Do you care about public art in North Brooklyn? No? Well, skip this item. If the answer is “yes,” then read on, friends. This dropped into our inbox from Council Member David Yassky and the Open Space Alliance which are going to be presenting something called Public Art Opportunities: Inaugural Meeting of the North Brooklyn Public Art Coalition. It’ll be happening at the Brooklyn Brewery at 79 N. 11 Street in Williamsburg (between Wythe and Berry) at 6:30PM on Wednesday, February 25. There’s some serious stuff on the agenda like the creation of a North Brooklyn Public Art Coalition and the creation of a block-long wall mural on India Street in Greenpoint. So, if you want a say in the art you’re going to be looking at or want to advocate for it or, even, if you want to tell them to stick their because there should be no such thing as public art (you don’t feel that way do you?), go and speak up.

Dear Artist or Patron of the Arts,

North Brooklyn is home to one of the most vibrant and talented arts communities in the world. It is disappointing, therefore, to note the lack of public art in our neighborhood. In order to address this issue, I am pleased to invite you to a special meeting about Public Art in North Brooklyn on Wednesday, February 25th, 2009, at the Brooklyn Brewery, 79 N.11th St. (between Wythe Ave. and
Berry St.) in Williamsburg at 6:30pm.

The main objective of this meeting is to open a discussion among artists of North Brooklyn about the opportunities for public art exhibition and funding in our area.

The agenda will include:

* Presentations by public arts organizations, Percent for Arts, Urban Art Program, and Art in the Parks, that are currently offering opportunities to Greenpoint/Williamsburg artists.

* The establishment of a North Brooklyn Public Art Coalition, which will be comprised of members of the local arts community, with a mission of scouting out ideal locations for public art in North
Brooklyn, actively seeking out partnerships and funding for public art in this area, and keeping its members apprised of all public art opportunities.

* An incredible opportunity has been given to the community by Palin Enterprises, a developer from North Brooklyn who has offered up the entire block length wall on India Street (between West Street and the East River) for a mural. Given the large size of the wall (it measures approx. 300′ x 30′) we will be looking for a number of different artists and proposals in order to complete the project and
welcome all manner of styles and visions. The submission guidelines for the India Street Mural will be presented at the meeting.

For more information or to RSVP, please reach out to Rami Metal in my office at (718) 875-5200×14 or rmetal@council.nyc.gov. Please forward this email on to your organization’s mailing lists, or any parties and friends that you feel would benefit from this meeting. I am very excited about the prospect of forming a North Brooklyn Public Arts Coalition and hope that you will join me in this endeavor. Thank
you and I hope to see you on February 25th.

Sincerely,

David Yassky