon art sessions to community youth and adults that will be held on selected Mondays - Thursdays during the week this Spring.  The Center will be hosting Open Art & Painting Sessions which will be beginning this May (from 3 pm - 7 pm), where you can come and work on a painting or another form of artwork, during that period.  Artists, whether starting out or established, the young and the young at heart, can come and enjoy a great atmosphere for creating new artwork. These open art sessions will be facilitated by Glenn Angel and Kris Echevarria. Some of these new creations of art will be showcased at future art exhibitions at the Center later in the Spring and in the Summer.

Glenn works on a beautiful tropical beach scene at the Center

An exciting addition to the open art sessions will be The Wonderful Art of Statue Restoration.  CAC@SJB Director and Community Artist, 

Glenn Angel Echevarria, will be working on restoring old and damaged antique church statues, and transforming them to look brand new again.  This is really a wonderful art ministry to learn.

An old and damaged classic statue of La Pieta 

at St. Barbara's RC Church in Bushwick, Brooklyn

Glenn gives Mary an amazing new "make-over" at 

St. Barbara's Church

  

He will be giving instructions and educational tips to those community residents and artists interested in learning how to restore these priceless, classic statues.  Glenn has honed his skills and mastered this unique brand of art with over 18 years experience of restoring statues for numerous churches and individual owners around the New York City area, in New Jersey, and Philadelphia.. with some very beautiful results.

We are also happy to announce the return of CAC@SJB Member, Richie Robles' Guitar Lessons for Beginners.  These guitar lessons are being offered to serious students who really want to learn.  Lessons will be offered on selected dates during the week as well, and a special schedule will be arranged for students who call and sign up for lessons.  You can contact Richie Robles at (646) 335-7144 or via e-mail at RichRobles62@yahoo.com for more info, to make an appointment,  and to sign up for lessons.

For more information about the Center for the Arts & Culture@SJB and these new art and Guitar Lesson workshops, contact Glenn Echevarria at (646)763-4260 or via e-mail at CACSJB@yahoo.com

Look forward to seeing you at the Center again this Spring.. 

because if we don't do it, who will?

"The African American Experience" Art Exhibition featuring artwork by Glenn Angel at the Arsenal Gallery in Central Park, NYC

Monday, February 2 through Thursday, March 5, 2009.. you are invited to attend a very special event.. "The African American Experience" at the Arsenal Gallery in Central Park, NYC in honor of Black History. This special group art exhibition is a presentation by the Ebony Society Black History Committee, and is featuring two powerful painted panels by our very own, Glenn Angel ("Break the Chain.." & "New Orleans Jazz Lives"), along with other guest artists showing their own artwork, paintings, photography, and more. It's truly a great show and a wonderful learning experience being offered free to the public.

Exhibition Coordinator, Meg Duguid, and Glenn Angel

share a moment at the Opening Reception

A group of family and friends came to the event to support Glenn at the exhbition's opening reception. The Opening Reception was held on Thursday, February 5th, 2009 from 5:30pm - 7:30pm at the Arsenal Gallery in Central Park, (5th Ave. and 64th St. in Manhattan) on the 3rd Floor..

Kris Echevarria, Arnetta Meyer , and little Luis 

along with Glenn at the Opening Reception

Glenn Angel with Savae Inc. Founder, Petula Payne, 

CAC@SJB member, Rich Robles, and artist, Ansel Pitcairn, who also has some of his wonderful artwork on display at the exhibition

..and although it was a frigid evening outside, the reception was full of warmth, as a large crowd braved the cold to witness a wonderful event full of art, singing by young vocal group Side Tracks, and special addresses by  Deputy Chief of Brooklyn Recreation, Jackie Brown, NYC Parks Commissioner, Adrian Benepe, and an inspiring address by Assistant Commissioner, Michael Dockett, that brought the crowd to its feet, and earned him a rousing guest ovation.

Assistant Commissioner, Mr. Michael Dockett, and Glenn

at the Opening Reception of the African American Art Exhibition

We welcome and greatly encourage you to come down with your friends, family, and your children, not only to show your support of Black History, but to celebrate it, and to enjoy a wonderful show at the historic Arsenal Building & Gallery at Central Park.  It is yet another great experience and event that is showcasing one of our own CAC@SJB family members, Founder and Director, Glenn Angel Echevarria!  You will not be disappointed. 

Glenn works on "New Orleans Jazz Lives" 

at Richie's Basement studio in 2006

Directions to the Arsenal Gallery at Central Park:

(Take the F train to 63rd St. / Lexington station, or the N train to 5th Ave & 57th St. station.  Walk over to 64th St., make a left and enter the park enterance there, which will lead you directly to the NYC Parks & Recreation Arsenal Building). The Arsenal Gallery is open Monday thru Friday: 9 am - 5 pm (closed on holidays).  For more info, call (212)360-8163.

You can also check out the link for NYC Parks & Recreation's Newsletter The Daily Plant for a cool article highlighting the special event.

The Daily Plant - Feb. 2009 Edition

Glenn listens to Bob Marley & Peter Tosh 

while working on "Break the Chain.."

Message from Glenn Angel:

To all my family, friends, and colleagues.. I want to sincerely thank each of you for your great support over the years.. and welcome my new friends and contacts into the mix.  None of it has gone unnoticed.. nor unappreciated.  But I want to assure you all, the best is yet to come!  I have many projects and events that are coming up this year in 2009 that I will keep you posted on.  Until then, I wish you all the best.. be warm, be safe, and stay blessed.

For any extra info, or just to contact Glenn Angel, e-mail at GlennAngel@gmail.com or via cell at (646)763-4260.  

Until then, take care..

It's Official.. just call him Mr. President Obama!

Barack Obama takes the oath as 44th President of the United States 

while his wife, Michelle, and daughters take the moment all in

On a glorious and chilly Tuesday, January 20, 2009.. it became official, Senator from Chicago, Barack Husein Obama, became our nation's 44th President before a crowd estimated at being easily over 1,000,000 who braved the cold, and came to celebrate the momentous and historic occasion. 

  

President Barack Obama takes the oath while a few people 

just happen to come by to witness  the historic event 

Thus, a new era of American history was born.. and on this day, a new president born of a father from Kenya, Africa, and a mother from Kansas, the hopes, dreams, and future of our nation was placed on his shoulders. 

Obama's Historic Oath & Inaugural Speech - Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009

"My fellow citizens: 

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. 

 

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age.

Homes have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly, our schools fail too many, and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable, but no less profound, is a sapping of confidence across our land; a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real, they are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this America: They will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less.

It has not been the path for the faint-hearted, for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame.

Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things -- some celebrated, but more often men and women obscure in their labor -- who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life. For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West, endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died in places Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sanh.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth.   Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions -- that time has surely passed.

Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done.

The state of our economy calls for action: bold and swift. And we will act not only to create new jobs but to lay a new foundation for growth.

We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together.

We will restore science to its rightful place and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality.. and lower its costs.

We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age.

All this we can do. All this we will do."

Happy Birthday, Dr. King! One of your Dreams has been realized.. Barack Obama is President!

CAC@SJB's "Momentz of Noize" Open-mic Holiday Jam.. What A Blessed Event!!

Wonderful Black Angel soars on the open-mic

Something truly special happend on Saturday, Dec. 13th in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.. CAC@SJB opened its doors to the community for our "Momentz of Noize" Open-mic Holiday Jam 2008.. and what resulted was an experience so profound and inspiring, that it leads us to ask, "Could it get any better?"

Guest Comments:  

"This is a great place that nurtures the soul, and enhances the spirit with positive energy, faith, and positive messages.  These are desperately needed by all people and our communities.  I am proud of receiving the opportunity to contribute and share. Much success!" - Jaime "The Maestro" Emeric

CAC@SJB fam members, community organizers, poet, Luis Bernard 

& artist, Glenn Angel, hosted the event at the Center

Poets take turns on the open-mic

This afternoon gathering of wonderful community artists, poets, and activists was one of the best events at the Center to date!  All our invited guests unanimously agree.. when we gather together at the Center to celebrate our art, our music, our culture, and most of all, ourselves with one another for the sake of community, magical things happen in our humble little center that truly feeds the soul.  On this day, the Center was more than just a hidden gem.. it was truly a brilliant jewel on a cold December afternoon that will not soon be forgotten.

Guest Comments:  

"What a beautiful space and a blessing.  I had a wonderful time.  Thank you for this place, and healing of spirit."  - Tachelle Wilkes 

 

Educator and amazing poet, Charan P, 

wowed the crowd with her deep poetry

Soulful Tachelle sings and moves the crowd 

at the Center with her beautiful voice

The group art exhibition that was beautifully displayed at the Center was both the backdrop and a great enhancement to what took place as poet after amazing poet and special performers took turns on the open-mic. Poetry of all kinds just dazzled the mind and inspired the soul in such a way.. in other words.. the Center was totally transformed into a safe haven of peace, love, and wonderful artistry by the community for the community.  In a parish where not too much is being offered to teens and adults in the greater community as far as art, poetry, and freedom of expression, this event helped fill a great void in a quiet parish building on a cold Saturday afternoon in December where so much more can be done to bring the outside community inside to this historic building at St. John the Baptist parish.

Enjoying the vibe at the event

Richie Robles played his guitar and sang his heart out 

for the guests at the Center

This special "Momentz of Noize" event gathering was an opportunity to celebrate the gift of creativity, and to meet new artists, poets, musicians, and community activists who have never visited the Center nor this side of Brooklyn before.  It was a great opportunity to network with like-minded individuals with one main shared vision.. to utilize our God-given abilities to make a positive impact in young people's lives, and to enhance the quality of life in our inner-city communities through the gift of art.

Guest Comments:  

"This place is AWESOME!" - Kris Echevarria

Guests enjoy the art displayed in the Center

Guest were blessed to see the wonderful paintings and artwork of Glenn Angel, Iandry Randriamandroso, Chantal Smith, Jai Cruz, Kris Echevarria.. and special guest artists, John Aguilar Marrero and Reina Miranda (Taino Spirit), who showed only a sample of their amazing creations.  We look forward to having Aguilar and Reina back at the Center for their own art exhibition.. because their art is truly a treasure to behold, and the community would be blessed to see it first hand. 

Amazing artist, Aguilar, explains his beautiful 

paintings to a group of guests at the Center..

..while Reina did her thing on the open-mic

We also had a special appearance by a unique brother / sister art team, Marthalicia & Tomas (M Squared Art Productions) come by and do some live painting with Marthalicia's son, Wesly, taking to the canvas as well while the poets took turns on the microphone. We thank Marthalicia, Tomas, and lil' Wesly for blessing us with their presence.. and also look forward to showcasing them at the Center in 2009.  They are wonderful young artists with a world of talent, passion, and stories to share with the community.

Guest Comments:

"I am glad.. more like.. ecstatic to be able to participate in something that gives back to the community, especially children.  I look forward to work with your group in all future endeavors." - Black Angel

Wesly paints live in the Center during the event

while mommy, Marthalicia, proudly watches on

Tired Wesly takes a well-deserved break during the event

We truly want to thank all our special guests, our great poets, wonderful artists, and especially our CAC@SJB family members, Richie Robles, Howard & Dorothy Folk, Jeorlaine Hill, Lucia Totoya, and Luis Bernard for making this event a great success and a blessed experience for all who attended.  This type of community gathering in celebration of our diverse cultures and our great array of gifted artists of all genres is what our parish community greatly lacks and needs much more of.  We are hopeful to continue presenting more opportunities for our community residents (especially our very own youth and young adults of St. John's parish and our Bed-Stuy community) to be exposed to the many gifted and dedicated individuals in our very own inner-city communities and neighborhoods that have so much to offer and share with us all.  This is what makes a community more real, more relevant, and more colorful.. and inspires us all to dream big and make important things happen for the betterment of our quality of life in our under-served communities.  Because if we don't do it, who will?  

We look forward to having all our special guests back, and to have new visitors experience the Center in 2009 at one of our special art and poetry events!  Until then.. may we all have a great and very prosperous New Year!!

For more great pictures of our Momentz of Noize Holiday Jam (courtesy of Jaime "The Maestro"), link into the Center's myspace webpage and click on pics at www.myspace.com/CACSJB

A Special "Momentz of Noize" Gathering at CAC@SJB: Holiday Jam 2008

(left to right) Rich Robles, Greg Mills, Jeorlaine Hill, Luis Bernard, 

Jacqueline Cordova, Kris Echevarria, and Glenn Angel invite you to the Center

The family members of CAC@SJB invite you to a very special community gathering on Saturday, December 13, 2008 from 12 noon - 4 pm.. our "Momentz of Noize" Holiday Jam 2008.  This special event is dedicated to our beloved sister, Danielle Locario, who returned home to the Lord this past September.

Our beloved sister, Danielle Locario, blesses the mic 

at the Center in 2007

Blessings,

 

On Dec 13th, CAC@SJB and The In Progress Group are presenting a very special Art exhibition/Spoken word Community networking gathering, announcing another year of creative writing /performance workshops.. and more.

 

The event will be from 12 - 4 PM (the bldg closes at 4:30PM.. so no CP or PR time)

 

We again will be re-establishing our position,  that the buck stops with us in order to take back our youth one mind at a time,  and our communities one block at a time. 

 

Come and support yourself.  All we have is each other.

 

If you are a visual artist, spoken wordsmith or a motivational speaker that would like to take part, please contact us by Dec 8.

 

Too many instances occur in this society where parents outlive their children. Then we have family reunions in funeral palors asking for a moment of silence.

 

Well, NO MORE !  It's time to reverse this process with.. 

"Momentz of Noize"!

This special afternoon event will feature an ope-mic, a wonderful group art exhibition, and music in celebration of Christmas, Kwanzaa, and New Year's.. and it promises to be yet another blessed, joyous, and memorable event in the history of the Center.  To date, we have had over 20 events and special presentations at CAC@SJB since 2004, and they have all been very special in their own right.  If you have never been to the Center, or haven't visited the Center in some time, we invite you to experience the magic and all the blessings.. and find out why we consider the Center one of the "hidden gems" this side of Brooklyn.

CAC@SJB Director, Curator, and Community Artist, Glenn Angel, 

invites you to experience the Center at our "Momentz of Noize" Holiday Jam

The first part of the event (12 noon - 2 pm) will showcase the group art exhibition and time for artists and guests to introduce themselves to one another and network. The artwork on display is beautiful and is available for sale in original form, or in small prints.  Part of the proceeds from the art on sale is being donated in support of the Center to continue our efforts, to help support our projects in the future, and to support our community artists.

The Word Bird, Malik Canty, takes flight at one of his 

many appearances at the Center

The second part of the event (2 pm - 4 pm) will feature the open-mic where special guest poets and others will have the opportunity to share their poetic talent and verses with everyone.  All are welcome to attend and step up to the mic to share their poetry, music, and thoughts throughout the afternoon.

Our brother and friend, amazing poet, "Word Bird" Malik Canty,

 invites you to bring a friend or two with you to the Center.. and break the chains!

All the artists are donating a percentage from sales of the artwork to the Center for the further development of CAC@SJB, and to support all our future endeavors.  We greatly appreciate all your generous contributions, and thank you for your continued support.  We couldn't do it without you.. the community.  We look forward to seeing all of you at the Center!

For more info.. feel free to contact Glenn at (646)763-4260, 

or Luis Bernard (347)623-2547

For Directions to the Center.. click on Directions to CAC@SJB in the links area on the top right side of the blog.