FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JULY 23, 2019 • BUZZ • THE QUEENS COURIER 27
Outdoor art exhibition brings hope to Kew Gardens community
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
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, Th ere 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 Leff erts Boulevard bridgeand
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.
Th e 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 pass on the street.
Oil and acrylic on canvas, lithography,
sculpture, watercolor on paper, photography
and computer generated imagery all
fi nd 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 hope 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
Tony Mavilia with
his photocomposition
“Women of
Burano.”
they smile. Th ey send us emails about it,
so it’s giving people something to think
about other than COVID and the leader
of our country.”
Tony Mavilia with his photocomposition
“Women of Burano.” Photo by
William Jackson
Th is year, due to the COVID-19 health
crisis, all of Kew Gardens Arts events
were canceled 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.
Th e 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. “Th ere are also essays
as part of the e-book.”
In the meantime, residents can enjoy
the outdoor art exhibition until Sept. 21.
buzz
Photos by William Jackson
Artwork in the outdoor exhibition ‘Here, There
and Everywhere: Artists of Kew Gardens’ displayed
on storefronts along Leff erts Boulevard.
Tony Mavilia and Carol Lacks hang up banners on closed storefronts along Leff erts Boulevard.
Carol Lacks with her photograph “Friends for
the Road Friends for the Journey.”
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