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About SONYA
Description
SONYA (South of the Navy Yard Artists) is a 501c3 non-profit
organization representing the community of visual artists
living, creating, and exhibiting in the Fort Greene, Clinton
Hill, Wallabout, and Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhoods of Brooklyn.
Mission
In the belief that art and community nurture each other, our
mission is to recognize, support, and celebrate the visual
arts and artists within our community by bringing people together
in an environment that encourages exploration, dialogue and
enjoyment of the visual arts. SONYA offers a full season of
exhibitions, studio tours, education events and public programs,
open to the public each year.
History
SONYA was founded in 1999 by three local artists, with the
goal to recognize, support, and celebrate the visual artists
of our community. In response to the need for a unified artist
collective, SONYA began its first year with nineteen members
and what was to become an annual event, the Studio Stroll.
To date SONYA has grown to over seventy members, over fifty
of whom will open their creative spaces to visitors during
the 2008 Stroll.
Through our ElevenTen Gallery and other local venues, SONYA
provides a variety of services to member artists and the community
including: solo and small group art exhibitions, art business
seminars; an email newslist; an online gallery and arts resource
listing; and artist-run workshops.
The membership of SONYA, 60% women, 40% men, 50% mid-career,
approximately half of which are African-American reflects
the multi racial, and cross-generational constituency of the
four communities.
SONYA is an active participant in our community, partnering
with other local community groups to present group exhibitions
at local venues such as: the Natman Room at the Brooklyn Academy
of Music; the Saturday Artisans Market (BAM/Local Development
Corp.); ElevenTen Gallery (Pratt Community Action Council);
Goloborotko’s Studio, (Brooklyn Arts Council); Corridor
Gallery (Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation); and the Robert
Lehman Gallery at UrbanGlass.
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