SNUG HARBOR: TWO SECOND SATURDAY PRODUCTIONS TO CELEBRATE εὖτόπος, AN INSTALLATION BY THE ARTISTS OF THE VANDERBILT REPUBLIC

On August 13, the FOOK! Black & While Follies (a festival of subversion curated by FOOK! founders Jeff Goldberg and Darius James) will be staged as site-specific response to the curated experiences installed at the Newhouse Galleries. Performers include Xambuca (Dadaist electronica and video), Darius James, (acclaimed writer and spoken word artist), Pharaoh Chromium (AKA Ghazi Barakat, via live Skype from Berlin), Marcus Bowers (poet and rapper), and Juieta Triangular (Columbian performance artist).

On September 10, The Eutopia Conference will feature idea-driven artist talks by the seven visual artists of εὖτόπος in the intimate Carpenter’s Shop on Chapel Road behind the Newhouse galleries. A site-specific performance of Claude Debussy’s L’Enfant Prodigue (produced by Bare Opera in collaboration with Floating Opera) will be staged in the Main Hall (Building C) immediately afterwards to honor the closing of this landmark exhibition. Admission to all events is free. Both the August 13 and September 10 events are part of the monthly Second Saturday Staten Island Art Walk, organized by local artists and curators.

“These innovative presentations are wonderful complements to εὖτόπος, which represents an ideal place where all forms of art and culture are encouraged and embraced,” said Snug Harbor CEO Lynn Kelly. “Judging by the universally positive response to εὖτόπος, the creative artists featured in these exciting programs will be inspirational and provocative, as well as entertaining.”

The visual artists featured in εὖτόπος are: SABRINA BARRIOS (paintings, video & site-specific installation), SARAH E. BROOK (canvas/sandpaper sculpture/paintings & site-specific installation), CHARLES HEPPNER (mixed media collages & photography), CARLTON SCOTT STURGILL (paint chip mosaics, paintings & installation), TAXIPLASM (video, site-specific installation & LED lightboxes), TJ VOLONIS (copper & kintsugi sculptures) & DALE WILLIAMS (site-specific murals, paintings and drawings). GEORGE DEL BARRIO is the exhibition curator.

 εὖτόπος is installed at the Main Hall, Hyphen over Shinbone Alley, Newhouse Center for Contemporary Art & Chinese Scholar’s Garden through September 11th.  The galleries are open every Wednesday through Sunday from 10 AM – 5 PM. Gallery admission is $5. With exceptions, the artworks and installations on exhibit are available for purchase or commission.

The Vanderbilt Republic (VR) is a creative agency based in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The agency was formed to catalyze the impact of creative expression in all modes. VR sees artists as leaders, activists, and agents for positive change. Through their work with the creative diaspora VR offers boutique solutions in: creative production, design & direction; artist representation; landscape projection design.

George Del Barrio is VR’s Founder × Creative Director.

A proud Smithsonian Affiliate, Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden is one of the largest ongoing adaptive reuse projects in America. Its 83-acre campus includes 26 historical buildings, lush botanical gardens and over 10 acres of untouched wetlands. Formerly Sailors’ Snug Harbor, a home for retired sailors built in the 1800s, Snug Harbor is now a distinguished center for the arts where history, architecture, visual and performing arts, agriculture and the environment provide dynamic experiences for all ages. Snug Harbor is also home to the Newhouse Center for Contemporary Art, the Noble Maritime Collection, Staten Island Children’s Museum and the Staten Island Museum.