Art Walk Brings You Boats, Carriage Houses And Dirty Laundry
The three-year old [Atlantic Avenue Art Walk], which takes place this weekend from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. both days (tour map available on their website), is an addition to the long-standing tradition of Brooklyn street fairs that reflects theneighborhood's rich art scene. This year, 175 artists are participating, giving you a chance to view exhibits, buy work and tour their studios. In case you feel like its not worth the schlep to pound the pavement looking at stand after stand, the Art Walk has a lot to offer outside of the traditional funnel-cake-and-tie-died-shirt block party format.
The lengths to which theyve gone to integrate the surrounding neighborhoods of Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Boerum Hill and Downtown Brooklyn into the experience are evident in the wide breadth of activities, ranging from quirky to elevated. Some examples: The opportunity to tour the workspaces of established artists like Mac Premo and [Chris Piazza]. The latter creates her carnival-esque sculptures in a 19th century carriage house that she converted by hand from a derelict pigeon coop. An art installation at the Dean Street Project (4th Avenue and Dean Street) converts the commercial space into a mixed-media showcase for artists Kenny Trice, Anne Alvergue, Michael Isabell and Paul Bobco. The [Dirty Laundry: Loads of Prose](http://www.dirtylaundryreadings.com/html/main.html) series takes over local laundromats and holds readings. As part of the Art Walk, theyll bring their spin-cycle literary stylings to the Atlantis Super Wash (472 Atlantic Avenue between Nevins and Third Avenue) on Saturday from 5-6. Also, that weird brownstone on Dean Street with the full sized wooden sailboat in front (between Bond and Nevins) will be converted into an open house for Katie Merz, Paul Benney, Russell Busch, Gabriele Shafer and Nick Fracaro. While you're down there, use the excuse to grab some delicious middle-eastern treats for a bargain price at [Sahadi's](http://www.sahadis.com/) (closed Sundays). Most street fairs offer Italian Sausage and little else, but the Art Walk gives you plenty of good reasons to take in the more erudite side of Brooklyn.
Photo courtesy of [Sail Brooklyn on Flickr]