Connecticut Postings

According to police reports, shortly after 10 p.m., a woman reported that she had been driving around on Trumbull Avenue with a friend, when a woman, identified only as “Danyell,” jumped into the car while it was parked. “Danyell” was the ex-girlfriend of the woman’s friend, and immediately began yelling at the woman, and calling her profane names.

While the two were fighting, Danyell reportedly grabbed a box cutter that the woman had in her coat and allegedly swung it at the woman, slashing her on her face, arms, legs, and back. Danyell then got out of the car and left the scene. Danyell was described as a Brazilian female, with a light complexion and red hair. She is about 5 feet 2 inches tall and had a heavy build.

The woman was treated for her injuries at St. Vincent’s Medical Center.

Housatonic Museum of Art opened yet another great exhibit Thursday night with a reception that attracted crowds (from toddlers to senior citizens, students and professors to business people and art-lovers) at the Bert Chernow Galleries at Housatonic Community College in downtown Bridgeport.

 The turnout was a fitting salute to artist Stanley Boxer (1926-2000), a true American master who is renowned internationally for his spirited thickly painted abstract works of art.

“Rememberingstanleyboxer: A Retrospective 1946-2000″  is a  traveling exhibition that celebrates one of the most prolific artists of the 20th century with about 50 of his paintings and sculpture.

It will be on view through March 28. 

In other Bridgeport arts news:

Bridgeport has waited years for an arts council to get up and running. And now that it finally has one, folks had been looking forward with great anticipation to Wednesday’s welcoming celebration at the HMA for the group’s first executive director Penny Harrison.

And we’re still waiting ….

The reception was postponed because of  the snowstorm (which turned out to be a minor one at that!). 

The reception will be re-scheduled for sometime in March, HMA director Robbin Zella has announced.

Harrison was chosen from among 40 candidates to lead the  Bridgeport’s Arts & Cultural Council, Zella has said. Her primary responsibility as executive director will be to organize and enlarge the city’s arts and cultural community so that it can play a more significant role in the city’s economic growth and renaissance.

 Harrison may be reached at 203-505-0200 or via e-mail at Penny.BridgeportArtsandCulture@gmail.com. Her office is in Room C 108 at the college, which is donating office space for two years.

Housatonic Community College is at 900 Lafayette Boulevard in downtown Bridgeport. The HMA galleries are open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Thursdays to 7 p.m.; Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.; and Sundays from noon to 4 p.m. The galleries are closed on all college holidays, including Monday, Feb. 15, for Presidents’ Day. Admission is free. For additional information on the museum, visit www.hctc.commnet.edu/artmuseum/. Additional information on the artist is available at www.stanleyrboxer.com/.

 Phyllis A.S. Boros

Bridgeport has waited years for an arts council to get up and running. And now that it finally has one, folks have been looking forward with great anticipation to Wednesday’s welcoming celebration for the group’s first executive director Penny Harrison.

They’ll just have to wait a little longer.

The reception, slated for Wednesday evening at Housatonic Communtiy College’s Housatonic Museum of Art, has been postponed because of  a snowstorm that is expected to strike the region.

The reception will be re-scheduled for sometime in March, HMA director Robbin Zella has announced.

Harrison was chosen from among 40 candidates to lead the  Bridgeport’s Arts & Cultural Council, Zella has said. Her primary responsibility as executive director will be to organize and enlarge the city’s arts and cultural community so that it can play a more significant role in the city’s economic growth and renaissance.

The part-time position comes with a $30,000 salary; Harrison has a one-year contract that is renewable. A Virginia resident, Harrison is renting a furnished apartment here and plans to spend a minimum of 10 days per month in the Park City.

 Harrison may be reached at 203-505-0200 or via e-mail at Penny.BridgeportArtsandCulture@gmail.com. Her office is in Room C 108 at the college, 900 Lafayette Boulevard in downtown Bridgeport.

 Phyllis A.S. Boros

Good news for local artists!

Word from Caryn Kaufman Communications is that MainState Ventures is looking for six artists to adorn a wall at the corner of Broad and State streets in downtown Bridgeport.

And not only will the winning artists have the pleasure of exhibiting their work, each for a two-month stretch, at one of downtown’s busiest intersections,  they might be wealthier for it. A total of $1,250 will be awarded.

But artists need to act quickly: The deadline for submission is Monday, Feb. 15.

   Here are the details, provided by Ms. Kaufman, publicist for MainState Ventures:  

Six finalists will be chosen to install and display their art throughout the year in a rotating public art exhibition.  The art will be prominently displayed on an 8-foot by 8- foot wall on the Broad Street side of 211 State St. in dowtown Bridgeport, with each artist’s work on display for 2 months.  The year-long exhibition will culminate in the selection of a Grand Prize winner, who will receive a $1,000 cash award and a “People’s Choice” winner, who will be awarded $250.  The competition is open only to artists who either reside or work in Bridgeport.
 
Artists are asked to submit a sampling of their work using a maximum of five (5) jpeg images and one (1) square-format .jpeg image of their proposed piece.  It is preferred that artists work directly on the site to create their piece by hand.  However, artists may choose to have a banner of their work produced.  Artists are asked to indicate at the time of submission whether they will create their work on site or reproduce their work on a banner.  All “reasonable production costs,” up to a maximum of $175, will be reimbursed by MainStateVentures. 

Finalists will be notified by Feb. 18, via e-mail.  Submissions may be sent to maryann@umbrellaarts.com.  For questions regarding submissions, contact Margaret Bodell, (203) 727-7280.  Once chosen, each artist will work with the sponsor to determine an appropriate timeline to produce their artwork and host an official unveiling event. 

Submissions will be judged by Robert Curcio, co-founder of the Scope International Art Fairs of New York; MaryAnn Fahey, curator for  Umbrella Arts, New York; Emily Larned, professor of graphic design at the University of Bridgeport; John Favret, director of the Housatonic Community College art department; and Penny Harrison, executive director of the Bridgeport Arts and Cultural Council.  

MainStateVentures (MSV) is a joint venture between Spinnaker Real Estate Partners and Forstone Capital. It recently acquired the People’s United Bank downtown portfolio, which represents two Bridgeport city blocks including seven buildings totaling more than 255,000 square feet with 2.8 adjacent acres of developable land.

Greenwich landscape artist Ernest Garthwaite, a master of the centuries-old technique of applying gold leaf, will be feted at a reception on Friday (Feb. 5) to mark the opening of his exhibit at the new Southport Galleries in Fairfield.

Garthwaite will be on hand from 5 to 8 p.m. at the gallery reception, which is free and open to the general public. The show will be on view through March 3.

As readers of Pulse, the Connecticut Post’s Sunday arts section,may remember, Garthwaite’s work was the subject of a major one-artist show last summer at Fairfield University’s Thomas J. Walsh Art Gallery.

Garthwaite often embeds gold leaf, a foil-like substance that glimmers when struck by light, in his oil and acrylic paintings  — all to dazzling effect.

Southport Galleries, which opened a few months ago, is housed in a landmark building from the 1920s that for decades served as the home of Village Hardware. The gallery, which specializes in American masters and contemporary artists, is at 330 Pequot Avenue in village center (off Exit 19 of Interstate 95). It’s open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sundays from noon to 4 p.m. 

For additional information, visit www.SouthportGalleries.com.

Phyllis A.S. Boros

An early morning blaze that engulfed four residences on George Street in Bridgeport has left at least 16 people homeless.

Bridgeport Fire Capt. Luis Rivera said, shortly before 2 a.m., fire personnel receive a report of a fire in the city’s Hollow neighborhood. The fire reportedly started at 331-335 George St., a multi-family home, and spread tothree other buildings.

No residents were killed or seriously injured in the blaze, though two firefighters sustained injuries, according to assistant fire chief John Currivan.  One fire lieutenant sustained pulled muscles during the blaze, and a firefighter sustained a head injury after falling down the stairs.

A local chapter of the American Red Cross responded to help find shelter for the displaced residents.

Rivera said, at the height of the fire, seven engine companies and three ladder trucks were on scene. A local chapter of the American Red Cross responded to help find shelter for the displaced residents. By shortly after 3 a.m., firefighters had the blaze under control. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

State police are investigating an early morning accident that killed a Bridgeport woman and a Stamford woman were killed and a injured Hamden woman on I-91 southbound in Wallingford.

The accident occurred around 4 a.m. Saturday, when the car the women were in went off the road and hit a guardrail. The Hamden woman was taken to Yale-New Haven Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The identities of the women weren’t immediately available.

Police were on scene for several hours on Saturday, and the roads were re-opened by 9 a.m.

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and we at the Connecticut Post are wondering: What are you thankful for this year?
It can be something big, like the birth of a new child or grandchild, or something as small as the smile of a loved one.
What sparks gratitude in you?
Please send your responses to Amanda Cuda at acuda@ctpost.com (phone: 203-330-6290).
We might interview you and use your responses for an upcoming story.