Tag Archive for: democracy

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights handwritten on an illustration of orange flowers

What does the U.S. Constitution actually say? On January 20, 2017, artist Morgan O’Hara took a pen and paper to the central branch of the New York Public Library and began to write her own copy of the document in long hand. In what she describes as “a form of protest for introverts”. She was soon joined by others. Since then, there have been some 119 sessions on three different continents and more than 2,000 participants.

Morgan says: “This art practice was created so that people will know their rights, deepen their understanding of laws created to protect these rights, and helps resist negative thinking. To date approximately 2000 people have participated, both nationally and internationally. The goal of this art practice is to encourage people to hold their own Handwriting sessions on a recurring basis; to create a physical and psychological space that explores the practice of concentrated writing as an art form, and a process designed to bring people together in a quiet and calming way, all by focusing on human rights.”

This summer, we will be hosting the first online version of the Handwriting Project, collaborating with several Historic House Trust sites in New York City, as well as a community of artists in Europe. We will meet every Thursday from 12 pm – 2 pm beginning on August 13 and ending on September 17. Commit to spending time with the U. S. Constitution, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, or choose another document. Participation is casual and members will have the opportunity to share their documents.

Use Constitute to compare and contrast Constitutions from around the world!

Register here.

Join artist, educator, and tour guide Rich Garr for a bike tour focusing on the sites of the Battle of Brooklyn, fought in August 1776.

Meet at the Old Stone House and ride to Brooklyn Bridge Park, please wear your mask.

 

Get your ticket here. Limited to 12 riders so reserve soon!

Tickets do not include bike rental.

Did you know Gowanus was the beginning of America’s Independence?  Paddle with the Dredgers and ask for planners to provide a barrier free shoreline access similar to Dutch Canals!  Learn the History of Gowanus at the Dredgers 2nd St. dock.

In partnership with the Old Stone House, the Gowanus Dredgers invite Loyalist, revolutionaries and common folk to join our fun battle voyages.

Wear a RED PFD to support the King!

Arrive early to get a BLUE PFD to join the revolution!

Learn more about the Dredgers here. Events depart from 2nd St. near Bond St.

Join the Human Impacts Institute and Old Stone House for this FREE, youth-led conversation about health, justice, and creative communities.

Learn from NYC visionaries in policy, health, and education on how we can keep our families safe and healthy, while leading the way for an equitable and fair “new normal”.

All ages are welcome. NYC-based attendees will receive a voucher for FREE water and soil testing from the Human Impacts Institute (quantities are limited).

Click here to register for free.

Special guests include:

Lubna Ahmed is the Director of Environmental Health at WE ACT for Environmental Justice. She is passionate about working at the community level to build capacity and advance the sustainable well-being of under-resourced populations.

Kizzy Charles-Guzmán is the Deputy Director of the NYC Mayor’s Office of Resiliency, leading efforts to ensure that our neighborhoods, community-based organizations, workforce, and small businesses are ready to withstand and emerge stronger from the impacts of climate change.

Diane Exavier is a writer, theatermaker, and educator who creates performances, public programs, and games that invite audiences to participate in a theater that rejects passive reception. With a point of departure located in Caribbean Diaspora, Diane explores what she calls the 4L’s: love, loss, legacy, and land.

(Facilitator) Ajani Stella is a 13-year-old is a climate activist and founding member of the Human Impacts Institute’s Youth Advisory Council. He has spoken to the Teacher’s Pension Fund Board of Directors with 350.org, urging them to divest their funds from fossil fuels; has been interviewed at the Ethical Culture Society; and was a featured youth activist on the French and German television program ARTE.

This program corresponds with the opening of Brooklyn Utopias: 2020, our exhibition and online project exploring artists’ visions for a more ideal Brooklyn, featuring the work of Diane Exavier and others.

Funding for this event was provided from the Environmental Protection Fund as administered by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

 

 

Join artists Amy Khoshbin and Macon Reed, the creators of our contemporary art exhibition Against Doom TV in person outdoors on October 25 for an unusual Get Out the Vote program!

Get loosened up and prepared for early voting, stick around for a performative Q&A with the artists, and experience the film as well as the sets and objects from the show in the gallery at OSH.

In honor of Presidents’ Day and George Washington’s Birthday, join our colleagues from Morris-Jumel Mansion and Fraunces Tavern Museum for a look at George Washington’s experiences in New York City, and how they played a formative role in his life and career.

The discussion will include updated information from Morris-Jumel Mansion about the experience of Washington’s enslaved valet, William Lee, during the five weeks that the house was used as the Continental Army’s headquarters in 1776. Lee’s story is part of an ongoing effort to recenter the Mansion’s historical narrative to include the voices of Black Americans and others who have been marginalized in the past.

Register for free here.

Delve into the stories of Green-Wood’s permanent residents! Register here to join our colleagues for this virtual presentation.

You can hardly walk through Green-Wood without coming upon the grave of someone connected to Abraham Lincoln: There’s the general who headed his armed forces, the telegrapher who became his companion as they waited for news to be wired from the battlefield, and the leading newspapermen who opined on his administration. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg—there’s also the actress who was on stage at Ford’s Theatre when he was assassinated, the doctor who embalmed his body, and more!

For this evening’s discussion we welcome back Harold Holzer, one of America’s leading authorities on Lincoln and the political culture of the Civil War era. He’ll be joined by Green-Wood’s Historian Jeff Richman to discuss the many people interred at the Cemetery who had ties to the Great Emancipator. Harold Holzer, a prolific scholar and lecturer, has authored, coauthored, and edited fifty-four books including Lincoln and the Power of the Press. He served for six years (2010–2016) as Chairman of The Lincoln Bicentennial Foundation.

Sun Seekers featuring artists Amy and Jennifer Khoshbin, promotes re-connection with the physical realm as a form of healing.

Amy and Jennifer, a sister duo in the arts collective House of Trees, present a new series of sculptures and drawings meant to dissolve the heavy weight surrounding us during the pandemic into a greater awareness of the body, dismembering and remembering mythologies around healing and somatics.

Sun Seekers references the artists’ science fiction-meets-reality narrative about a group of people who spend most of their time indoors on screens while consuming flowers and wearing absurd anti-anxiety analog objects to reconnect their bodies to the natural world. These ameliorative objects reflect natural light from the sun to undo the draining effect of blue screen light, help plants flourish in an inhospitable environment, and shine their light both inward and outward. The Sun Seekers travel around the city, finding shards of light to reflect and keep both themselves and those around them feeling human, warm and alive. The Sun Seekers mythology is inspired by the radical aesthetics and liberatory philosophies of Sun Ra and Audre Lorde that address the importance of healing, humor, creative resistance, and physical pleasure.

Amy’s sculptural series uses tactile materials like weighted blankets, pantyhose, felt, and eye masks to promote a sense of touch and intimacy. Sculptures like the Hugging Chair and Weighting to Exhale cape serve as artifacts from the world of the Sun Seekers while also intending to re-awaken the senses that are so often disregarded in our digital landscape. Jennifer’s intricate drawings, Pile Up #1 and #2, along with her botanical resin sculptures, evoke a return to the natural environment, and create a sense of surrealist nostalgia as an escape from our current world.

Sun Seekers builds upon our previous exhibition Against DOOM TV, a collaboration between Amy Khoshbin and Macon Reed that also tapped into the history of artists using the absurd and play to make imagining a just future more fun and radical.

 

Read more about our exhibitions here.

Gallery hours by appointment, Fridays – Sundays, Noon – 3 pm.

Schedule your visit to the museum here.

Stop by the Cook Out The Vote table to register to vote and learn about making democracy delicious!

Connect with them for updates on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

Join the Park Slope Civic Council and community co-sponsors for a Candidates’ Forum for the 39th District primary on the New York City Council.

The 39th Council District covers all of what is thought of as Park Slope, as well as adjacent neighborhoods to the northwest and south. District maps are available here. The current Council Member, Brad Lander, has held the position since 2009 and, due to term limits, cannot run for reelection. As a result, candidates are running for an open seat.

Weather permitting, the event will be held outside on the field behind the Old Stone House. Enter on 4th Street, between 5 and 4th Avenues. Bring a chair or a blanket. We will have limited seating available for those who prefer. If weather does not allow for an outdoor event, we will hold the forum over Zoom.

Please register for the event here.