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4 JUNE 17, 2021 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM Local artist’s work to be showcased in Woodhaven BY JULIA MORO EDITORIAL@QNS.COM @QNS The Woodhaven Cultural & Historical Society will sponsor an art exhibit by local artist Mahfuza Shammy Rahman to showcase her landscape paintings. The exhibit begins Saturday, June 26, at 3 p.m. at Geordie’s Joint, located at 79-19 Jamaica Ave. Rahman, 31, who also goes by MSR, was born in Bangladesh and came to the United States when she was 9 months old. Rahman and her family settled in Brooklyn for a few years before moving to Woodhaven when she was 12. Growing up, Rahman said her household was violent and oft en made her feel oppressed. Aft er struggling with her mental health, she started painting. “Painting was a way of creating a sanctuary for myself,” Rahman said. “Aft er I started painting two years ago, I felt like I was fi nally fulfi lled in a way I didn’t know could exist. I think painting saved my life. I hope that inspires other people to do the same.” Rahman is part of a group of local artists in Woodhaven called the Woodhaven Art Circle, an offshoot of the WCHS. Each artist has been showcased in a Zoom series on local artists. “During her showcase, Rahman mentioned that she would love to have Woodhaven Artist MSR (Mahfuza Shammy Rahman) will have her artwork displayed at Geordie’s Joint at 79-19 Jamaica Ave. starting Saturday, June 26. Photos courtesy of Woodhaven Cultural and Historical Society an exhibit at Geordie’s,” said Edward Wendell, president of the WCHS. “We set up a meeting between Rahman and the pub’s owners and the plans came together quickly.” Rahman had picked Geordie’s Joint for the art exhibit since she’s been a longtime customer. “I like a nice dive bar where you can have a good conversation over a beer, and Geordie’s was that,” Rahman said. “I would go there a lot, and the more I went, the more I loved it there. It felt very safe and comfortable for me to be there.” Restaurants and small businesses are hurting coming out of the pandemic, so Wendell thought this collaboration would be a great way to help. “Anything we can do to get people in there is a good thing,” Wendell said. “It’s about encouraging people to start coming back out and doing whatever they can to support our local businesses who were there for us.” One of the owners of Geordie’s Joint, Tricia Robinson, said she was happy to do this for Rahman and hopes to gain a few more regular customers. “It’ll also give the business a little more exposure,” Robinson said. “It’ll bring people inside our bar, you could make a new customer or you could make people understand that it’s okay to walk in and be around people in the neighborhood.” The artwork will be showcased through July 3 and is free and open to everyone. Rahman’s work can be seen on her website, MSRGalleries.com. MSR with Geordie and Trish Robinson, owners of Geordie’s Joint. MYRTLE AVENUE BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT �� Myrtle Avenue Business Improvement District (BID) Virtual Thirty-Third Annual Meeting Tuesday, June 29, 2021 at 6:30 p.m. AGENDA *Welcome - Herman Hochberg, Chairman SPECIAL PRESENTATION Christopher D. Brazee Historic Preservation Consultant Special presentation regarding a proposal on the benefits of creating a National Register Historic District for portions of the Myrtle Avenue Business Improvement District and Fresh Pond Road in Ridgewood GUEST SPEAKER *Deputy Inspector Louron Hall Commanding Officer, 104th Precinct * Approval of 2019 Annual Meeting Minutes * Nominating Committee Report *Election of Board of Directors * Presentation of FY22 Budget, * 2020 & 2021 Annual Reports will be available on our website * Old & New Business, Q & A If you are interested in attending you must call or email the BID office 718-381-7974 or myrtlebid@gmail.com Virtual Meeting Instructions will then be sent MYRTLE AVENUE DISTRICT MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION PROGRAM SUPPORT PROVIDED BY RIDGEWOOD LOCAL DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION /MSRGalleries.com link /WWW.QNS.COM link link link