Is It Me? International Juried Exhibition

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As we age, we change, both externally and internally. We transform and metamorphosize. We inevitably ask ourselves: “Is this who I am now? Who was I before? Is this me?” We find beauty in the confusion and the transformation. We invited artists to meditate on the disturbing reality of their potential and works that unveil the roadblocks impeding self-actualization. We questioned whether the oasis of maturity is actually a mirage – a hazily reconfigured reality, distorted by the sweltering heat of generational expectations. This exhibition was about self and health, wellness and worry — as we examined our skin, our fears, and our personal growth.

Is It Me? featured artwork in an array of media, including sculpture, painting, textiles, mixed media, photography, and digital media. For our juried exhibitions, the Trolley Barn Gallery brings together an international roster of vital voices in art and culture, presenting thought-provoking artwork and ideas in a renovated industrial space that is the hub for the area’s thriving arts scene. This exhibition presented a collection of thought-provoking works, artfully curated by the Youth Curatorial Team alongside our talented guest curator.

This international juried exhibition was held March 10 through April 14, 2023 at The Art Effect’s Trolley Barn Gallery, 489 Main St., Poughkeepsie, New York, with an Opening Reception on Friday, March 10 from 6-8pm. 

Opening Reception Events
6:00: Opening Reception with light refreshments
7:00: Welcome and Awards
7:30: Open Mic

Open Mic Details
In order to allow the community of Poughkeepsie to fully engage with the difficult themes presented, the opening reception will also include a half hour Open Mic session. Gallery visitors will be encouraged to sign up for a short slot where they are free to read poetry, speak honestly, perform music or dance and continue the conversation about wellness and aging in real time. The opening reception is 6 -8pm. At 7pm Trolley Barn Awards will be presented to the winners of the “Guest Juror’s Prize”, the “Youth Juror’s Prize” and the “Honorable Mention Prize”. After the awards the open mic session will start at 7:30pm. This opening reception is free and open to the public, like all Trolley Barn Gallery openings.

About the Curator
Emilie Houssart is a Dutch American artist and curator based in Poughkeepsie, New York. Her performance and installation works explore ideologies and ecologies of landscape, rupturing toxic norms in public spaces, and generating dialogue about alternative ways of being. As The DIRT Project, she leads experiential, collaborative workshops for all ages that nurture our relationships with invisible life forms inside the body and underfoot.

Houssart’s work recently featured in Metabolism of Cities for the Urban Soils Institute, curated by Margaret Boozer, LMCC Arts Center, NYC. Her 15-month evolving installation Co-co-codac! was part of Owning Earth at Unison Arts Center, NY, an outdoor exhibit curated by Tal Beery. As 2021 Artist in Residence at the Samuel Dorsky Museum, NY, she curated the exhibition DIRT: Inside Landscapes and led a series of interactive public projects, including DIRTdoors at Nyquist-Harcourt Wildlife Sanctuary for Rooted: Art + Land with the Dorsky Museum and Walkill Valley Land Trust. Previous residencies include Women’s Studio Workshop, NY, Frans Masereel Centrum, Belgium, and Print to the People, UK. She co-curated an/aesthetics: Rosekill, Rosekill Art Farm, NY; pop-up show EARTHBOUND, NYC; and international exchange show EXPORT 19 at Poughkeepsie Trolley Barn, NY.

Originally from Norwich, UK, Houssart gained a BA Hons. in Modern Languages from the University of Durham, UK, and studied drawing, painting and sculpture at the Charles H. Cecil Studios in Florence, Italy. She is Adjunct Professor of Art, Sustainability Faculty Fellow and member of experimental collective Eddy at SUNY New Paltz, where she completed an MFA in Sculpture with Printmaking in 2022. Houssart has taught at Vassar College, Women’s Studio Workshop, West Point Military Academy, the Woodstock School of Art, Fall Kill Print Works, the Charles H. Cecil Studios and the British Institute of Florence.

Gallery Hours
Exhibition: March 10 – April 14
Wednesday-Friday: 2-5PM • Saturday: 12-4 PM
(during exhibitions only)

Is It Me? Virtual Gallery

Reel Exposure Teen Photo Exhibition

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VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE PHOTO

The Art Effect’s annual Reel Exposure International Teen Film and Photography Festival in Poughkeepsie, NY is celebrating its 10th year! This year’s festival features photography and youth-produced short films – narrative, animation, experimental and documentary – created by talented young artists from across the world. New for 2023, Reel Exposure will be brought to you by The Art Effect’s PKX Festival, an exciting building block to the development of the Youth Arts Empowerment Zone, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts Our Town Grant, establishing a youth-led arts district in and around the Gallery. In addition to youth-produced short films, and a photography exhibition, Reel Exposure: A PKX Festival will also feature youth-led public art installations and more. For more information and schedule, click here!

As the Photography Exhibition aspect of Reel Exposure, professional and youth jurors selected photographs from submissions from teens ages 13-19 across the world. In the past, submissions have come from Singapore, Italy, Islamic Republic of Iran, and the United States. Opening with a public reception on May 5, this exciting youth exhibition remains on display at the Trolley Barn Gallery from May 5 – June 16, 2023.

Reel Exposure: A PKX Festival brings together a diverse representation of youth-produced films and photography, from both newcomers to the craft, as well as established young artists. The selected films are screened in a showcase and the selected photography is hung as an exhibition at the Trolley Barn Gallery in Poughkeepsie, NY — The ONLY youth-led gallery in the nation!

Reel Exposure: A PKX Festival encompasses all of The Art Effect’s goals: to encourage youth creativity, to invigorate our local community through the arts, and to showcase the incredible work done by this next generation of media-makers.

The past two years of the festival went virtual and were a smashing success with more than 2,200 viewers from across the globe tuning in, along with a live Q&A panel with festival finalists. This year’s festival will take place in person on May 4-5, 2023, but will still allow international attendees to join us for the festival online with a virtual gallery and an online screening of the film showcase.

Reel Exposure: A PKX Festival will take place May 4-6, 2022. The Reel Exposure Teen Photo Exhibition can be found in the Trolley Barn Gallery at 489 Main St., Poughkeepsie, New York, from May 5 – June 16, 2023, with an opening reception on May 5 from 6-8PM.

For our juried exhibitions, the Trolley Barn Gallery brings together an international roster of vital voices in art and culture, presenting thought-provoking artwork and ideas in a renovated industrial space that is the hub for the area’s thriving arts scene. This exhibition presents a collection of thought-provoking works, artfully curated by the Youth Curatorial Team alongside our talented guest curator.

Opening Reception Events
6 PM: International Film Festival Screening
7:30 PM: Film Award Presentation and Q&A
8 PM: Featured Artist Showing

About the Curator
Dondre Green is a New York-based, Bronx-born Photographer and multidisciplinary artist––specializing in portraiture, documentary and storytelling work. He’s the founder and creative director of Bronx Narratives, a publication that highlights local stories within his community.

Gallery Hours
Exhibition: May 5 – June 16
Wednesday-Friday: 2-5PM • Saturday: 12-4 PM
(during exhibitions only)

Reel Exposure Virtual Gallery

Senior Project Exhibition

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Senior Project is the capstone of The Art Effect’s portfolio development programming and is the most rigorous course currently offered at the Art Institute. Modeled after a senior thesis college course, students work on a personal theme for 12 weeks with an artist/mentor in their chosen art medium. Focusing on developing a cohesive body of work, how to prepare for an exhibition, and how the gallery viewer will interact with the work, students complete the program with a strong portfolio of work around their chosen theme. The Senior Project exhibition is a celebration of the accomplishments of these young artists.

Exhibition Dates: December 16, 2022 – January 13, 2022
Opening reception: December 16, 2022 5-7pm
Gallery Hours: Wednesday-Friday 2-5pm, Saturday 12-4pm (during exhibition only – the gallery will be closed 12/23- 1/2)

Featured artists:

Juliana Woods
Fiona Shanahan
Celia Drury

About the Instructor: Rick Price is the chair of the fine art department at the Harvey School. He has extensive teaching experience at Buck’s Rock in CT, mural painting in San Francisco and Beacon, illustration commissions, and has exhibited his fine art work nationwide. He holds an MFA from Savannah College of Art & Design.

Senior Project Virtual Gallery

The Member Show: Teen Visions x Barrett Art Center

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Ruby Brown, Rose Colored Glass

Organized and Installed by The Art Effect’s Youth Curatorial Team
Submission Deadline: October 29, 2022

Opening Reception: November 18, 5-7pm
November 18 – December 9, 2022
Gallery Hours: Wednesday-Friday 2-5pm, Saturday 12-4pm

The Members’ Show features artwork from all members of The Art Effect, featuring the renowned Barrett Art Center Members,  alongside a selection of The Art Effect’s most technically advanced and imaginative student artists as part of the longstanding Teen Visions’ Exhibition.

Learn more about Teen Visions here.

The Art Effect and Barrett Art Center came together in 2021 through a transformational merger growing The Art Effect’s mission to empower youth as leaders who catalyze and engage the community through the arts and re-energize downtown Poughkeepsie. The merger opened doors of new opportunities in exhibition and education, creating a space that matches the breadth of our combined entity.

During its nearly century-long lifetime, the Barrett Art Center’s mission was to foster and perpetuate an appreciation of the visual arts in the Hudson Valley region through exhibitions, education and preservation. Barrett’s programming engaged and supported our diverse community. Through the merger and support of Barrett Art Center’s membership, The Art Effect’s youth curatorial training program has successfully hosted, curated and exhibited more than a dozen exhibitions as well as hosted the first PKX Arts Festival establishing the beginning of a Youth Arts Empowerment Zone in Poughkeepsie, NY.

The Members’ show, including Teen Visions will take place at the Trolley Barn Gallery from November 18 – December 9, 2022 with an opening reception on Friday, November 18, 2022 from 5-7pm.

Members are invited to participate in The Art Effect’s Members’ Show 2022, celebrating the talent of The Art Effect. This all media exhibition is open to painting, drawing, photography, textiles, ceramics, sculpture, and more. Not a member yet? Join The Art Effect at https://connect.thearteffect.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&id=5

The Member Show: Virtual Gallery

Wonderland International Juried Exhibition

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Wonderland Exhibition

Wonderland welcomes an array of media, including digital media, painting, collage, textiles, and installations. Wonderland reimagines the Trolley Barn 3,000 square foot gallery as a transcendental empire of cosmic expansion and ephemeral fascination. We find excitement in the curious. We invite work that disrupts standard notions of reality by exploring the Wonderland we create for ourselves. We ask – we recklessly ponder – how can your art help us reimagine our reality and create positive change in our community?  

The Trolley Barn Gallery brings together an international roster of vital voices; presenting thought-provoking artwork and ideas in a renovated industrial space that is the hub for the area’s thriving arts scene. The Wonderland International Juried Exhibition was the point of entry to the PKX Wonderland Festival, September 15-17, 2022. The PKX Wonderland Festival will attracted hundreds of visitors and featured the unveiling of original public art commissions, performances, and creative activities in and around the Trolley Barn Gallery.

Curator, Allison M. Glenn in collaboration with youth from The Art Effect’s Curatorial Program
Allison Glenn works collaboratively with The Art Effect’s Youth Curatorial Team to curate the Wonderland exhibition, selecting artworks from submissions from around the globe. Glenn received substantial critical and community praise for her curatorial work in the groundbreaking exhibition at the Speed Art Museum in Louisville, Kentucky titled, Promise, Witness, Remembrance, an exhibition that reflected on the life of Breonna Taylor, centered on her portrait painted by Amy Sherald. The New York Times selected the exhibition as one of the Best Art Exhibitions of 2021.

Gallery Hours
Exhibition: September 15 – October 20
Wednesday-Friday: 2-5PM • Saturday: 12-4 PM
(during exhibitions only) (Open Saturday, October 1, 6-8pm)

Virtual Artist Talk

Wonderland Virtual Gallery

Tlazotl, Weaver’s Wings: Oaxaca Week Exhibition

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Oaxaca Week

Oaxaca Week in Poughkeepsie celebrates our city’s connection with traditions from the diverse Mexican region from July 29 – August 5. Click here for more more information and a full lineup of events. 

“Tlazotl, Weaver’s Wings”
Exhibition opening, July 29 from 4-6pm showcasing actual indigenous garb, on display at the Trolley Barn (489 Main Street, Poughkeepsie)
This collection of textiles and traditional costumes represent the daily lives of the many indigenous groups of Oaxaca. The huipil, created by the Oaxaca women is a hand-woven cotton tunic using natural dyes and adorned with embroidery. The traditional garments offer a visual language in which the natural wealth of the territory, the history of its people, and the indigenous cosmogony are reflected. The exhibit has been shown in Florence, Italy, Panama, Ecuador, and now Poughkeepsie. 

FEATURING TEXTILES FROM THE REGIONS OF: 

  • Papaloapan 
  • Mazatec Sierra 
  • Chicahuxtla 
  • Tlahuitoltepec 
  • Ojitlan 
  • Mixteca 
  • San Pedro Amuzgos 
  • Tamazulapam del Espíritu Santo 
  • San Juan Cotzocón 
  • Ejutla Central Valley 

“Art in a Suitcase: Women Creators of the World”
Exhibition opening, July 29 from 3-4pm at the MASS Design Group (289 Main Street, Poughkeepsie)
Featuring six Oaxacan female artists in a variety of media: photography, ceramics, oil and watercolor painting. Although born in different parts of the world and working with varying artistic media, this group of women artists reflect the rich cultural ambiance that Oaxaca offers them through a collection of work that is easily portable throughout the world. Art in a Suitcase: Women Creators of the World has been shown at the Municipal Palace of Santa Cruz Colchagua, Chile as well as throughout Mexico, Europe, and Latin America. 

SELECTED ARTISTS: 

  • Cecilia Salcedo 
  • Maria Rosa Astorga 
  • Ines Lara 
  • Nora Muro 
  • Siegrid Wiese 
  • Yari Montes 

High Contrast International Juried Exhibition

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The High Contrast International Juried Exhibition is composed of 29 artworks that make stark contrasts visible and/or draw our attention to radical differences in the world around us. High Contrast welcomes a diverse array of media, including digital media, film, graphic art, painting, illustration, photography, printmaking, sculpture, textiles, video and installation art.

“It was a pleasure to work with the youth curatorial team on this exhibition. They chose high contrast as the driving force behind the show, and their insightful approaches to this generative theme propelled us to explore the idea of duality from many perspectives. As we shifted through the submissions we talked about formal contrast between light and dark, material contrasts between hard and soft, and conceptual contrasts between the intimate and the public. Valuing each of these approaches to the theme equally, together, we developed an exhibition that is itself a study in contrasts.”

-Alexis Lowry

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