The Art of the Arctic: Bloomfield Resident Travels to North Pole Sea

Bloomfield's Amanda Thackray is journeying to the top of the world for her art.

To better understand her body, Bloomfield artist Amanda Thackray is journeying to a far end of the earth. Thackray recently won a slot in the Arctic Circle Residency, where she and other artists and scientists will sail around the Arctic Circle for two weeks on a Barkantine tallship. The June expedition starts from the Svalbard Archipelago and will bring the ship within ten degrees of the North Pole. As the ship travels the perimeter of the sea ice, Thackray will join with other artists and scientists in braving and studying the elements. “Everybody is going to be working on their own projects,” Thackray said. “Hopefully there will be a lot of collaboration and people interested in building friendships and working together.” She plans on …

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Local Artist Overcomes Adversity

Local artist, Natalie Alleyne, becomes a successful artist despite difficult times early on in her life.

Artists have always had trouble making a living doing what they love. Unlike most of the populace, they have to hold a day job to afford to do what they really want. This takes conviction and the spirit to never give up. Local artist, Natalie Alleyne, is lucky to have both or she never would have made it to where she is today. Alleyne graduated the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan in 1980 and soon moved to St. Martin after a post-graduation vacation there. The tropics influenced her with the sights, sounds and people that were all new and exciting. “The island life, the colors, the texture, it very much resounds in my work,” says Alleyne. This influence, coupled with her love of Spanish painter, Picasso, can be seen in many of her pieces…

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ArtSpeak

Bloomfield Middle School Encourages Young Artists

The Bloomfield Middle School’s Art Show unveils the budding talent of Bloomfield’s youth.

At a time when schools across the country are cutting arts programs, Bloomfield Middle School offers the unique opportunity to let the its youth's talent flourish. Last week, Bloomfield Middle School hosted an art show. Friends and family were welcome to view their children’s artwork in a public forum. It also afforded the faculty the opportunity to recognize the students, who truly excelled with certificates of recognition. Parents and children alike were uniformly enthusiastic about the school’s efforts to foster the arts. Eighth grader Aliya Valencia told Patch, “I love drawing, and I love music, so it was cool because I love the different textures I was able to come up with and the poems I got to pick from for the book.” She picked the…

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