Artwork in the outdoor exhibition ‘Here, There and Everywhere:
Artists of Kew Gardens’ displayed on storefronts along Lefferts
Boulevard. Photo by William Jackson
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.2 COM | JULY 24-JULY 30, 2020
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
Councilman Barry Grodenchik
has distributed
thousands of free masks
and hundreds of bottles of
hand sanitizers across eastern
Queens, including at recent
grab-and-go events in
Glen Oaks and Fresh Meadows,
in an effort to keep local
residents safe from the
novel coronavirus.
Grodenchik, along with
his staff and volunteers,
distributed over 4,000 packages
filled with five folded
masks and 500 2-ounce containers
of NYS Clean Hand
Sanitizers to residents in
the communities.
The Councilman hosted
his first event on June 26 at
the Fresh Meadows Shopping
Center at 61-18 190th St.
followed by another event
at the Glen Oaks Shopping
Center nearby Key Food
at 255-01 Union Tpke. on
July 2.
Hundreds of residents
attended both events where
all of the workers wore face
coverings and maintained
social distancing.
The residents picked
up their packs and then
quickly went on their way
to avoid crowding together.
“Masks and hand sanitizer
have been proven to
help protect people from
catching the virus,” said
Grodenchik, who recovered
from COVID-19 in March.
“The city and state have
provided these supplies,
which I am distributing to
keep our community safe
and healthy.”
Grodenchik has been
supplying residents and
institutions within the
district with free masks
and sanitizer since the beginning
of the pandemic,
partnering with local organizations
including Commonpoint
Sam Field Center,
Bayside Senior Center,
SNAP Senior Center, JASA
Holliswood Senior Center,
India Home, Transitional
Services for New York,
NAIR Benevolent Association,
Kerala Cultural Association,
Gurdwara Sant Sagar,
Queens Baptist Church
and Queens Centers for
Progress.
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by e-mail at cmohamed@
schnepsmedia.com
or by phone at (718) 260–
4526.
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
In the midst of the COVID-
19 pandemic two residents of
Kew Gardens – Carol Lacks
and Tony Mavilia — asked
the question: “What can two
people do to lift the spirits of
their neighbors, help the area’s
struggling shop owners,
and showcase the incredibly
talented residents who live
here?”
With a love for the arts,
Lacks and Mavilia, of the
Kew Gardens Council for
Recreation in the Arts, came
up with the solution of creating
an outdoor art exhibition,
‘Here, There and Everywhere:
Artists of Kew Gardens.’
About 45 weatherproof
vinyl banners will line the
streets of the neighborhood’s
abandoned shop fronts and
disused fences and gates in
the neighborhood’s business
area on the Lefferts Boulevard
bridge and between Austin
and Grenfell streets.
Mavilia, who is the art director,
and Lacks, the project
coordinator, began hanging
up the 2 ½ by 4-foot banners
along the street on July 10,
and they say people are becoming
very attached to the
display.
“Carol and I every year put
on an art event in Kew Gardens
and we knew that with
the pandemic we couldn’t
have an event where crowds
of people got together like
they usually do, so we started
talking about what we could
do to promote art and to give
people something to look forward
to in the community,”
Mavilia told QNS.
The exhibit features works
by 57 local artists, including
22 children — with the youngest
among them debuting their
artwork at just 4 years old.
Lacks and Mavilia hope
the artwork will entice people
out of their homes, give them
a reason to take a stroll in the
village area and see the amazing
art — which just happens
to be by friends and neighbors
they see or pass almost daily.
Oil and acrylic on canvas,
lithography, sculpture, watercolor
on paper, photography
and computer generated
imagery all find their place
in the show.
Styles range from almost
photographic realism to
highly abstract photography
with many stops in between:
realism, impressionism,
primitivism, photo collage
and fantasy. Home, or as far
from home as the artist could
get, represent the range of
interests and imagery. All of
the artists have one thing in
common – the certainty that
personal expression is a necessity
and sharing with it
others is essential.
For Mavilia and Lacks, the
art exhibition gives a feeling
of hopefulness during a challenging
time period.
“It gives a feeling that
there’s some life in the community
— that we’re not
looking at the main downtown
area as shut down and
grimey,” Mavilia said. “We
literally see it, people stop
and look at the work and they
smile. They send us emails
about it, so it’s giving people
something to think about other
than COVID and the leader
of our country.”
This year, due to the
COVID-19 health crisis, all
of Kew Gardens Arts events
were cancelled and the organization
was given an opportunity
to create new programs
with social distancing
protocols.
Kew Gardens residents
will not have Kew Gardens
Community Arts Day to enjoy
this year, but they will
be able to safely walk around
the streets of Kew Gardens to
experience the outdoor art exhibition.
The art initiatives were
funded by New York City
Council grants awarded to
the Kew Gardens Council for
Recreation and the Arts, Inc.
by Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz
and Citizens Committee
for NYC Neighborhood
Grants awarded to the Kew
Gardens Improvement Association
Inc., according to
Lacks, who expressed great
gratitude to their funders.
Both organizations have
been supporting and advocating
for the community for
over 50 years.
According to Mavilia,
they’re planning on creating
an e-catalogue of the work
that they can mail to participants
and other people.
“Each artist wrote a statement
about their work, so
when the e-catalogue goes
out people will be able to read
the statement,” Mavilia said.
“There are also essays as part
of the e-book.”
In the meantime, residents
can enjoy the outdoor art exhibition
until September 21.
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by e-mail at cmohamed@
schnepsmedia.com or
by phone at (718) 260–4526.
Councilman Barry Grodenchik (center) distributes face
coverings and hand sanitizers in Glen Oaks near Key Food on
July 2. Courtesy of Councilman Barry Grodenchik’s offi ce
Lawmaker distributes
hand sanitizer and
face coverings to
Glen Oaks, Fresh
Meadows residents
Kew Gardens art exhibition
brings hope to community
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