Join us for an interactive exploration of how hyper-development has shaped Long Island City over the past decade, and what it means for the future of our homes, artist studios and small businesses.

 

Grace Jean of the Queens Anti-Gentrification Project and artist Priscilla Stadler invite you to learn about the experiences of  LIC locals affected by the real estate boom, while activating your powers of creative observation (through sketching, photographing, writing, etc.) We’ll seek answers to questions including:  What actually happened to Five Pointz, a.k.a. the graffiti mecca of NYC? How much have LIC rents gone up in the past 10 years? Are artists still working here? What does rezoning really mean for this neighborhood? And by looking up and looking around  L.I.C., we’ll generate more questions of our own as we walk the neighborhood, and talk with local residents, small business owners, and artists.

 

Small teams (bring friends or meet new folks) will spend around 60-90 minutes investigating these questions through an interactive quest that is part sketchwalk, part oral history and part scavenger hunt. Sites from the day will range from high-end luxury towers to the intentionally dis-invested corners of our community. We will practice deep listening while examining this and investigate who is shaping LIC’s present and future, and whose voices are not being heard. 

 

We will end the walk with a pop-up exhibition at our resource tent, where we will share our observations, and discuss what we learned and action steps. Light refreshments will be provided.

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Timetable

Meeting at Local Project: 12:30pm (the participants are strongly encouraged to arrive by 12:45pm)

Walk: 1-2:15pm Artmaking and Presentation at Local Project: 2:30pm

Headquarters Location 

Local Project Art Space 11-27th 44th Rd Long Island City, NY 11101 (http://localproject.org)