How Uptown Manhattan's Arts Community Is Thriving in Uncertain Times: Happy Defiance

One year ago, Uptown Voices launched their first episode 
with NOMAA. Now, for their anniversary, Led Black and Octavio Blanco 
return — this time live inside the breathtaking Sorolla Gallery at the 
Hispanic Society Museum in Washington Heights.

Joined by NOMAA Executive Director Niria Leyva Gutiérrez and Uptown Art 
Stroll Director Martin Collins, this is a deep, joyful, urgent conversation 
about art, community, resilience, and what it means to build something 
beautiful when so much feels uncertain.

The Uptown Art Stroll's 24th year. And it has never felt more necessary.

🎨 UPTOWN ART STROLL 2026 — ALL OF JUNE
40 exhibitions. Open studios. Monday concerts. Walking tours. Free events. 
Community buy-in from local businesses across West Harlem, Washington 
Heights & Inwood. A 72-page printed guide with QR code linking to the 
full online calendar.

🖼️ AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL? — JUNE 5TH
NOMAA's new exhibition opens Friday, June 5th, 6–8 PM at 176th & Broadway. 46 artists. 35% brand new to NOMAA. Art that asks: Where are we? Who are we? What is this grand experiment called America?

🎵 MONDAY EVENING CONCERTS
June 1st — Opening at Audubon Terrace | Langston Hughes Quartet
June 8th — Et A Aguilar & the String Beans at Dyckman Farmhouse
June 15th — Berta Marino quintet at Cabrini Shrine Lawn
June 22nd — Kumba Karey at Montefiore Square Park, 137th & Broadway
June 29th — FINALE: Reg Wins at Jackie Robinson Park Band Shell

🏆 2026 NOMAA HONOREES
Michael Palma | Joyce Adewumi | Morris-Jumel Mansion | Myra Lenaris | 
Ronaldo Garcia Pantaleon

🎟️ OPENING RECEPTION — JUNE 1ST, 6–8:30 PM
Hispanic Society Museum & Academy of Arts and Letters, Audubon Terrace. FREE. Open to the public. Rain or shine.

💙 NOMAA MEMBERSHIP — $50, TAX DEDUCTIBLE
Access to all programs, NOMAA Labs (free with membership), studio rentals, grants, and special events. Join at nomaanyc.org

📌 nomaanyc.org | @nomaanyc on Instagram & Facebook

⏱️ CHAPTERS

00:00 "Happy Defiance" — Arts in a Time of Uncertainty
00:59 Welcome: One-Year Anniversary in the Sorolla Gallery
01:37 Octavio on the Hispanic Society — Uptown's Hidden Gem
03:00 Niria's Journey: From Graduate Student to NOMAA Director
05:46 Martin's Story: Born & Raised, 24 Art Strolls Deep
07:27 The Audubon Terrace — Open Every Day
07:58 A Night at the Palace: NOMAA's Annual Gala
10:21 Arts Funding in the Current Political Climate
11:36 Community Buy-In: Local Businesses Are Showing Up
12:47 From 24 Pages to 72: The Growth of the Stroll Guide
13:15 What to Expect at the 24th Uptown Art Stroll
15:15 Renewal, Purpose & Why This Moment Feels Critical
17:46 America the Beautiful? — The Exhibition & the Question Mark
20:16 Multi-Generational Artists at NOMAA
22:20 Marta Blair: First Two-Time Grand Prize Poster Winner
24:07 "Happy Defiance" — Why NOMAA Wasn't Afraid to Make a Statement
27:31 Planning the Stroll: Starting in August for the Following Year
31:06 Monday Evening Concerts: Full Schedule
32:12 The Uptown Art Scene — What Makes It Different
35:12 The Urgency: Grant Requests 4x More Than Available Funds
37:34 How Artists Sell Their Work During the Stroll
40:29 The Origin Story: As Grassroots as It Gets
41:45 NOMAA as the Engine, Not the Driver
45:46 46 Artists at America the Beautiful? | June 5th Opening
47:10 Life Flourishing in the GWB Bus Terminal
49:14 Hamilton Grange, Dyckman Farmhouse & More
50:12 The 72-Page Guide: Why Print Still Matters
51:57 Fireworks Over Yankee Stadium: A Founding Memory
56:08 The 2026 Honorees
58:25 How to Find NOMAA & Show Up June 1st
59:13 The Origin of Uptown Voices: Two Guys Arguing on a Sidewalk
01:01:53 NOMAA Membership: $50, Tax Deductible, Open to All
01:03:22 NOMAA Studios: Four Spaces, All Disciplines
01:05:24 Tom Sanford's Installation at the Hispanic Society
01:06:38 Closing: Support Uptown Voices & Spread Love

🎙️ The Uptown Collective documents the culture, community, and voices 
that make Northern Manhattan one of the most extraordinary places 
in the world.

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Spread love — it's the Uptown way. 💙

Creators and Guests

Host

Led Black

Host

Octavio Blanco

What is Uptown Voices?

Uptown Voices tells the stories of unsung heroes who are transforming New York City's Uptown neighborhoods from Washington Heights to Inwood to Harlem to the South Bronx. Each episode profiles an individual or organization making a positive difference. These social entrepreneurs, artists, and community leaders are navigating critical issues of affordability, public safety, and mental health. Through conversations rooted in journalistic integrity and genuine community ties, this podcast challenges negative narratives and celebrates the true spirit of the vibrant neighborhoods thriving north of Central Park.

Each episode features extended interviews in which subjects tell their stories in their own words. The series examines the interconnected challenges facing Uptown communities—gentrification pressures, resource scarcity, systemic inequities—while simultaneously showcasing the creativity and collective power emerging in response. While uplifting the people shaping Uptown’s future, the podcast holds local elected officials accountable for the promises they make. During this pivotal time, Uptown Voices is creating a unique audiovisual archive.

Uptown Voices is a fiscally sponsored project of the Maysles Documentary Center. Make a tax-deductible contribution to our program here: https://bit.ly/4eddiWT

speaker-2 (00:00)
in history, during times of economic depression, you know, the arts flourish. ⁓ and so, you know, we we're kind of we're feeling that energy because there is a little bit of a sense of ⁓

Happy defiance about supporting the arts. because you're supporting, minds and imaginations at work, and that feels exciting during a time where people feel vulnerable and scared and unsure about what's next. as disheartening as things feel, that spark of life is is there.

And it feels good.

speaker-1 (00:59)
I want to welcome everyone to a very special edition of the Uptown Voices podcast. This is actually our year anniversary. So last year we began this journey with these two special people that are beside me, Niria Leva Gutiérrez and Martin Collins. to mark the Uptown Art Stroll kickoff. So we're doing it again, but we're doing this very special location, the Hispanic Society, the Soroya Gallery, which is a very special.

place it's the vision of Spain that's traveled the world and we have it right here in Washington Heights and so thank you to the Hispanic Society for having us and let's let's get this popping. First of all make sure you subscribe to the channel the our YouTube channel and Octavio brother how you doing man?

speaker-0 (01:37)
I'm excited. ⁓ I'm so ⁓ excited and also nervous but really ⁓ pleased to be here with Martin and Nerya. I'm excited to be ⁓ and so honored to be in this location, the Hispanic Society and Museum, in this spectacular gallery, the Soroya Gallery, depicting

panels of quotidian life in Spain from the nineteen hundreds, I believe. It is if you haven't been to the Hispanic Society of Museum, it's a hidden gem in Upper Manhattan. You definitely have to spend ⁓ a half a day here at least to take it all in. It's the ⁓ place with the biggest collection of Spanish art outside of Spain. but

We're here because of local art. we're here because ⁓ local art in our community is so important. And we have an organization in this community called the Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance, of which Niria is the executive director and of which Martin is in charge of the Uptown Art Stroll, which is kicking off in the beginning of June. Right here. Right here. So I am just tickled to be here, honored to be here.

And I want to learn all about the Uptown Art Stroll because it's really become the introduction of summer. It's when you know summer is has started is when the art stroll begins. So I'm just super excited, Led

speaker-1 (03:00)
Yeah, me too. Yeah. And and again, the first time I came here to this building was at a Uptown Art Stroll kickoff so this building's special and you guys are so special. Thanks for doing the work that you do. Niria you know, when we were talking off camera, you were telling me about your connection to this place. Can you can you elaborate on that and why is this place special and why we're opening this uptown Art Stroll here?

speaker-2 (03:21)
Okay. well first I wanted to say thank you for having us again. I can't believe it's been a year. and we were honored to be your first guests and now honored to be your anniversary guest. So congratulations on the work that you're doing. I go way back when it comes to this place. ⁓ I started coming here as a graduate student.

1997, I believe. I studied with Jonathan Brown, the late Jonathan Brown, Spanish art, 17th century, and this was where you needed to do your research, period. There really was no, I mean, there's New York public library, but there was Hispanic Society.

library and I spent many, many hours mining the card catalog, finding treasures. Th this place has always been about

treasures just across the board. So I started in that capacity, so I've always had an incredible connection to this institution, to the permanent collection, to the archives, and so it's been really meaningful to me as a scholar. Then I had the good fortune of becoming the executive director of Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance, NOMAA, and another chapter opened up for me because then we became partner institutions.

And that was a really kind of full circle moment for me. and what was amazing was that I had spent so many times and so many years studying the deceased, you know, artists who couldn't speak, you know, as a seventeenth century scholar. And so to be here in the capacity that we are now here and as partners, working with living, breathing artists, really has been

just extraordinary. So we are thrilled to be here. I ⁓ had the also the good fortune of curating a Show here a couple years ago now. I don't know, a couple of years ago on Orozco which again was another

really important moment I think for ⁓ contemporary artists because Orozco was an artist, was a Mexican muralist, and he lived and worked in Harlem and he had been here for many, many years and of course the Mexican mural movement informed the muralist, you know, ⁓ in this neighborhood in the United States. And so that was another real important ⁓ connection, I think. So I feel very much like these are sort of

sister partner organizations with a mission that feels very connected. So the fact that we're kicking off this total arts event in a total arts space feels just incredibly exciting and appropriate. So

speaker-0 (05:46)
Martin, I also wanted to ask you because you're born and raised, in this area. I think I remember when I was fresh in Inwood, I would see you at the in in at all the local events and in the local establishments. and Led and I were talking about this earlier, how many times locals uptown, especially of our generation, ⁓

We didn't realize that we had this incredible gem in our midst. Martin, what's your relationship with this with this space been like?

speaker-3 (06:15)
Well, the first museum I went to as a very young child was in the school I went to, Good Shepherd School up in Inwood, took us to the cloisters, the Met Cloisters. And we got to do some really fun printmaking and art making together as a class. we did trips all around the city, and we did come here. And so that was my grammar school years that I first learned about it. on high school not so much, but then once we got past college, the opportunities to get more involved in

Community and community building and organizing. I joined the local community board, and ⁓ the museum was a constant, along with many other museums and the like, uptown cultural institutions, constant presences that's at our Parks and Cultural Affairs Committee and other committees of the board. So this has been a really great opportunity to come back. And as we embark on the 24th Uptown Art Stroll this June, June 1st, the opening will be here at both the Hispanic Society Museum and Library.

And at next door at the Academy of Arts and Letters, the entire Audubon Terrace will be populated with wonderful art. We'll have seven exhibitions between the two museums open to the public. the gift shop will be open, and also we'll have music that evening by the Langston Hughes ⁓ quartet from the National Jazz Museum in Harlem

speaker-0 (07:27)
Excellent. And the Audubon Terrace is open to the public pretty much every day. So they've got tables here if you're interested to drink your coffee out there or do some work out there. It's a really lovely, lovely place. And I do have to commend the museum also because I've myself have noticed that the museum has been making more of an effort to be part ⁓ in in the community uptown. And ⁓ if you're wondering whether or not people are noticing, I've noticed it is palpable and I appreciate that. So thank you.

Yeah.

speaker-1 (07:58)
So I want to ask you guys before we even get to the Uptown Art Stroll there's a thing called A night at the palace. What is that about? How can people participate?

speaker-2 (08:03)
Yes.

So this is our third annual night at the palace. It is our fundraising gala. And it it does a couple of things. It brings together our supporters and our donors who have helped make the stroll possible.

but even more importantly have sort of help sustain our programming throughout the year. So it's an opportunity to thank them, to bring them together into the palace, but more importantly to showcase what we do.

Your mission is to cultivate, support, and promote artists arts organizations. And that takes many different forms. Takes forms of exhibitions and you know partnerships, which are crucial, critical, like the one here. Takes the form of microgrants, it takes the form of other kinds of workshops and different kinds of programming that we do throughout the year. So this gala is an opportunity to bring people into our space, to bring people into our galleries.

⁓ to take them into the theater, which we are so happy to be a part of. We are ⁓ really close partners with the United Palace. They've been extraord I mean they're I always say they're our landlords, but really they are sort of our brain partners. I mean they really do, you know, we we work ⁓ so closely together and it's been really a wonderful partnership. ⁓ so it's really an opportunity to do both of those things, but more importantly it's an opportunity for us to continue

to help fundraise, to support artists. You know, our goal really is to be able to provide as much sort of subsidized space through the rentals that we have in our in our studios, microgrant grants, and to continue to, I think, accept, engage, and then try to implement all the great ideas that we get all the time.

I mean people will come to us, hey, I was thinking, hey, I was thinking, hey, I was thinking and you know, we're like, that would be so great, if we could do that. Or you know, and so for us, this helps us continue to cultivate those good ideas because those ideas are they're just I mean in in in our spaces, in our communities, in our neighborhoods, there is no end to good ideas and so we love to be able to entertain those. So that's really what the gala is about. It helps us

Do those things.

speaker-0 (10:21)
And especially in this climate that we are finding ourselves in, I don't wanna

get political, but I'm gonna get a little bit political because we are in a political world and ⁓ the climate that's been created has made life for sustainability much more difficult for cultural organizations, ⁓ especially nonprofits that you generally depend on ⁓ for a large part on the on the government grants that that might be made available, which right now are few and far between. So I wanted to hear a little bit about

the response. Martin, you're really always with your feet on the on the ground, you're stomping the pavement, going door to door to our local businesses and to our local ⁓ organizations and you really are in in touch with the pulse of of people around here and also you're in touch with ⁓ what they feel how they feel about NOMAA because really people do put their money ⁓ where their mouth is. So I wanted to hear a little bit about

what the response has been in particular this past year towards NOMAA and towards you know contributing and to helping NOMAA so that NOMAA can in turn help local artists and in turn create and exhibit beautiful programs. How how's that been with the locals?

speaker-3 (11:36)
It's been very positive and I must say that the buy-in, community buy-in has been extraordinary in all three neighborhoods, West Harlem, Washington Heights, and Inwoodham. This year in West Hollem, we've seen a number of businesses along Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue get more intimately involved in the stroll, hosting ⁓ artists during the month of June, allowing them to show their works in the ⁓ restaurants and locations throughout the neighborhood, and also this spectacular 72-page guide.

which we had last year and will be seventy-two pages again this year, shows the the breadth of small business participation and local neighborhood not-for-profits. The number of folks who've taken an ad to promote their business, to say you get 10% off if you come in during the month of June, you get 15% off with this ad during the month of June. So they use that as a way to promote their business. And and we've seen that really grow exponentially in the last few years. A decade ago, the stroll guide was

Twenty four pages.

speaker-0 (12:31)
Yeah, and that page number is important because the page number equals an increase in the number of advertisers. So that's wonderful that we've seen that growth throughout the decade and that that growth has been sustained year to year. So it's it's really, really great.

speaker-3 (12:47)
And on that same point, 2015, we expanded the stroll boundary south from 155 to 125th Street. And the participation has grown in each passing year. This year we have as many as 40 exhibitions in the Stroll Guide. And we have 18 from West Harlem, 16 from Washington Heights, and six from Inwood. Inwood is just Dykeman to 218th Street. So with that growth has come a much larger participation from the

thirty blocks that we take in south of one fifty fifth street.

speaker-1 (13:15)
I've been coming to NOMAA events I think since 2010 and I've seen the growth that you're talking about and and it's also younger people coming, more people from the neighborhood coming and and it's and it's and it's one of the things really nice to see. So and every event, whether it's a gallery event, the NOMAA gallery, it just keeps getting bigger. You know, every time it just feels like it's bigger, more people. What can we expect for the Uptown Art Stroll this year?

speaker-2 (13:22)
Yeah.

Well actually ⁓

It it's interesting that you say that because one of the things that has been remarkable in the last couple of exhibitions that we've had in our space and all of the artists who are exhibiting in our space are from the West Harlem, Washington Heights, and Inwood. We've had about 30% of new artists in that space, artists who are completely new to NOMAA, which is an incredible number. our submissions for these shows just continue.

To grow. We get so many submissions. It's become a very difficult process because there's just so many wonderful pieces to choose from. Artists who are ⁓ really doing extraordinary work and artists who have grown their work, have really taken sort of you know forays into new mediums. I mean, they there's really there's just

growth across the board. And and again, it's really interesting because we were talking about the politics. ⁓ I think it's worth mentioning that it's it's you know in history, during times of economic depression, you know, the arts flourish. and so, you know, we we're kind of we're feeling that energy because there is a little bit of a sense of

Happy defiance about supporting the arts. because you're you're supporting, minds and imaginations at work, and that feels exciting during a time where people feel vulnerable and scared and unsure about what's next. so I think as disheartening as things feel, that spark of life is is there.

And it feels good.

speaker-0 (15:15)
I I wanted to I I wanted to g dive a little bit deeper in how it feels for you in particular, Niria as the executive director, somebody who is educated in art and as you were saying who's spent, you know, many years studying, you know, dead artists and now you're in this incredible position where you're supporting living artists. But as the director of NOMAA how does this feel for you

speaker-2 (15:37)
it kind of renews your sort of sense of purpose, right? It reminds you of your mission all the time. and it makes that mission feel ever more important. and you know, I I think for us, seeing so many young people really feeling the support of artists also who've been with us for so many years and to feel their excitement.

excitement, that really does, I mean it, you know, we know that what we do, what we do here, what we all do, right, is valuable.

But it feels very critical right now. And it feels also exciting because there is hope in that. You know, it's it's a little hard to find h hope these days, but there's hope in that. And I think you know, it just it makes things really meaningful. and it also pushes you. It pushes you to think about how to do more and where to do more. and I and I should say we one of

the events that we have for the art stroll is our new exhibition that's gonna be opening at in June, June fifth, is Friday night opening. and this exhibition when I was trying to think about what we could do, you know, you you sort of feel the energy and you feel the conversations that the artists talk and and and and artists really kind of thinking about this moment. so the show is called America the beautiful question mark

and boy did we get flooded with

submissions Wow. I mean scores. Just and you know, it was interesting because the content was just

so rich. and you could really just feel the energy and the desire to think about these questions, to take stock. Where are we? Where are we going? Who are we? What is an identity? You know, this grand experiment known as, you know, the United States of America. What are the results? You know? And so I I think it also feels very much like we have a responsibility

to provide platforms for those conversations, right? So, yeah, this is a moment. You know, I think we all understand that this is this is a moment. so, you know, it feels good to

speaker-1 (17:46)
So I actually wanted to bring up the exhibit, right? 'Cause that question mark is doing a lot of lifting there. That question mark is like, it's like croaking under the strain like so so it's such a question but that's you that's you're curating this one, right? So how's that been like?

speaker-2 (17:57)
Simple thing

Well we've we curate all most of the shows except for the women in the heights show which is Andrea's ⁓ so this is it's like I said, I'm I'm f sort of, you know, f floored by the submissions that that we received. and like I said, many, many new artists that we have about thirty five percent new artists in the show.

I always say this. The the the the artists are the the ones who will produce the primary documents of the period, right? Because the works, visual culture, monuments, the these are the things that are left behind that future generations look at in order to understand what was happening. What were people thinking? What were they feeling? What was what really was, you know,

occupying the minds, right? Because artists are the great observers of human behavior. They are the ones who are, you know, giving expression, right, to anxiety, to joy, to fear, to to whatever is that moment. They are finding the ways to give expression to that. So when you think about

That and you think about how these works. You know, you look here and you see these are primary documents, right? These are you know visual documents that give us a sense of time and place and what Sorolla was trying to do and all of those things. You know, the every show does the same thing. and so when you create or when you think about a title like America the Beautiful?, you want you go into it understanding that.

the artists are are really thinking about this question. Or they've thought about it. and then now here's an opportunity for them to to you know contribute to a show. So I think I think that's really important. You know, I think it's really important to to be able to to do shows like that. And you know again we're really grateful to United Palace because they made that gallery happen for us. And so you know we we're in the throes of sharing the gallery with

with the United Palace and all the graduates that come th in through this space. So we're we're trying desperately to install our show and you know, we're like, no wait you know. So this so it's gonna be very interesting once the show is up to see ⁓ you know.

speaker-0 (20:16)
I I wanna just c make sure that we clarify for the audience because when we say new artists, we don't necessarily mean just young artists. One of the one of the most amazing things about the exhibits that you put on and one of the things that I appreciate so much every time I go to one of your openings in the gallery is the multi-generational nature of the exhibits. It's young people, it's older people, it's retirees, it's people mid-career, it's all these folks from

from the neighborhood, that represent every generation in the neighborhood. And I imagine that for an exhibit like America the Beautiful?, you're gonna be getting a lot of interesting submissions because it's not just, you know, maybe a young person who might have their ardent view. You might also be getting a more nuanced view for somebody who has seen a lot of what's happened in in our history.

speaker-2 (21:11)
Absolutely. And that's one of my favorite things about this job is that idea of multi-generational, diverse, and really emerging and established artists, sharing physical

intellectual visual space. That to me is probably one of the things that is most exciting about being a part of NOMAA. That. And I think you're what you're right about the content. That's what's also been really interesting. There are some works that you know you can tell that these are are young, you know, Americans asking questions, looking back saying, wait a second, what what is all of this? You know, what's happening?

But then also there there are artists there's some nostalgia too, you know, there's this sort of sense of you know I I have some beautiful things to say, you know, things that are beautiful or things that that have meant lots. So it is. It's it's been really interesting, and I think a show like this i i d does i sort of reveal those those different kinds of of ⁓ generational voices, which is very cool. Yeah.

speaker-0 (22:14)
Yeah, the onion of our of our

speaker-1 (22:17)
I wanna go to the the cover art, the poster for this year.

speaker-3 (22:20)
Yes, the

poster which is on our right here by

speaker-1 (22:23)
Martha Blair, she's the s first person to have two, right?

speaker-3 (22:26)
She's the first two-time grand prize poster contest winner. She won in 2021 and she won this year with this absolutely iconic image and during this tumultuous time we live in, it certainly caught the eyes of the panel and prevailed as the grand prize winner. So we're very proud of Marta Blair, and she'll be on the front cover of all 5,000 guides.

and will be the emblem of the art stroll. She'll be the collat on all collateral, the fans, the posters, the po postcards for all of our events, the step and repeats, and the masthead for the website. So she gets a lot out of this. And the grand prize, we've bumped that up from what was so 10 years ago, $250 to now. The grand prize winner gets $2,000 and is is the face of the art stroll. second prize gets $1,000 and third prize gets $500. And second and third prize

They have opportunities w we we do a lot of other stuff during the year that their works can be part of those programs. But we're very proud of Marta and we'll be getting these guides out, distributing them to public shortly after ⁓ Memorial Day, and we'll have them available here at the opening at both the Academy of Arts and Letters and here at the Hispanic Society Museum. And throughout the stroll we'll be giving them out at ⁓ events, exhibitions, open studios.

and there's a lot of open studios this year as well. you were talking about all the wonderful art we receive, and I'm just thinking of we have ⁓ our former home, our first home, at 189th and Bennett Avenue where Cornerstone Studios is. They have 14 artists. So in one trip on Saturday, June 6th from 10:30 to 4:30, you can go and see 14 different artists and their works on three different floors in that building.

speaker-1 (24:07)
Shout out to Cornerstone. And I want to actually talk about, use the term happy defiance. I think that's the the poster. Like it's happy defiance, right? It's it's saying, hey, I'm here, I'm not gonna back down, but I don't have a gun, I have my art. You know what I mean, which I think is super powerful. But it's also a statement, right? So why weren't you afraid to make that statement?

speaker-2 (24:27)
Yeah.

speaker-1 (24:28)
That's you have to ask that question, right, dude? Why were why why wasn't NOMAA afraid to make that statement? It says ice on it, right? Like why why is that important?

speaker-0 (24:35)
It's a dangerous time, you know.

speaker-2 (24:37)
th this was what the jury wanted. I mean it was not this this was th the image was undeniable in its impact and i you know i i if you were an organization

that represents artists and you believe that artists are sort of on the you know the pulse of of of what's happening in the world and give expression, like I said before, right, to the time, then you understand that this is the sort of representation of that, you know? Yeah.

speaker-1 (25:09)
People ask are the prints gonna be available for this? Because I don't I don't think they just want t-shirts. People want prints of this. That's how I've been asked a lot.

speaker-3 (25:16)
We're gonna have merch, t shirts, hoodies and other.

speaker-2 (25:19)
Yeah, we're gonna have a magnet this year. And stickers. Nice. Yeah. Nice. Yeah. And t shirts and hoodies.

speaker-3 (25:22)
Magnet, yes.

speaker-1 (25:23)
This that's awesome.

speaker-0 (25:28)
Maybe if people want prints they should reach out to the artist and and and the artist will s I'm sure be happy to ⁓ sell sell them some prints because that would be that'll be a great supporting of living artists and and

speaker-2 (25:31)
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

Yeah.

speaker-3 (25:44)
And

it speaks to you look at organizations across the country and here in our community who've had their government funding slashed or cut and they've had to go out and do a pulling operation to stay alive. And they should shouldn't have to do that. everyone can enjoy art. There's no language in art. Everyone can enjoy it. And and this image, this very powerful image, speaks to the time we live in and

again the opportunity for artists to express themselves in many ways and forms and Martha did an outstanding job in providing this again iconic grand prize winning image.

speaker-2 (26:21)
If there's discomfort, you know, i these are uncomfortable times. So you know it just it's you know, it

speaker-0 (26:29)
Sorry, not sorry.

Martin, I wanted to ask you also, because you you're kind of ⁓ I don't want to say that y you're everything or anything like that, but I feel like you know your role is so crucial, going out there and, you know, approaching the the local businesses.

And in the same in the same vein as I was asking Niria about how it felt for her to be ⁓ the director of this art group, how does it feel for you? Because it's hard work to get out there. I mean, you've established yourself through the decades here in the community, which kudos to you for that, because you really have made a name for yourself as like somebody who knows what's going on. But how does it feel like for you to like be out there ⁓ you know hitting the pavement and approaching these local establishments?

for for assistance your organization can can can do the great work that

speaker-2 (27:24)
And I just was saying and it's literal hitting the pavement.

speaker-0 (27:28)
Literally.

No, literally like he's worn out many shoes.

speaker-3 (27:31)
And we start planning the art stroll about a month after the previous stroll ends. So we were planning the 2026 art stroll starting in August. we took a little time off in July, much deserved, and we have our stroll debrief meeting at the beginning of August. We map out what we're gonna do, we put our calendar together for the entire year, and we start with the closing and work our way back to the beginning.

In the fall to our programs and our effort and outreach and how we'll do that. We also look at all the new venues that have opened in the past year. Sometimes we lose small businesses. That is a function of the environment we live in. But we start planning the opening, the closing, the seminal events during the stroll, the pre-stroll concert, our Monday evening concerts, and choosing venues that we perhaps haven't before, choosing new artists along the way as well.

well, sometimes our grantees, which we have again this year. and it's it's ⁓ a labor of love. I really enjoy getting out there doing it. It's it's a a calling, it's a vocation if you'll call it that. And I really enjoy doing it and to see what we will have here on June first and the excitement that will be created, the music, the art, the great food and refreshments that we'll have and people coming together, artists, businesses, regular, everyday

citizens of the community coming together at this magnificent terrace with these two magnificent museums and seeing everything that it has to offer. It just really I mean this is the gateway to Washington Heights. And ⁓ some still say it's Harlem all the way up to the Audubon building. But it's it's mapwise, it's Washington Heights if you look at the city maps and this is the gateway to Washington Heights and this is a great way to open what would be the 24th uptown art stroll. It it it really is the culmination of almost a year

Years work in preparation and ⁓ visiting businesses, getting artists to buy in, getting arts organizations to buy in, getting them to perform, getting them to open their doors, to provide programming during the month of June, which can be for some, especially if it's school-related, challenging to do. And certainly those conversations, one of the things we'll have this year during the stroll on Saturday, June 6th.

Starting at 9 30 a.m., we'll meet right up at David Friedland Square on 170th in St. Nick. We'll have the National Audubon Society, Gittler and City Parks and NOMAA all walk basically from 170th down to 140th Street. We will stop in at the Community Gardens, which will be open that day. we'll stop in at several places where we've seen murals go up by Gitler and Gallery and other artists in the community. and then we'll finally have a mingle with everyone who's on this walk.

of art for thirty blocks at when he said at about twelve thirty on Saturday, June sixth.

speaker-1 (30:15)
That sounds amazing.

speaker-2 (30:16)
I want to

offer correction. He said that we start planning in August. That's that's simply not true. We we already have a running list for twenty twenty-seven. Yeah, so that's that's not in ⁓

speaker-0 (30:18)
Ha ha ha.

speaker-3 (30:32)
We've even booked the opening

for next year.

speaker-0 (30:36)
Well we're gonna talk about this year.

speaker-2 (30:38)
Yeah,

yeah.

speaker-1 (31:06)
So

Martin, so you have you have I think a photographic memory and and that voice. What are the some of the important other important dates for the Uptown Our Show this year?

speaker-3 (31:15)
certainly our Monday evening concerts, starting here with the opening on June first. June eighth, we'll have an et A Aguilar and the String Beans, Latin Brazilian Jazz at the Dykman Farmhouse Museum. We'll have ⁓ former NOMAA grantee, Berta Marino and her quintet playing on June fifteenth at the Cabrini Shrine Lawn, and if it's raining it'll be indoors in the worship space. On Monday, June twenty second, we'll have Kumba Karey after

Dominicano group, which will perform at Montefiore Square Park on 137th Street and Broadway, and they put on a dazzling show. This is that is a fantastic group, Kumba Kare, that we'll get to enjoy on Monday evening, June 22nd. And the finale of the stroll and our concerts will take place on Monday, June 29th. That'll be at the Jackie Robinson Park ⁓ band shell with the Afro-Dominico Dominicana soul artist, Reg Wins.

who will provide us with absolutely great music from hip hop to bachata to everything in between.

speaker-0 (32:12)
It really, really does. I wanna talk to you, I guess, also about the art scene Uptown and how it's evolved over the decades and where it is right now. I've always been impressed that Uptown has had a strong art scene, but you know, you know, we live in New York City, so we're ⁓

what don't what don't want to say we're in competition with, but we have a downtown art scene that is also, you know, really, really ⁓ vibrant. And I wanna understand a little bit more about our own uptown art scene. What's it what is it? How does it look and where where is it going in the future? How do you see it evolving from here?

speaker-2 (32:56)
well I think yes, there's a vibrant ⁓ downtown art scene. There's always been. I mean I think we all know that. but artists live and work up here. And that's just different.

you know, you can you can come to big institutions like this one, right? Extraordinary institutions that have a long deep history, right? You can go to the cloisters, the same is true. and then you you know, you can come to NOMAA

Jazz power, ⁓ PTP, it's gonna be with the theater. I mean, th that you can do that you can take in an exhibition in our gallery, walk ten steps over, then go to Malecon and have dinner. You that that is something that is uptown.

I mean that just it it is not replicated anywhere in New York. So it's not that there aren't I mean, of course, you know, vibrant art scenes ⁓ throughout the city. We all know that to be true. But when you are here and you know, you get off a train or you train by and and everyone's sort of walking around with their instruments on their backs and they're you know, or they're they're leaving our studios, you know, in a given day we will hear, you know, we had bagpipes in there today, but we'll have, you know, tap dancers.

And you know, people doing their theatrical monologues and they're just in and out of the studios and and children who are coming in and out of the studios, walking into the galleries and looking around and noticing that it's a new show that has gone up. That's that's that's the thing, you know, and that's that's ⁓ to me, you know, it continues

to grow, right? And it continues to kind of fortify itself. and so I think that's why y you know, Hispanic society no you know it's ever more important for us to be those resources, to continue to be here. So that that just grows and so that we have new generation of art artists saying this this is where you want to be, this is the place to be.

speaker-0 (34:53)
Yeah, and it's important to note that we have a lot of artists who live and work in the neighborhood this despite the ⁓ surging prices for our our rents and our and and places where we live, it's still relatively more affordable than a lot of other places in in the city. And we

speaker-2 (35:12)
Yet

and yet and that's really scary. That's really scary. And and that's a New York problem. You know, that's a New York problem. it's a well, there are a lot of it's a lot of people, it's a lot of problems, a lot of blame to go around. But ⁓ that's terrifying, you know, and you know, it's it's also why we do have urgency, you know, th one of the the gala for us, we have urgency around this. You know, we need i when we when we get

grant submissions. People looking for small stipends and the stipends that are requested are four times the amount that you have to distribute.

you know, that's heavy and and that's reality. And so we we need support. You know, we we we need people to understand that artists also shouldn't be, you know, d doing all the work on the front end and not being compensated because, you know, artists artists w sometimes will a be asked to submit

You know, all their plans and all their designs and all of their things and then maybe they get accepted or maybe that they they don't or they they get money they don't and and that's you know it's it's on us to be able to continue to raise enough money and to raise awareness to garner as much support for our working artists as we can.

speaker-0 (36:35)
And we say working artists, and I wanna just also again try to make sure that there's clarity here. I mean this is pure creativity that we're talking about. We're talking about supporting the arts that are creative, that are making a statement, that are trying to depict our society the way that it is, or the the way that we want it to be, or the way that it whatever it whatever it is, we're talking about pure creativity. We're not talking about

corporate ideals or or things like that. We're talking about individuals who are actually making art that is creative. And so that's what's so important.

speaker-2 (37:08)
It is, and a living. I mean it's profession. It's a profession, you know, and it it needs to be supported as a as a profession. you know, again, there's that urgency around that. and so I I hope that they're more you know, happy defiant it's more happy defiance, ⁓ because you know, we need to

be able to to do that. That's our job. That's our mission, really. You know? I don't know if you wanted to ⁓ jump in and say something.

speaker-3 (37:34)
I think when you look at the Uptown Art Stroll, artists will have their works up in restaurants, wherever. A place in the community that they engage wants to have up work during the month of June. It's an opportunity for them to sell their works. that's another great thing about our gallery. the last two shows that have been up, there's at least a half dozen, if not more, pieces that were bought as a function of gallery hours and also

the movement in and out of the United Palace. and and so that is is the great part of what the Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance does, what the Uptown Arts Stroll is. And so having up your your works in a restaurant or tavern or a barber shop or a coffee shop. I have somebody who's showing their their weavings in the new coffee shop that opened up in the George Washington Bridge bus terminal. I didn't even know it opened. It had been been closed for a while.

And so ⁓ and so you've got and then we have open studios, which of are very popular. I think the day that'll be heaviest this year, and they're all all four weekends in in June. But I think the Saturday, June thirteenth one, there's three or four that that are really back to back in ⁓ Washington Heights and ⁓ West Harlem that people will enjoy. And then there's the the the open studios or the exhibitions that are up in Inwood, they're up for the whole month in and there's a a fabrics store, Ramirez Fabrics on

Broadway between 204th and Academy. We have a Inwood artist who'll have his work up in this store the whole month of June. So it it's shown everywhere, and that's the value of of the art stroll and how it's grown from a single day, the Sunday before Thanksgiving 2003, when it opened at Community Board 12, as a day-long events of all artists of all disciplines in Washington Heights at Inwood. And then by 2007 it was up to two weeks.

And it be it had to be institutionalized and it needed a place and an organization to come in. That's where NOMAA came in. They were created and 2008 was the first art stroll that NOMAA produced and they've been producing it ever since. And now it's gone to a month. And I think we could probably carry that further, but we won't. And and and I think that ⁓ having it ⁓ the whole month of June is great. It's it was when we first did the debrief in the

Early months, January, February of 2004, Mike Fittelson who was the editor of the Manhattan Times at the at that moment, and myself and Rosan Apostek from Artists Unite, and the late Homer Young Kennedy, who was the second vice chair of the Parks and Cultural Affairs Committee at the time. he ⁓ we all got together and the people asked us, okay, you did it the Sunday before Thanksgiving. You got lucky it was a 75-degree day. We'd like you to do it in June. So we looked at each other and said, Okay.

So we did it and it's been June ever since. But the growth of the stroll and the participation, it was just an insert in the Manhattan Times that first June, and now it's this seventy-two page triumph.

speaker-0 (40:29)
The ⁓ as grassroots as you can get. It was a group of of engaged people who thought, let's do something here, and they just did it. And now look at where we're at. I think that's emblematic of the community. We just keep going. We stay we stay we stay outside, we stay making it happen. regardless of what the

you know, challenges are before us. We're undaunted and and thank to thanks to groups like you and thanks to the work that you do, it sustains us to to keep doing that.

speaker-3 (41:02)
I want to give a shout out to one of the audience members today who is here who's been along for all twenty four uptown art strolls and I can remember the first June art stroll. we went to Flair Beverages on ninth avenue and picked up all this stuff and we were driving down the FDR drive to get to the high bridge park, the water tower where the opening was that year. And ⁓

Stuff started falling out the back, we forgot to close the hatch. So we had to stop traffic on the highway and put all this stuff back in. So Elizabeth Lorris Ritter who's here, the longtime chair of the Parks and Cultural Affairs Committee at Community Board Twelve and a Community Dynamo, we wanna give a shout out and a thanks to Liz who for her help throughout now quarter century of art scrolls.

speaker-1 (41:44)
Okay.

speaker-2 (41:45)
But I think that's important also. I mean, y y when you think about the history, you know, we exist because of the artists and arts organizations. We we didn't sort of say, hey, it would be nice to bring artists and art. No, no, no. That existed and they needed somebody to help steer the ship, you know. the the

The arts up here, that's the engine, right? You we we main we give it maintenance, you know, we we try to, you know, make sure that the vehicle is is running and all that kind of stuff, but it is the engine, right? That that is why we exist and that's reinforced every single stroll. Every single stroll that it that is reinforced. So you know, we kind of lead with that, knowing full well that

speaker-3 (42:28)
That's that's why I mean it. And the programming and the artists of all disciplines and the arts service organizations who participate, there's programming for children, there's programming for adolescents, there's programming for young adults, there's programming for older adults. I think of what you'll see when the stroll guide comes out, you can see exhibitions at all these galleries and restaurants and and ⁓ retail stores throughout the community.

during the month of June. You can see something at Scion Cafe and 148th in St. Nick, where it's both a visual and performing arts venue. You can see Comedy in Harlem, which is two blocks north. You can see stuff throughout Washington Heights that will take place. There's there's Pied Pipers Children's Theater, there's People's Theater, Jazz Power Initiative, Anette A Aguilar on the Stream Beans must be playing at least four or five times during the month of June, and she's probably going to book some more that'll be in the just in the online calendar.

she's just yes, indefatigable. but you'll see artists of all disciplines in all three neighborhoods and that's grown exponentially in a very profound way over the last decade.

speaker-1 (43:32)
one of the things I love about NOMAA and the Uptown Art Stroll is that collaboration and partnerships are like baked into the DNA and it's always been that way. And I think that's the the secret of the success, right? Even with something like with the the poster, you you you you basically crowdsource it, right? And and the fact that you do these things with like you said the engine, it's like the engine is there.

just helping to calibrate and keep it running. Why is that so important to both of you?

speaker-2 (44:01)
I I mean I think that that that is it, right? I mean if you believe that the arts

are part of the fabric, right, of of of of of life, of living, of expression, of of the neighborhood, of a community, of a of a cultured living, breathing society, then then then you try to multiply that. You try to you know crowdsource, right? You try to think, you have a great idea, great, let's, let's, let's put our heads together, let's find a greater idea.

You know, let's ⁓ let's serve more, let's bring it to to more people. Let's br you know, I was telling Martin today, you know, again, thinking about 2027, but i if you are an artist, if you are an arts organization,

If you someone, if you're someone who loves the arts and you love culture, you're a business that's is interested in the neighborhood, you are part of the arts role whether you know it or not. You you are, you know, you just are because that's what it is, right? It's about pulling as many people around this idea, right, of why the arts matter. And so it's incredibly important to continue to cultivate these partnerships and these relationships.

And that's why I said when we think about the Hispanic Society and NOMAA, you know, we we're different institutions, we have different budgets, we have different audiences, but our missions, you know, they they overlap. There's synchronicity here. And so finding those places where we overlap, whether you're a business and an you know institution, you're whatever a community organization, a community organizer, a volunteer.

We can find those correspondences, right? ⁓ and that's, you know, again, that's what the art stroll i is the manifestation of, truly, of that.

speaker-3 (45:46)
We have 46 artists who have their work on view at America the Beautiful? with the opening again on Friday, June 5th from 6 to 8 p.m. in our gallery on 176th in Broadway. I think ahead to the stroll, I think of a number of new programs. One of the newer ones that we've put together the last two years is Historic Harlem Walking Tours with the great Harlem historian John Reddick.

And he will do three more tours for us throughout West Harlem on Sundays in ⁓ June, and all that information will be in the guide. I think of some new folks who've joined the ⁓ the stroll this year. there is inside the George Washington Bridge bus terminal the Fort Washington Community Enrichment Center. and they will on Thursday, June 4th, have a evening program from four to seven where the artist

their artist that they have in residence ⁓ this year has created this 32 foot mural of uptown and ⁓ he's an artist that is just absolutely fantastic and that's Danny Peguero So his work will be at this reception and this ⁓ program from four to seven on Thursday, June fourth in the bus terminal on view for people to enjoy and she showed me the work and she said

This is I said it's amazing. I'm gonna definitely I encourage people to go to that. It is will be at a spectacular show featuring one of the top artists uptown.

speaker-0 (47:10)
Yeah, yeah, and and that I've been in that in that space. It's interesting. It's interesting to see what's going on inside of the in inside of that bus terminal. There is life is flourishing there. for a long time it was and you know, there's still a little ways to go, but but there is definitely life flourishing there and lots of like local organizations that are that are making it happen there. One and

speaker-3 (47:30)
Octavio

and Led and everyone who's watching the program, I think you want to look at all of the seminal events that take place in this community, whether it's the New York City Multicultural Festival run by Dr. Joyce Adawumi, one of our honorees this year, that runs on St. Nicholas Avenue and at Jackie Robinson Park Band shell She puts on two festivals during the month of June. Look at the Juan Pablo Duarte Festival, which will take place for the 27th year on St. Nick, north of 181st Street.

the Scandinavian Music Festival that take this is there in the 21st year. Hike the Heights. Hike the Heights is as old as the Uptown Art Stroll. This is their 24th. And so you have a lot of events, that will happen here in West Harlem Washington Heights and Inwood that take place in June.

speaker-0 (48:14)
Yeah, and that are supported by ⁓ our own community and that are, you know, put on by our own community and are are examples of the resilience of our own community. I'm really interested in seeing the exhibit inside of Ramirez ⁓ fabrics because I've been inside of Ramirez fabrics and I cannot imagine how you can put on a show inside of Ramirez fabrics. It's gonna be interesting.

speaker-3 (48:38)
I wanna see the weavings in the small coffee shop that's in the bus terminal there on Fort Washington between one seventy eighth and one seventy ninth.

speaker-0 (48:45)
You know, I and what you know, it's it's interesting because Ramirez Fabrics is one of these disappearing ⁓ storefront types of storefronts. You don't see a lot of fabric stores. you they used to, you know, be all over the place in Washington Heights and they're slowly, slowly going away. And ⁓ so important for artists to have a place where they can go and source their fabrics, but also just for people who are who are or working in in the Heights. So

it's really I'm really excited about all these interesting places.

speaker-3 (49:14)
And I I want folks to know about the events that'll take place. Hamilton Grange, the historic house, Children's Art Carnival, Hamilton Landmark Gallery, the Dykman Farmhouse, the Sugar Hill Children's Museum, Morris Jamel Mansion. they will have outdoor programming while their renovation is being completed. so you have a lot of stuff that is vacuum-packed into June, and we'll have a concise resume of that in this 72-page guide.

speaker-1 (49:38)
And

yeah, you need the Guide too because it it's so much stuff happening. Sometimes multiple stuff in a day. And I but I also think that's what makes it so important because it I grew up in the neighborhood, I had never been here, right? I had never been to the Dykman Farmhouse Museum in the back. I was like, that's beautiful. You're having the jazz sessions there were incredible. I I feel that that NOMAA is just so, so important, right? Like and what what have what have

Tell me like a personal n like where you say this is this work is working. something from your personal life that you like, wow, look what I'm doing here, this is important.

speaker-2 (50:12)
I think for me, I think you know, we we're talking about the guide. I mean the guide has been on our brain because we are just sending it to print. and when I think about you know and it's interesting because in the digital world it has come up about whether or not we need a guide, we need a physical guide.

And every year I am reminded, because of that guide, why we do it and why we need and and I and I should say this we do this guide in-house. It is a seventy-two page publication, Martin, you know it the the

Bringing putting all of those those those ⁓ events in there and Michelle who I think is off of you know 48 hours without sleep, you know, and then Jesus doing it's it it is all consuming. But the product at the end to to produce that which is the record, right? Which again it's it's the rec it you know, it's our annual report essentially. It is to me when you see that you're like, yeah.

Yeah, this is why we do this. So I love the guide, you know. I am so proud of of the guide and the work that the NOMAA team has has put into to this guide and and and it and again it is the physical proof of what we have up here that I think is so unique and is it is just different from everywhere else. So to me,

that's probably personally you know the most ⁓ exhausting, stressful, but then kind of exhilarating, you know, reminder of of that. Yeah.

speaker-3 (51:57)
Yeah, I have so many wonderful memories over the years from the very first June Art Show back in two thousand four when it was at the Highbridge Water Tower. We had a couple of hundred people at that event and it was a sp you had the restaurants who came and provided food. Was no budget for this. Restaurants came and brought food. It was no budget, it was just a bunch of it was sweat equity.

Community Board 12, Manhattan Times, Artists Unite. Restaurants provided food, there was music, there was art on the fence that Rosanda Parsteck curated. And then at the end of the evening at about 9, the Cruci brothers launched fireworks out of the pool into the Harlem River. And I can't remember we had we'd have an interagency meeting prior to that. And ⁓ afterwards the evening was over, and 3-3 commander at the time, he comes over and

to ⁓ Ziad Ramadan, the then the board chair, my predecessors, community board twelve chair, and me. I was the second vice chair at the time. And they said, Great job, you just forgot to ⁓ notify one party about your fireworks. I said, Well now who? He said, ⁓ look over there. Yankee Stadium. The game was stopped temporarily. my God. Jim Cott was was on the broadcast and he went

having quite a party over there on the other side of the river. Let's let's get back to the action. And and so all through the years. and then just last year it was a threat of rain at the closing at Morris Jamel Mansion, but we still had 225 people turn up to the closing at Morris Jamel Mansion. We had their exhibit, ⁓ what the house saw, 250 years, 260 years of the House, because the mansion, the house is actually older than the country.

that was on on view as were other exhibits and we had music by a trio, Will Glass's trio, come in and came in and gave us absolutely dazzling evening of music and there was lots of great times and I think between Catherine Hughes and you you're like, folks

May not have to go home, you just can't stay here. The house is gonna close. We wa it was a beautiful night and a great way to close what was the twenty four and in between all those events. There's just so many wonderful memories. And never have we had rain. Hopefully the rain committee will do its job again. We also always joke with ⁓ Dave Hunt that Coogan's that he was the chair of the weather committee. And we've never had we're ⁓ batting average is a hundred, never had an opening or a closing cancelled by rain.

There was one cl time was close. It was at the gar closing of the art stroll, I believe, in two thousand nine. ⁓ and Sandra Betancourt, who was then the executive director, called me. I was working at one of the politicians' offices at the time, and she says, What do you think? I said, Let me look. Looked online, I said, Go for it. This says that it'll stop raining about three o'clock. It did. We had our closing garden cafe up there in Inwood from six to eight thirty PM and she goes

So,

speaker-2 (54:41)
Yeah.

speaker-0 (54:42)
Can I I I just ⁓ I just wanted this to reference the guide again, ⁓ because in our community, and I think it was Liz I think I get this maybe from you, I can't tell. But our community is is a hybrid community. We've got people that are digitally focused, but we also have a lot of people that are that need the paper, they need the literature, they they that's how they get their info. And so it's great that

that you guys are serving the entire com community again, multi-generational, but and also it's a reference that you know, like maybe the art stroll is over. You can always go back and see what are the organizations, who's doing what, what are the restaurants, what's the

speaker-3 (55:28)
And to that point it'll say in the guide every Sunday four to seven music. So you'll know, okay, even though it's middle of October, they're gonna have music tonight. I think of places like Guadalupe up on two seventh Street. I think of a place like Le Cheile over here on one hundred and eighty first street. I think of places like ⁓ Ploughshares, Harlem on one hundred and twenty sixth street that just opened about a year ago. They all have music events throughout the the year that take place

every Sunday night, every Thursday night, every Friday night, regardless. So th to your point, that is that is an important aspect of the guide. It promotes the local eating and drinking establishments beyond the threshold of the art stroll

speaker-1 (56:08)
in the digital age, something tangible is even more important I think, right? Like is like even like listening to music. I used to like when I had an album to look at. Now it's just it's no no linear notes. So I commend you for that. But w before we conclude we have to say mention also the all the other honorees. Who are the other honorees? Because you mentioned one, who are the honorees that she

speaker-3 (56:27)
The

honorees this year are Michael Palma, Executive Director of the West Harlem Arts Alliance, Joyce Adewumi President and Founder of the New York City Multicultural ⁓ Center and the New York African Chorus Ensemble. Morris Jumel Mansion institution itself. We have Myra Lenaris from Liberty Coca-Cola. She's a vice president for Liberty Coca-Cola.

she'll be accepting the award that ⁓ evening as well. And then finally our fifth honor Yes, Ronaldo Garcia Pantaleon, an outstanding artist who does work at a number of outstanding schools and institutions, including this museum here. he'll have a print and art making workshop coming up during the month of June here. What day in June? June sixth.

And ⁓ there's a series of events that take place here at the Hispanic Society Museum and Library and ⁓ the Audubon Terrace, so June sixth is another time to come out and visit and support the Hispanic Society Museum. So you have Ronaldo Garcia Pantaleon, Joyce Hattawumi, Michael Palmer, the Morris Jamon Mansion, and Myrel Lenaris are our five honorees this year.

speaker-0 (57:27)
Yeah, I mean I'm I I wanna be respectful of ⁓ of our time here. We're we've been about an hour. I wanna thank you guys for for being here and for for celebrating our our anniversary, me Led.

speaker-1 (57:41)
Anniversary.

speaker-2 (57:43)
We need an issue.

speaker-0 (57:45)
But you know, me and Led me and Led would ⁓ we would stop each other on the sidewalk and we'd have these like debates arguments.

speaker-1 (57:54)
His wife was there like, Can we can we guys And

it was always meeting on arguments, not at all.

speaker-0 (57:58)
And then and then I was like, Hey Led, you know, why don't we meet up on at the coffee shop on Sundays? And we started meeting up at the coffee shop. And then we were like, you know what? Why why don't we start talking about this like in in a in a podcast? And so that's what Uptown Voices has become. we want to do more of this stuff. I think ⁓ it's it's nice to be, you know, face to face. Sometimes it's nice to be behind the screens, but face-to-face is great. So hopefully we can do that.

speaker-3 (58:25)
I'm really glad we did this. And I do want to say we'll have these wonderful signs going up in the community in both Spanish and English to invite you to the Uptown Art Stroll opening reception on Monday, June 1st from 6 to 8 30 p.m. at both the Academy of Arts and Letters and the Hispanic Society Museum. It's free and open to the public, and we would like to see you join us that evening. If it rains, still come because it's going to be inside in this beautiful room in the Sarroya Gallery if it rains on Monday evening, June 1st.

speaker-1 (58:53)
And

you know too the what he was saying about the Uptown Voices podcast, we had to do you guys first. Right? We had to start with NOMAA because NOMAA is so important and the Uptown Art Stroll was so important. Right. So I think that it's it's only fitting that we started with you guys and then we have our anniversary episode with you guys because you guys are so important. So thank you so much for what you do. Any last words for for the people?

speaker-0 (59:13)
And

and where we can where can people where can people find you guys? ⁓ give us all that all that URLs.

speaker-1 (59:18)
Yeah, so you are out.

speaker-2 (59:21)
⁓ I you can do all of the the the the voice the voice the voice. I I before that we get to the voice I do want to say though uptown ⁓ voices, you know, you know we are a repository

as as NOMAA as for uptown voices, right? so this is this this is so fit right fitting. So I you know it it is for us it's a real honor to have been the your first guests and to see that you're thriving and that you're doing such good work and that we're here one year later really is

speaker-1 (59:55)
It's gonna

be a yearly thing. Every year we're gonna do this, yeah.

speaker-3 (59:58)
You guys do a fantastic job. I must tell you.

speaker-2 (1:00:01)
And I wanna

thank our partners here at these battles.

speaker-3 (1:00:03)
Thank

you all for joining us. Thank you to Nancy Espino and to everybody here at the Hispanic Society Museum and Library.

speaker-1 (1:00:08)
Thank

you, thank you, thank you. And subscribe to the channel. Yeah.

speaker-3 (1:00:14)
Sure. Our Instagram is at NOMAA N Y C. That's N-O-M-A-A-N-Y-C on Instagram. We're on Facebook. You can visit our website, NOMAA N O ⁓ A A N Y C dot org, where our website has

All the programs that NOMAA produces, in addition to the Uptown Art Store, and I'll have a lot of information about ⁓ programs that are coming up in the fall and our next exhibitions, which we ⁓ want artists in West Harlem, Washington Heights, and Inwood to participate in. And also we have an events calendar which is growing in leaps and bounds. Any artists of all disciplines, art service organizations that have events going on.

north of 110th Street. Put in NOMAA's online calendar. It takes thirty seconds. We have a ⁓ weekly newsletter which you can subscribe to get and is is really wonderful report of what's happening uptown. We are have a great presence on social media. We have Led Black who helps us out as our social media ambassador. and ⁓ finally the stroll guide

Even events and exhibitions and open studios that are taking place during the month of June that we received after the printed guide deadline, they will be on our online calendar and there'll be a QR code on all collateral, including the 5,000.

Front page five thousand page guide, five thousand guides rather, on the front cover will have the QR codes across all collateral, and the QR code will take you to the online calendar, which will have all listings of all events, exhibitions, and open studios taking place during the Uptown Art Store ⁓ throughout the month of June and throughout the year. That online calendar becomes an important place for people to visit to find out what's happening in West Harlem, Washington, High City and what it is.

speaker-1 (1:01:53)
Last

thing really last thing. Why should someone become a NOMAA member? How do you do that?

speaker-0 (1:01:59)
Okay.

speaker-3 (1:02:00)
I think it's a great value. It's first of all, it's fifty dollars.

It's tax deductible. It gets you access to all of our programs, special events, member only programs and and ⁓ activities, and provides you with ⁓ I think the the great value of participating in all of our shows, provides you with ⁓ opportunity to access ⁓ grants and access ⁓ opportunities that ⁓ otherwise may not be available. and I think the the fifty dollar membership shows a level of community buy-in by everyone.

⁓ to participate in a way that it not just supports the organizations and the organization's programming but also provides you with ⁓ access to special events and opportunities that and our studios and our studios. You've got to be a NOMAA member to use our studios. Our four studios are a real treasure. as Niria was saying earlier in the program, we have artists of all disciplines in there. We can have New York Philharmonic in there one day, we can have Gregorio Luperon High School in there the next day. Right.

speaker-1 (1:03:01)
And I hate to say it, but there's more things to talk about because we didn't even talk about studios, right? And how important they are and and tying it into the NOMAA labs, right? Because I remember you guys did a West African NOMAA lab and now he's there every Saturday at NOMAA Studios and anyone could come up. And I th I think that's super important because it gives people we don't have spaces for the arts and you guys did that. So thank you for that as well.

speaker-3 (1:03:22)
Those studios are a great place and it's not just to ⁓ rehearse and so forth, but you can also we have the largest theater, studio four seats up to fifty people.

speaker-2 (1:03:33)
I I I also want to say something about the labs since you brought that up and I know we're we're we're we're ending. But the the labs were were were created as a sort of a a membership kind of program and also as an opportunity to bring in teaching artists of all disciplines. you know

We wanted to create sort of workshop opportunities for artists who I again work in all different dis disciplines. And that is part of membership. So if you are a member, those programs are free. The labs are free. And we bring you into the space or into our studios. We always have some kind of food and drink because I like to feed people. I think it's really important. and you know, we've had so many different we've had dance, we've had, you know, watercolor, and gouache, we had

Poetry, we had clown, which by the way was just amazing that workshop. But we, you know, these are sort of opportunities. People become a member, those are free. And then if you're not a member, you pay $10, you know, you sort of to keep the program going. But it's important for us to try to bring artists in space.

People we've had somebody, we've had people come for date nights for the NOMAA labs. They've just read about it or heard about it and they've come and they've done some watercolor together and you know and then they've then they've learned about NOMAA and then they've realized that we have studios and then they go and they rent studios and and it's it's also a way to continually create networks, you know, where people are and for artists who may want to try something new.

⁓ you know, Elizabeth Starchevik was in the clown course the other night and she was just you know amazing, something entirely different. So we want to be able to to have those programs and opportunities and that's part of the membership too. And what we're gonna start doing is we're gonna put out a call to artists to ask them to submit ides for workshop.

speaker-1 (1:05:24)
I'm sorry. I got one more because we we're we're here in the Hispanic Society and you guys have a really interesting partnership.

speaker-2 (1:05:31)
I'm so excited. Yes. ⁓ so this is actually going to be unveiled during the art stroll, during the month of June. and this w i the artist, I can I can tell the artist, Tom Sanford.

speaker-1 (1:05:33)
Okay. ⁓

speaker-0 (1:05:47)
Hello Tom Sanford.

speaker-2 (1:05:48)
Will ⁓ is creating his vision inspired by Soroya for the gates on the terrace.

speaker-1 (1:05:59)
Yeah.

speaker-2 (1:06:00)
This

is our fourth year. This partner I love this partnership. It is such a great, you know, just coming together of of all of of this. And so it's it's really gonna be a wonderful installation. We know it's gonna bring people in to this space and ⁓ the fact that it's so ⁓ tied to this space here.

to me, ⁓ sort of on the hundredth anniversary of this gallery is just you know

speaker-1 (1:06:29)
Chef. Chef is let's hear from normal everyone. Thank you.

Yeah.

speaker-0 (1:06:38)
Thanks for listening to our podcast. We're proud that Uptown Voices is now a fiscally sponsored project of the Mazels Documentary Center. This means we're able to accept tax deductible contributions to support our production. You'll see a QR code on the screen right now. Scanning that is the easiest way to invest in local media and help us keep telling these inspiring Uptown stories. We appreciate your support more than we can say.

Thanks for listening to Uptown Voices.