BY ANGY ALTAMIRANO Almost every morning artist Cindy Avroch, alongside her puppy Lenny, crosses the Queensborough Bridge and is happy to make her way to work. Avroch, who now lives in Manhattan but grew up in Fresh Meadows, is a sculptor and painter whose studio has been located in a Long Island City commercial building for the past two years. The site is also home to a large number of other artists. She says that although many people believe an artist should have one style, she doesn’t. She moves around with her paintings, from realistic to abstract, and creates large “organic” and nature-inclined sculptures that can decorate a wall. Avroch also creates figurative pieces of human bodies which she says “make fun of different body types.” “Whenever everyone sees those sculptures people always smile,” said Avroch, who was part of this year’s LIC Arts Open. “That means I am connecting to them, they’re getting it.” Avroch’s love for the arts comes from her mother, who was also an artist and part of the first graduating class at FIT. “We used to sit around after dinner and paint in the kitchen together,” Avroch said. “I could sit there all night long and paint with her.” However, her career did not begin with painting. After attending the Fashion Institute of Technology and Winchester School of Art in England, Avroch worked for 22 years as a textile designer in the fashion industry. The last seven to eight years of her career she worked in licensed character art for companies such as Disney, Nickelodeon and Warner Bros. “One time I went to one of those water parks and everyone was wearing the T-shirts that I designed and it was crazy. I was like, ‘yep, that’s mine.’ It was like virtual artwork,” Avroch said. As the industry changed, she began working for a multi-million dollar company and helped created two separate art departments. Then, due some circumstances where she had to make the decision to choose between her growing family and her career, she chose her family. She began her own business at home, decorating tabletop accessories and lighting pieces and selling them to stores throughout the country. Due to the recession, she stopped her business. Her boyfriend at the time, who later became her husband, suggested she begin painting and sculpting and that she look for a studio. After searching for the perfect spot, Avroch found her current studio in Long Island City. “As I went up the ladder in my past career it became less and less about the art,” she said. “Now I’m a ‘struggling artist.’ I get up every morning and I’m happy to come to work. I wanted to do something I never did. I like to challenge myself.” Now, as she continues to work on pieces to expand her portfolio, Avroch said she is happy to see Long Island City, a neighborhood she used to know as a child just to be filled with factories, grow. Although she said she is nervous of the outcome of the growth toward artists and studios. “I’m really happy to see what’s happening here although I’m a little wary as to what is going to happen to the artists when all of these gigantic buildings get filled up,” she said. “I am happy to see stuff popping up but I’m cautious. Hopefully it all happens in the right way.” For more info visit cindyavrochfineart.com. Photos by JSTUIOK photography, Jason River
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