Before ArtsWestchester moved into its current headquarters, the building was known as the Peoples National Bank & Trust Co., where White Plains residents gathered to transact business and safeguard their savings. We cherish this bank’s bygone name because we feel the building belongs to the people of Westchester. That’s what we had in mind when we purchased the building […]
Many artists long for financial success. Their integrity is often a barrier to such a result. Such was the case with Mark Rothko, who received a commission of $35,000, which was unheard of in 1958, to create a series of murals for the Four Seasons restaurant in Manhattan, part of the then-new Seagrams building designed […]
Many people ask me “What is an arts council?”. ArtsWestchester is an arts council, one of some six-thousand nationwide, which supports the arts through leadership, funding, programming, education, advocacy, audience cultivation and professional development. “One of the things I love the most about what we do is giving emerging artists and performers opportunities to have their […]
The April 14 opening of Miss Saigon at the White Plains Performing Arts Center reminds us of how wars bring tragic displacement to noncombatants. This musical begins in the former Saigon, and it tells a doomed love story about a bargirl named Kim who falls in love with a U.S. serviceman. Abandoned by her lover […]
In 17th century England, it was commonplace for a ceiling to be treated as a work of art. Not so much here in the U.S.; however, such practices migrated here and can be found on occasion in places and estates that were meant to reflect wealth. Such an example presented itself when ArtsWestchester purchased its […]
On a lazy Sunday afternoon, I caught up with Mamie Duncan-Gibbs, an actress, dancer and theatrical personality who, for many years, was the artistic director at Youth Theater Interactions – an organization in Yonkers that teaches kids how to use the arts and music to make their lives better. Mamie’s passion now is senior citizens. At 60 […]
My granddaughter, as a child, always loved to go for dance lessons at Steffi Nossen School of Dance (SNSD). Not for the lessons necessarily, but she loved to laugh at herself in the floor-to-ceiling mirrors. I always wondered why dance studios had so much “look/see“ space. Shelley Grantham, Executive Director at Steffi Nossen, explained to […]
This article was previously published in ArtsNews on January 30, but I wanted to share the wonderful news here on my blog, and take the opportunity to thank Westchester County Executive George Latimer and the Westchester Board of Legislators for their ongoing partnership and support. For years, Westchester County Government has matched vital funds for […]
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