Artwork by Grayson Revoir.

Artwork by Willis Elkins and Claire Hansen.

Stranger Drawings went up last night, and came down as strangers were introduced to artists and took the works home.

Continue reading: Photos from Stranger Drawings

Stranger Drawings, in which strangers submit portraits to be rendered by strangers, is opening tomorrow, for one night only, at Cooper Union’s Great Hall Gallery. If you sent in a self-portrait to be drawn, come and meet the stranger who drew you. If you didn’t send in a self-portrait to be drawn, come and get out of your cave.

December 12, 2006 6-8PM
The Great Hall Gallery, Basement Level
Cooper Union
7 East 7th Street

The demolition party for the Hewitt Building at Cooper Square is coming up, so the “I Miss the Old NY” neatly written in olde english lettering is fitting. Once the construction barriers go up, it’s hard not to mourn the imminent destruction of familiar buildings. Serf painted outlines across the parapet on two sides of the building too.

Entralled with the demolition work of the Cooper Union arts community, but sad you missed your chance to participate? Don’t mope around. Partake in a completely original project and commission an art student to construct a portrait of you, for free! Our friend Emily has set it all up. All you need to do is send in a photo and attend the opening where your portrait will be on display. Here’s how it works:

1. I receive your photo sent to draw@emilygrenader.com (details).

2. I ask my friends to choose and draw one of the collected images.

3. I collect the drawings for the show on December 12th at Cooper.

4. You come to the show on December 12th to receive your drawing and to see the other drawings.

5. I take a picture of you by your drawing before you remove it, to give a copy to the artist who made your free drawing and to use as documentation of the project.

For more information see the official flyer!

Big Self-Portrait by Chuck Close.

There comes a point after every option is exhausted to throw in the towel and accept your fate. For 120 art students at Cooper Union, that means moving their studios from the East Village to Long Island City. As Cooper Union prepares to demolish its Hewitt Building on Third Ave. and construct a green building of undulating metal screens in its place, The Villager reported students are suffering some serious angst. Fortunately for their own sanity, it seems they are past the stage of mourning and on to the more enjoyable stages of celebration, decoration, and straight up demolition. While some create homages to the doomed building and others recreate Rock and Roll High School, everyone kicks a hole in the wall because it’s just so damn fun.

Continue reading: Cooper Art Students Decorate in Face of Destruction