Ellarslie Mansion Museum

After spending about one year in the Trenton City Museum, a rare ceramic vase is being carefully packaged for its return back to Brooklyn.

The vase was originally made in 1904 as part of a set of four, for the St. Louis World’s Fair, by the Trenton Potteries Company, and was on loan to Trenton form the Brooklyn Museum. But last month the museum asked for the return of the vase after Trenton fired the full-time director of the Ellarslie Museum.

“The return of the vase was requested because of concerns over its safety and security,” Brooklyn Museum spokeswoman Sally Williams said.

Brian Hill was fired in September after serving as the full-time museum director for ten years, along with 150 other employees of the city as part of an overall citywide reduction in workforce. In Hill’s stead an intern has been installed.

Hill’s layoff was a violation by the city of an agreement they had with the independent Trenton Museum Society, the owner of the collection which is kept in the city-owned Ellarslie Mansion in Cadwalader Park. The agreement stated that the city will pay the expense of having a full-time, qualified director in exchange for permission to exhibit the various artifacts in its facility.

“This all comes from not having a director,” museum society president Robert Cunningham said of the loss of the vase. “You can’t interact with other museums fluently without a director, and I think we’re now seeing evidence of that.”

Before Hill’s leaving he was working on organizing an exhibit which would bring all four vases in the set together for the first time since 1904, to be displayed at the Trenton Museum. The plans for this showing have fallen apart without the help of a director to put together the project.

“This seals the fate of our attempts to get the four vases back together again,” Cunningham said. “It’s something that was very important to us and should be to the city. I don’t think that the Brooklyn Museum has any plans to exhibit it or not. It could just go into storage.”

The heart failure that caused his death was the final blow of health conditions that had been plaguing Farentino for years. Though his life did not lack in personal drama, Farentino first entered the industry on Broadway in 1961 in “Night of the Iguana”. He later played Stanley Kowalski in “A Streetcar Named Desire” in 1973. That same year, he won the Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Guest Artist for his performance in “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.”

When he branched out into Hollywood productions, he won a Golden Globe for his performance in “The Pad and How to Use It,” later acting alongside Patty Duke in “Me, Natalie,” as well as Martin Sheen and Kirk Douglas in “The Final Countdown.”

On TV, Farentino had several recurring roles in shows such as “Dynasty,” and “Melrose Place,” and played the father of George Clooney’s character in “ER.” He also starred in “The Bold Ones: The Lawyers.”

To their disappointment, only five women have taken them up on the offer so far. As Jemmott explains,

“At least one person a day comes in here and inquires about it. But they don’t come back. Maybe they have too much pride.”

Jemmott first came up with the idea during a hair convention where stylists were talking about charity work.  She later posted a sign in the store that says, “Looking for a job and can’t afford to get their hair done…We’ll help! Come in on Mon & Tue 10am to 1pm to get a free hair service.”

She explains that there will be no questions asked, and that she’s simply doing this to try to help women in the area.

Hopefully, more of them will come in and allow Jemmott to make good on her promise and to give back to the people in her area. Charity work, after all, can only be done if those in need accept the help.

Latest Fashion: Swastika Earrings

Apparently taste and business have no bounds, at least when it comes to the sale of earrings in the shape of a swastika in Brooklyn’s Greenpoint neighborhood.

The small earrings, which are available at the Bejeweled Boutique, are on sale for $5.99. When the shopkeeper was asked why the store carried such symbols of inhumanity to man, she had an embarrassed look and answered that they were requested by shoppers. Confronted with the statement that “It’s not worth it to sell them,” the clerk just shrugged and responded, “Business.”

The clerk could not clarify whether the earrings were selling well or if she thought they were offensive. Despite the fact that the Nazi symbol is also a symbol for some other religions such as Jainism and Hinduism, the fact remains that as long as the swastika evokes so many bad connotations in our culture, it should probably not be sold as jewelry.

The Full Plate Farm Collective is a network of farms founded in 2005 by Remembrance Farm in Trumansburg, and Stick and Stone Farm in Ithaca, both in upstate New York. Together with other producers the two original farms are able to provide a large variety of organic produce to their 500-member summer CSA and to their 300-member winter CSA throughout the Ithaca area. Residents of New York City have been able to share in the benefits of CSA membership during the winter with the Full Plate Collective through the Hawthorne Valley CSA located in Ghent, N.Y. This winter, beginning in January, 2012 the Full Plate Collective will be working with CSA members in NYC directly for the first time.

Winter CSA from the Full Plate Farm Collective

The farms of the Full Plate Collective are situated in New York’s fertile Finger Lakes Region close to Ithaca, about four and one half hours by car northwest of New York City. This area of New York is the home of many innovative small growers of organic produce, milk, cheese and meats. The farms feel a strong sense of fellowship as they are involved in this special project. It is not unusual for the farms to share resources, equipment, and sometimes their labor, including childcare! Most of all they share an active commitment to food justice. (See www.healthyfoodforall.org for more info.)

Those who become members of the Winter CSA in Brooklyn will receive a box of vegetables twice a week. Included in the box will be 2 pounds of carrots, 2 pounds of potatoes, onions or leeks, 2 pounds of other root vegetables,  2 bunches of cooking greens, and a mix of other items like baby spinach, kohlrabi, Brussels Sprouts, cabbage, and winter squash.  Also included will be some special tasty farm treats such as lacto-fermented pickles, apples and tender baby salad greens straight from the greenhouse.

All of the produce from the Full Plate Collective is organically grown in the Finger Lakes region and packed one day before being shipped down to BIG!NYC. One of the collective’s farmers, Chaw Chang, visited the BIG!NYC warehouse recently to reach out to potential new members in the City. While there he noticed that,

“People are really excited to hear how flexible our share is in terms of the pick-up schedule: you can swing by any time during BIG’s regular business hours to pick up your share.  We’re really grateful to BIG!NYC for hosting us here.”

For more info or to sign up for a Winter CSA Share: Katie Church, CSA coordinator
fullplatefarms@yahoo.com or 607.342.7632
www.fullplatefarms.org

Getting the Call

Receiving a call from on-staff florist Laura Dowling quite awhile ago, Thompson replied,

“My answer was an unqualified ‘Yes!’”

Thompson is a UCLA fine arts grad who trained as a sculptor and has a skill for bringing the look of the outdoors inside.  As she explained about this project, “I wanted it to feel as if it is an incredible extension of the place.”

Working on the East Room

Thompson was given the East Room as her main project, but was also allowed to add touches to other areas of The White House.  She used the East Room to create a 5-foot garden. She used the fireplaces to create miniature mountain ranges with rocks that her father foraged for her in Vermont.

Piling the rocks in her car in Brooklyn, Thompson and her husband, writer Austin Kelley, then drove the truck to Washington after Thanksgiving to begin the project.

Thompson has helped to bring Christmas cheer to The White House and to decorate the East Room with a stunning display.

Picture by Miller Elisa/Elisa Miller for The New York Daily News.

Working alongside the Cuomo administration in Albany, New York City’s project will support 737 affordable homes. Work being done on these units is projected to create nearly 1,400 new jobs.

“The state of New York is pleased and proud to provide these resources to support New York City’s efforts to provide affordable housing opportunities to hundreds of our families,” said Daryl C. Towns, New York State Homes and Community Renewal commissioner.

The Brooklyn projects include: the Truxton Residence, developed in partnership with Service for the Underserved in Brownsville; 329 Lincoln Road, developed in partnership with Province House and Alembic Development in Crown Heights South; and Cyprus Village, developed in partnership with Cyprus Hills Local Development Corporation in Cyprus Hills.

“The creation and preservation of affordable housing is an economic engine for the city, strengthening our neighborhoods and providing housing for New Yorkers with a range of incomes,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “These tax credits allow us to leverage private sector investment to fund 737 units in 13 projects, creating nearly 1,400 construction and construction related jobs.”

“His leg was just hanging there,” Kasia Bednarska said. “I understand they’re both animals, but you should have some control over your pet.

After searching got the dog’s owner, who Kasia described as a “blond thirty-something year old,” she began posting fliers throughout the park and posted an ad on Craigslist, recounting the incident and asking for help.

The story was taken up by the Brooklyn Paper, and was later publicized on TV. At least six people came forward, offering to help with the medical bills. In the end, an orthopedist and several other anonymous donors funded the dog’s $5,000 bone graft. Doctors said Tali was close to losing his leg, but the procedure ended well.

“It’s a happy ending,” Bednarska said. “He’s expected to fully recover, I’m very grateful.”
Kasia has stated that she may sue the pit bull’s owner if she is ever found.

Laura Robbins, DSW

Hospital for Special Surgery

Robbins is senior vice president of education and academic affairs at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan, where she is also associate scientist.

The ARHP is a division of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) which held its 2011 Annual Scientific Meeting in Chicago on November 5th, during which the award to Ms. Robbins

was presented.

Significant Lifetime Contribution

The lifetime achievement award is bestowed on a former or current member of ARHP whose work has shown a remarkable and powerful contribution to rheumatology and related fields and professions.

“Dr. Robbins is an amazing volunteer. She has provided her expertise to both the ARHP and the Arthritis Foundation,” commented Linda Ehrlich-Jones, the president of the ARHP.

“In 2010, Dr. Robbins was extremely helpful to me during my year as ARHP President. Dr. Robbins is a well-known qualitative researcher who works with underserved populations. She sees the big picture and is a forward-thinking administrator. This year, Dr. Robbins’ will receive the ARHP Lifetime Achievement Award, which is well deserved.”

Fundraiser for Conservation

The Conservancy, a nonprofit organization that focuses on preservation, restoration and green development of infrastructure of the canal and the area around it is doing this fundraiser from 6-12 pm in the new space that Build It Green NYC has on Ninth Street.

All sorts of local businesses are getting in on the action. There will be a three-course dinner catered by Lot 2, beer from Butternut, Captain Lawrence and other New York breweries and three Brooklyn-based rock bands.

Proceeds Helping Various Programs

All of the proceeds from the event will help the Gowanus Canal Conservancy and their composting program. They have, to date, 12 cubic yards of compost that they use to restock the depleted soil along the canal. The money will also help their monthly volunteer program, Clean and Green, which picks up trash, plants trees and builds rain gardens.

As Andrew Simons, the board chair for the Conservancy said,

“The Winter Festival will directly help us to get three green infrastructure projects built within the next year. It will be money well spent in the neighborhood. The fundraiser is all about our neighborhood citizens helping to get the Gowanus-area improved.”