PHOTO BY MILO HESS
At the annual Lunar New Year Parade in Chinatown on Sunday, signs of love were in the air.
V.I.D. (again) approves small business bill; Will Council? TALKING POINT BY SHARON WOOLUMS
F
inally, a democratic voice has spoken for the Village’s silent majority all too accustomed to spotting dreaded signs in beloved, frequented stores, like: “Lost our lease, thanks to our customers for 30 years of patronage.” We’ve all wondered, will anyone do anything to save our mom-and-pop stores in the Village from extinction? Wonder no more! The Village Independent Democrats, led by the political club’s president, Tony Hoffmann, recently unanimously passed a resolution at its general meeting calling upon elected officials to once and for all take action to help save our small merchants. The V.I.D. resolution states: “WHEREAS an unacceptable number of our neighborhood, long-established, small businesses are closing mainly due to not being able to negotiate reasonable lease terms; “WHEREAS forced business closings resulted in an unacceptable number of residents and families losing their jobs; “WHEREAS closings dramatically changed the character of the Village area; “WHEREAS businesses who remain in business have been forced to raise their prices to a level which stresses budgets of low-to-mid-income residents; “WHEREAS small businesses have to lay off employees or cut back working hours to remain in business; “THEREFORE BE IT RESOVED the V.I.D. urges all elected officials in the City Council, Mayor Bill de Blasio, Comptroller Scott Stringer and Public Advocate Letitia James to actively support and work for immediate passage of the Small Business Jobs Survival Act (S.B.J.S.A.), now pending in the City Council.” V.I.D. sent this resolution to elected of-
TheVillager.com
ficials and all progressive clubs throughout the city. It is fitting this “call to action resolution” comes from V.I.D., which 25 years ago, led political clubs in calling for passage of the original version of S.B.J.S.A. A major advocate for then-Councilwoman Ruth Messinger’s bill, Attorney Sherri Donovan, the chief legal counsel for groups citywide fighting for the bill stated: “As a former district leader out of V.I.D., I am most pleased about the club’s recent passage of the resolution in favor of the S.B.J.S.A. I was first inspired, more than 20 years ago, to work on drafting and advocating for legislation that would assist commercial tenants when I saw firsthand in Greenwich Village the loss of family businesses and artists due to a lack of protection when facing evictions and exorbitant rent increases.” There are many ironies here. The current resolution that was recently passed was the same resolution passed 25 years earlier by V.I.D. Both bills were bottled up in committee in the City Council for more than three years. Furthermore, even though each bill had the majority of councilmembers sponsoring it, no vote was ever taken by the full Council on either one. One big difference, though, between today's political climate and 25 years ago was the support and political will of elected officials. Back then, the major fighters for the bill, standing up courageously to the political machine and special interests, were City Councilmembers Carol Greitzer, Ruth Messinger and Miriam Friedlander. Now, although the words “progressive” and “liberal” are thrown around during an election, politicians living up to the hype is another story. V.I.D.’s democratic act in passing this resolution should remind our elected officials of the true meaning of “Progressive Democrat.” Woolums is a member, Village Independent Democrats
“Wave,” by Kathy Creutzburg, was one of the pieces in the show.
L.E.S. ‘Art Slam’ is a hit BY HEATHER DUBIN
L
ocal artists on the Lower East Side presented new works and discussed technique at the Tompkins Square Library Gallery on Sat., Jan. 25. The “Art Slam” featured eight artists from the Art Loisaida Foundation, a nonprofit, which originated as an artist collaborative in 1995. Paintings and photographs lined the walls and a large blue-and-white steel sculpture took over a corner of the gallery for the exhibition, “Artists de Loisaida East of A South to Grand.” About 25 people ventured out in the cold to attend the talk. Kris Enos, who works with large-format cameras from 1932 and 1937, explained the lighting and inspiration behind his photographs of women printed on metallic paper. In one of his photos, a model was wearing an old belt buckle of his from the ’70s. Another was of a model lounging on a couch, gazing through a steel sculpture, “Wave,” created by his wife, Kathy Creutzburg, which was also in the show. There were a few shots that varied in method, including a double-exposure. “I found some expired film, used it, and some strange things happened, which I think are happy accidents,” he said. Mike Rimbaud, a songwriter and painter, shared “Funkyshima,” a music video, influenced by the nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan, which he performed in a radiation suit and gloves. Meanwhile, Klay-James Enos, the son of Enos and Creutzburg, traced the historical connection between art and grids from 1435 to modern art. Large beautiful color photographs of East Village community gardens at night were taken by George Hirose, and filled up half the length of one wall. Using a high-end
digital camera, Hirose began shooting 10 minutes after twilight and worked quickly until dawn to capture his detailed photographs. “I rely on the kindness of gardeners a lot. I promise I’ll leave it without any mess,” he said, with a smile. “The best part is meeting people and the community.” Creutzburg, a sculptor, constructed “Wave” in five months for “Figment,” a sculpture garden on Governors Island in spring 2013. “It’s an interactive sculpture, and had ropes on it – thousands of children climbed on it,” she said. As for this show, Creutzburg was enthusiastic. “I thought it was really great how we all worked together,” she said. “A lot of the East Village artists are collaborating in some way.” Carolyn Ratcliffe, the artistic director of Art Loisaida Foundation, and co-founder of the collaborative, played a video of a dance performance that she did the photography for and that Elodie Lauten edited. Since the collaborative’s beginnings, Ratcliffe has helped to represent more than 300 Lower East Side artists in exhibits throughout Manhattan. “We focus on artists who live or work in this neighborhood to get people to recognize the contribution artists have made to this neighborhood,” she said. Ratcliffe noted that Creutzburg was in the first show they ever organized. The exhibit is on view through Fri., Jan. 31, and is sponsored by the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, Art Loisaida Foundation, the New York Public Library’s Tompkins Square branch and Materials for the Arts. There was a reception afterward at Michael Mut Gallery on Avenue C near Sixth St. February 6, 2014
25