This and That by JL

    Was it by chance? Or, was it ordained… that I would meet the extraordinary widow of James Van Der Zee, the noted Harlem Renaissance photographer at an ordinary gathering of the Mt. Vernon Arts Council. As we went around the room introducing ourselves, I was pleased to meet Donna Mussenden who married Van […]

Comedy has historically been a male-dominated pursuit. But of course, there are some very notable exceptions. Just remembering (I Love) Lucy’s antics can send me into stitches. What was so endearing about Lucille Ball was her ability to laugh at herself. One lady who has that same fervor will be taking the stage at ArtsWestchester […]

Walking along a busy NYC street and amidst the hustle and bustle, one may be reminded of the purest human emotion … Love. So many questions, thoughts and memories are often ignited at the mere mention of this powerful word. Witnessing this emotion is a reminder to stop, to reflect, and to feel. “Public art […]

History is a powerful teacher. I don’t know who, but someone must have said that. And isn’t it also true that history repeats itself? I was reminded of this when I received an invitation to an event taking place on Saturday, February 16, 2019.  It is a re-enactment of Lincoln’s brief visit to Peekskill more […]

Over many years, I have been asked: “what’s an arts council?” Having cut my teeth, so to speak, on the board of the Queens Council on the Arts, I feel qualified to say that at its simplest, it is a local arts agency that brings programs and resources to a particular locality. In the Sixties, […]

    It’s not every day that we blow up a bridge in Westchester. And although hundreds have been lining up for weeks to see the blow up of the last remnants of the Tappan Zee Bridge on Saturday, sorry to say, it’s not happening. So, Saturday is a bummer, not a blow up.  For […]

Westchester’s Copland House is on a hot streak with three national broadcast appearances in just the last four months. For those of you who may have been distracted by the countdown to the holidays, whether it was the last-minute shopping or the long list of year-end to-dos, here’s what you missed—Aaron Copland on CBS.  Well, […]

  Dear Friends, Every picture tells a story and the one above does just that by ­­offering a chance…a chance to girls and boys to discover the world through their own creativity. That is how we prepare young people for a world that demands innovation. If you care about making those chances available for every […]