OLD SCHOOL

This is an important part of our heritage.
Jack the Pelican is an artist-run space founded in 2002 by longtime members of the Williamsburg art community.

The current economic crisis puts us into a mood of nostalgia for the time before the bubble, when Williamsburg was a community of artists, staging large exhibitions like this, for an audience of mainly artists.

Few had expectations of sales or delusions that instant success was achievable. Exhibition opportunities for emerging artists were few back then. It was about getting the work out there and hopefully finding other, like-minded artists to engage in dialogue. ...And it was about seeing what others were doing.

Community, participation, and democracy were the ideas in circulation. We were in it together.

In retrospect, this seems like a pretty good place to be.

We love a salon show.
Yes, it's fun to scan works by so many remarkable artists in one shot.

This one's a snapshot of our community. We invited our artists. They invited others, whose work they admire. That's the way we used to do it—word of mouth.

The resulting spectrum of styles is huge, from figurative to abstract. Many of the pieces are just amazing.

Whether you're interested in buying something or just curious to take a gander, odds are that you will find something here that speaks to you.

For months now, it's been a brutal climate for selling art.
Who are we kidding? It's been tough. Having to close down seemed for a while like a very real possibility.

Recently, however, we have been amazed at just how many artists and friends, learning of our difficulties, have come forward with ideas and generous offers of support.

This is their show!

The future looks different.
And, for the first time in years, it feels to us like a community again.

As we spend the next few months reinventing ourselves for the new economy, it restores our faith in the possibility of who we are, where we come from and what we can be.

We're a Williamsburg artist-run, emerging artist space and that's suddenly feeling very relevant to us again.


*OLD SCHOOL* A Big Show of Accessibly-Priced Little Gems

Dates:	Friday, March 27 through Sunday, April 26
Location:	487 Driggs Ave, bet N. 9 and N. 10
	Directions
Hours:	Thurs–Mon, 12–6pm
Contact:	helene@JackthePelicanPresents.com 718-782-0183