Art school brings creativity to
living rooms with at-home kits
BY JESSICA PARKS
A Bay Ridge art school is
now offering Brooklyn kids a
chance to fuel their imaginations
during the days of social
distancing with a range of athome
art kits.
“We wanted to stay engaged
in the community, give kids a
creative break from screen
time and keep them creating
during the quarantine,”
said Leigh Holliday Brannan,
owner of the Art Room NYC.
“We truly believe that self-expression
has never been more
important and this gives kids
the opportunity to expand on
that.”
Would-be Picassos can order
a do-it-yourself art kit —
which includes everything
from tools to paint-your-own
protective face masks to collage
making, said Brannan.
“The Art Room NYC carefully
curates boxed Art Kits
that are sure to delight any
young artist, and bring The
Art Room into the comfort of
home,” Brannan said. “Each
Art Kit is complete with stepby
COURIER L 34 IFE, JULY 17-23, 2020
step instructions and all
the materials needed for a
young artist to create one-of-akind
pieces of art!”
The pandemic forced the
art school to shutter its brickand
mortar location on Third
Avenue and bring their various
art courses online — and
on June 29, they announced
the changes would be permanent.
“After much deliberation
and careful consideration, we
have decided to close our studio
on Third Avenue,” said
the email announcing the
changes. “The safety of our
students, along with the trust
and confi dence of parents &
guardians, has always been
our #1 concern.”
While operating “on the
road,” the organization will
continue most of its regular
offering virtually including
one-on-one art instruction,
group classes and art parties
with more remote experiences
in the works.
“For the past few months,
we have been fi nding new ways
to turn lemons into lemonade
by taking our show on the road
and into your living room,”
the announcement read. “As
various COVID-19 restrictions
become the new way of doing
things, we plan to continue
educating and developing The
Art Room to adapt.”
And looking ahead, the Art
Room NYC will search for a
larger studio with outdoor
space in Bay Ridge to reopen
safely in a setting that allows
for social distancing.
Even though we will miss
the hands-on learning experience
in a classroom setting
for now, we look forward to
our studio growing in a new
capacity during this new reality,”
read the announcement.
“In addition, we eventually
will look for a new, bigger location
with outdoor space in Bay
Ridge – so stay tuned!”
BY BEN VERDE
A new brewery in Gowanus
is serving up craft brews with
patio seating after their opening
was delayed due to the coronavirus
pandemic — and the
alehouse founder says much
more is in store.
Finback Brewery, which
has operated a 20-barrel brewhouse
in Glendale, Queens
since 2013, has contributed to
Gowanus’s ever-growing brewing
scene with the opening of
its President Street outpost.
“Gowanus for sure was
and is becoming even more of
a beer hub,” said Basil Lee, a
founder of Finback. “There’s
already a lot of people who seek
out good beer and make that
neighborhood a place to go for
good beer.”
Located at 545 President St.,
Finback sits directly across
the street from Strong Rope
Brewery, and just blocks from
nearby Threes Brewing and
Wild East Brewing — which
have taken advantage of the
neighborhood’s industrial infrastructure
to accommodate
their brewing equipment.
While currently limited
to outdoor seating, Finback’s
repurposed President Street
warehouse is outfi tted with
multiple sections, including an
open area with lounge chairs, a
beer-hall-type space with high
stools and shared tables, and
a screened off cocktail lounge
that will act as the main bar
area.
Once they get up and running,
founders say they will
offer much more than just ales
and stouts. Lee says the brewers
plan on distilling gin and
other botanical spirits, roasting
coffee, and enlisting her
mother to help craft a dumpling
menu.
The idea to roast coffee
came from the large amount of
java Finback uses in its stouts,
according to Lee.
When brewing starts in
the Gowanus space, Lee says
they will take advantage of the
smaller scale brewing space
to work on more experimental
brews.
“The idea is really to do
more experimental and in
some ways pilot test batching,”
said Lee. “As well as doing
some things that we really
want to brew that are more diffi
cult from a volume standpoint
to brew 60 barrels at a time.”
While this is the brand’s
fi rst Brooklyn outpost, Lee
said founders looked for space
in the borough when fi rst setting
up shop years ago, and that
fi nally planting roots in Kings
County brings everything full
circle — all while giving them
a more centrally located space
outside of the northern hinterlands
of Queens.
“It’s kind of going full circle
in a way,” he said. “It’s just
worked out really well in that
it’s just more convenient.”
Artistry to go
Brewery opens
Gowanus outpost
BROOKLYN
Drink up
PINT-SIZE DIY: The Art Room NYC is offering paint-your-own mask kits on their website.
Photo courtesy of The Art Room NYC
(Left ) Basil Lee and Kevin Stafford of Finback Brewery. The brewery has
been able to offer outdoor seating during Phase 2 and 3 of reopening.
(Left) QNS fi le photo (Above) Basil Lee