Author Archives: Christina

Westbeth Flea Market is the subject of feature articles in WestView and The Villager Newspapers

It’s in the Bag at Westbeth Flea Market
It’s been three wild days (Nov. 11-13, 2017 ) of bargains and amazing finds at the annual Westbeth Flea Market. Think: Coach leather bags and Lands’ End and Ralph Lauren Polo coats and jackets all for $5.
Click for Villager article Photo credit: The Villager

After the Storm
If you enjoy second-hand shops for things like clothing and furniture, you’re likely to find the familiar faces of shop-owners waiting in line at 10am on Tuesday, November 6th, as they hope to get the pick of the litter. They’ve gotten wise to the fact that artists have good taste! In addition to the vintage wears and wares you’re likely to find, there’ll be numerous works of art donated by the residents. You can get an amazing bargain, particularly on the striking pieces by artist and original Westbeth resident Edith Isaac Rose, who passed away this year.

Read the entire article by Stanley Wlodyka at WestView News Nov 2018

Continuing Exhibitions
Westbeth Artists at Work

PRIOR OCCUPANTS – A Film About Westbeth by Alison Nguyen. An exploration of the historical narratives that persist and those that are erased at sites of adaptive re-use. Screening at The Highline until Nov 16, 2026 https://westbeth.org/event/prior-occupants-aflm-about-westbeth-by-alison-nguyen/

 

JUANITA MCNEELY Solo Shows at St Louis Museum of Art and St Louis Contemporary Art Museum Sept 20-26 – Feb 27 – 2027. Plus one of her pieces is now in the colleciton of Centre Pompidou in Paris. https://westbeth.org/event/juanita-mcneely-solo-shows-and-collections/

 

Billy Harper

BILLY HARPER His Life at Westbeth in the 1970s and 1980s. A video interview from Crossing Tones event in June 2025 which featured listening to the 1980 Jazz for a Decade performances which were part of Westbeth Beth 10th Anniversary. https://westbeth.org/event/billy-harper-interview-on-life-at-westbeth-70s-and-80s/

 

WESTSIDE FEST 2026 Photos and Video by DAVID PLAKKE https://westbeth.org/event/westside-fest-2026-photos-and-video-by-david-plakke/

 

MICHAEL MOSS ROOTS TO SHOOTS performance on Sept 25, 2025 video’d by MOURRICE PAPI. Performance was part of First Friday Live music event and featured jazz standards and original compositions. MIchael Moss video by Mourrice Papi

 

JOAN HALL‘s collages are featured in the New Museum’s Show – The New Humans – Memories of the Future. It is a year long exhibiton which opened March 21, 2026. Joan Hall at New Museum NYC

 

Christopher Berg

Westbeth musican and composer, Christopher Berg died in 2026. Jeffrey Middleton, acclaimed pianist, recorded Berg’s “Nocturnes and Preludes Book 2” in his honor. The pieces were recorded by Jeffrey using an IPhone. He is considering producing a studio recording of Books 1 and 2.Berg/ Middleton

 

Lee Mergner Jazz Photograph Collection

GIL EVANS Manuscripts acquired by Library of Congress in Feb 2026 Evans is widely remembered as one of the greatest orchestrators in the history of jazz – and is celebrated for his collaborations with legendary jazz trumpeter, composer and bandleader Miles Davis.https://westbeth.org/event/gil-evans-manuscripts-acquired-by-library-of-congress/

 

Leonard Freed – Westbeth Courtyard 1970’s

PETER MADDEN quoted in Artists Housing in New York City in a The City article on why not more have been built. https://westbeth.org/event/should-nyc-build-artists-housing-peter-madden-replies/

 

JOAN HALL Parroquiam Dreams II. Collages featuring the Parroquia, San Miguel’s most famous sight, a parish church, characterized by its pink ‘wedding cake’ towers that soar above the town. Jan 31 – May 31, 2026 Interseccion Gallery San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Link to Exhibition announcement

 

PAT LASCH. 13 Women Artists . A NYTimes must-see exhibit. A re-staging of the eponymous exhibition that originally took place in 1972. Jan 31 – Feb 28, 2026 Zurcher Gallery, NYC. Link to exhibiton announcement

 

.WESTBETH ARTISTS RESIDENTS COUNCIL opposes demolition of Tony Dapolito Recreation Center and advocates for its restoration and renovation. read Dec 2025 joint to Mayor-elect Mamdani (and July 2025  to Mayor Adams) from community organizations. https://westbeth.org/event/westbeth-artists-residents-council-opposes-demo-of-tony-dapolito-rec-center/ and https://westbeth.org/event/dapolito-recreation-center-warc-gvshp-and-community-urge-mayor-elect-mamdani-to-save-dapolito-rec-center/

 

MIRIAM CHAIKIN and ROBERT TRACHTENBERG video interviews by DAVID PLAKKE on their recently published books about Westbeth. https://westbeth.org/event/david-plakke-2/

 

LIGORANO REESE “Vanishing Finish” and “Borrowed Time” Cyanotypes of vanishing keystone species. Catherine Clark Gallery, San Francisco, Nov 8 – January 3, 2026 https://westbeth.org/event/ligorano-reese-fall-2025-events-democracyiced-and-museum-acquisitions/

 

DAVID PLAKKE Open House New York Artist Portraits and Open Studio video.Oct 17 – Oct 17, 2025 Online til Dec 2025 https://westbeth.org/event/open-house-new-york-open-studio-portraits-by-david-plakke

 

VERONICA RYAN Retrieval Paula Cooper Gallery, NYC presents an important historical installation by Veronica Ryan, Archaeology of the Black Sun 1956–2002 (2003), alongside new works. Oct 16 -Nov 22, 2025 https://westbeth.org/event/veronica-ryanretrieval-solo-show/

 

KARIN BATTEN Swimming on Mars Solo Painting Show. Drawing on past experience with ceramics and metal scuptures and using many different materials, she works from above on the floor building a single unified richly textured surface which has the tactile appeal of sculpture. Closes Nov 11, 2025 at June Kelly Gallery, NYC More Info here

 

NASHEET WAITS TARBABY MIDWEST TOUR with Orrin Evans and Eric Revis featuring music from their album You Think This America – NY Times 2024 Best Jazz Album. Click here for tour dates. Dec 2025

 

BARBARA SLITKIN Group Show “Seeing Music Live” presented by New York Artists Circle, explores the visual connection between art and sound. Barbara’s work shown at left explores the inner workings of the psyche. To Nov 16, 2025. More info here

 

SANDRA CAPLAN, RAY CIARROCCHI, MAYA CIARROCCHI Fantastical Realities The family of 3 artists exhibits work together for the first time. Sept 7 – Dec 11, 2025 Click here for info.

 

DAVID GREENSPAN in Prince Faggot. Six queer and trans performers imagining themselves into a world of inherited power and royal expectation—quickly becomes a gloriously profane and surprisingly tender love story. Closes Dec 13, 2025. https://westbeth.org/event/david-greenspan-prince-faggot-return-engagement-in-a-new-venue/

 

Screenshot

DIANA JENSEN “SUM OF LIGHT” Group show featuring alumna of NY Art Students League – Botanical landscapes in light Aug 8, 2025 – Feb 9, 2026 The Urbane Arts Club, Bklyn NY. Also join her in her OPEN STUDIO Red Hook, Bklyn in Oct 2025. https://westbeth.org/event/diana-jensen-sum-of-light-exhibit-open-studio-in-october/

 

WEST SIDE FEST AT WESTBETH 2025. Open Studios, Live Music Puppet Show, Art, Craft Market, Westbeth Gallery – 4 Solo Shows; and a Merce Cunningham Dance Technique Workhop . Video and photos by David Plakke, dance photos Ellie Kusner. Link: https://westbeth.org/event/west-side-fest-2025-video-and-photos/

 

ZE”EVA COHEN’s s Photograph and video of her dancing with her DTW colleagues is on display in the exhibition: “Room to Move : Dance Theater Workshop and Alternative Histories of Downtown Dance.” At the NYPL for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. Until Sept 13, 2025 https://westbeth.org/event/zeeva-cohen-room-to-move-dance-theater-workshop-exhibition-alternative-histories-of-downtown-dance/

 

HOWARDENA PINDELL New York Times article HOW TO BE AN ARTIST Interview by Nicole Acheampong June 9, 2025

 

VERONICA RYAN retrospective “Unruly Objects” Pulitzer Arts Foundation surveys four decades of artmaking by Montserrat-born, British artist, Turner Prize winning artist, Veronica Ryan, known for her singular ability to convert the most common of materials and objects into revelatory works of art.In May 2025 ArtForum Ryan’s exhibit received a rave review.
March 7, – July 27, 2025. Link to exhibit information

 

ROBERT BUNKIN Greenwich Village Portraits May 21 – July 21, 2025 Portraits from life. “I explore the specifics of appearance.”https://westbeth.org/event/robert-bunkin-the-greenwich-house-portraits/

 

DANCE AT WESTBETH An exhibition which celebrates the dancers and choreographers currently living at Westbeth. Exhibiton located in the Westbeth Project Room 24/7 . Til Oct 2025 https://westbeth.org/event/dance-at-westbeth-and-within-these-walls-jazz-at-wesstbeth-exhibits-opening-reception/

 

STEPHEN HALL “All Else Pales II” April 17 – May 25, 2025 Studio Kroner, Cincinatti OH. A multidisciplinary art exhibition and community initiative focused on sustainability, environmental justice, and climate change, featuring five talented artists whose thought-provoking installations explore nature, ecology, and climate change.https://westbeth.org/event/stephen-hall-at-studio-kroner-cincinnati/

 
 

VERA GIRAUDO LIFE AT Westbeth Rookie Interviews
17 year-old Radio Rookies reporter Vera Giraudo moved into Westbeth Affordable Artist Housing with her family four years ago and gives us this inside look.https://westbeth.org/event/vera-giraudo-reports-on-westbeth/

 

David Plakke

DAVID PLAKKE WESTBETH PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECT Starting in 2025, Westbeth will embark on a major renovation.In an effort to document elements of the property that will look different once construction is complete, Westbeth management asked longtime resident David Plakke to photograph these impacted areas. David Plakke Westbeth Photography

 

WITHIN THESE WALLS: JAZZ AT WESTBETH
For more than fifty years, Westbeth has been a home to musicians of all genres. This exhibit is focused on jazz artists, past and present who lived and still live here. Link to Exhibit https://westbeth.org/within-these-walls-jazz-at-westbeth/

 

HANS HAACKE: WHY ARE MUSEUMS SO AFRAID OF THIS ARTIST?
NY Times Style Magazine Sept 16,2024. Photo: Daniel Terna New York Times

 

WESTBETH FEATURED IN MASTERCARD WALKING TOUR OF VILLAGE Embark on an immersive, self-guided journey through one of Manhattan’s oldest and most fascinating neighborhoods, Greenwich Village.

 
 

ON THIS SPOT: WOMEN ARTISTS OF WESTBETH
On This Spot features a video of pioneering women artists of Westbeth: Hannah Wilke, Shigeko Kubota, Lorraine O’Grady, Helene Aylon, Elizabeth Murray, Anita Steckel, and Diane Arbus.

 

 

Westbeth Flea Market 2018
$5 Bag Sale

Now in its 35th year, the Westbeth Flea Market once again offers Bargains Galore in clothing, books, electronics, housewares, sports, collectibles, as well as Affordable Original Art.

Our donations come mostly from the artists who live at Westbeth. Their keen eye for the remarkable, the unique and the amazing makes the Flea Market a destination for those who are explorers to new worlds and old. Plus our prices have barely changed in 30 years.

Our original Affordable Art are all donations from artists or the families of artists. Paintings, watercolors, sculpture, fine art prints, sketch books plus information on the artist (when available ) accompanies each artwork.

DAYS AND HOURS
Election Day Tuesday Nov 6 10AM – 8PM
Saturday Nov 10 11AM – 5PM
Sunday Nov 11 11AM – 5PM
Monday Nov 12 11AM – 5PM

$5 Bag Sale!
Saturday Nov 17 11AM – 2PM

Come Once, come every day. New donations are made daily.

PROCEEDS:
Every year, proceeds from the sale go to projects for Westbeth; as well as to local, national and international charities, such as Gods Love We Deliver, Tenants and Neighbors Org; International Red Cross; Planned Parenthood, Mercy Corps; etc, as well as emergency disaster relief.

All leftover items after the sale is donated to the Salvation Army.

Merce Cunningham Plaque at Westbeth featured in The Villager

Mikhail Baryshnikov speaking at ceremony. Photo Tequila Minsky

Dance and arts luminaries gathered at Westbeth Artists’ Housing at noon on Thurs., Sept. 20, to unveil a plaque in the memory of the great choreographer Merce Cunningham.

Among the dignitaries at the ceremony, at 55 Bethune St., were legendary dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov; Joan Davidson, president emeritus of the J.M. Kaplan Fund; Carolyn Brown, a dancer and founding member of Merce Cunningham Dance Company; and the author and artist Richard Kostelanetz.

Cunningham, who died at age 90 in 2009, was an original tenant of the famed West Village affordable artists’ housing complex. His studio was located on Westbeth’s 11th floor for four decades.

– Lincoln Anderson

Read More Here