This and That by JL

“My guest blogger this week is my assistant Megan Thomson Connor. Megan is a gifted writer and arts administrator who discusses the history of Juneteenth in the blog below. ” – Janet Langsam In 2020, New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo issued an executive order recognizing Juneteenth as a holiday for state employees. Westchester County officials decided […]

Americans seem to love symbols. It’s our shorthand or slang for announcing who we are or how we feel. So it’s no wonder that masks have become as popular as T-shirts, baseball hats or decals as a way of announcing an affiliation or a point of view. As a kid growing up in Far Rockaway, […]

Walk…stroll…skip…or crawl—however you ambulate, get yourself to this season’s Westchester Craft Crawl. It’s hard to believe it’s nearly a year ago that I bought a charming ceramic sculpture at “the crawl.” What fun it is when artists organize their own events. Never to be daunted by Covid or anything else. There are ten stops—in Tarrytown, […]

There seems to be a new way of thinking that is surfacing in the arts community. It may be something that’s been evolving quietly over time and just now bubbling up to the surface. Here’s what seems to be emerging. As we try to Restart the Arts, we confront anew that arts and culture are more […]

Just when I thought I knew everything about Abraham Lincoln, I found out something new while watching the fabulous CNN documentary on his life. Now, we all know that history is often tinged with various interpretations of events. No surprise there. But my “a-ha“ moment was truly a revelation, and a source of great pride as […]

Artist Charles Fazzino says he makes art like he makes lasagna—layer upon layer. We caught up with him recently when he made an unsolicited $5,000 gift to ArtsWestchester’s Artist Relief Fund. As an artist himself, he has been concerned about the plight of many fellow creatives who have been unemployed during  Covid. According to a […]

Vinnie Bagwell is finally coming into her own, and all her admirers (I am one of them) couldn’t be happier. I might even be bold enough to say that this may be her year. On April 7, ArtsWestchester will bestow upon her its Artist Award, given annually to an extraordinary artist who has created a significant […]

ArtsWestchester announced a major new competitive artist grant program, which will award three artists with $10,000 each to propose and actualize new works related to social justice.