In Brooklyn, two art exhibits are exploring the bricks-and-mortar topics of real estate development and gentrification on artists’ canvases.
“The Footprints: Portraits of a Brooklyn Neighborhood” art exhibit, a combination of photography, video, paintings, drawings and collage, opened at the Grand Space gallery in early October.
The exhibition “3rd Wave: The Planet of Brooklyn Transitions” by the Brooklyn Arts Council, opened at the BAC Gallery on Oct. 13. It mixes a range of media by Brooklyn-based artists.
Both exhibits take an anthropological view of real estate development in neighborhoods with large immigrant populations.
“Some artists made work that show the need for development but focus on what kind of development is appropriate,” said Daniel Sagarin, a co-organizer of the “Footprints” exhibit.
For example, he says the exhibit explores the Atlantic Yards issue, but isn’t taking sides. Sagarin, a photographer, teamed up with Belle Benfield, a painter, printmaker and muralist, when they discovered that they were both planning on making work about residents living in the path of the Atlantic Yards development.
“We have had a positive response from the people,” Sagarin said. “It’s a chance to gain a deeper understanding of the nature of this place.”
“3rd Wave: The Planet of Brooklyn Transitions,” curated by Philip Harvey, will be on display at BAC Gallery, 111 Front Street, Suite 218 in DUMBO. “The Footprints: Portraits of a Brooklyn Neighborhood” will be on display at Grand Space, 778 Bergen Street.