Join us in Port Chester, New York for a day of creativity and inspiration for all ages at the 1st Annual Port Chester Arts Festival. The festival will be a celebration of the arts groups and artists that make our town a creative hub. All events will be free and open to the public, including exhibitions, open studios, workshops, performances, and pop-up installations. From longstanding spaces like The Capitol Theatre and Clay Art Center, to new additions like Ice Cream Social Art Space, Port Chester offers an exciting array of access to the arts as part of our culture.
Ice Cream Social will offer a full schedule of free programming at our site, including:
11 am - 8 pm: Greater Gravity, our current exhibition on view in the gallery, in addition to a small show of work by the artists in the ICS studios.
11 am - 12 pm: “Beyond What the Eye Can See: Agamographs and Cubomania Images”, a family art workshop led by ICS studio artist, Adina Andrus. Join us for a family art-making workshop focusing on two easy methods of creating new ways to view found images. Agamographs combine images, including drawings and/or photos, to form an optical illusion that changes when viewed at different angles. Great for developing fine motor and image recognition skills in young artists! For older participants similar materials can be used to make images inspired by Cubomania, a method developed by Romanian Surrealist Gherasim Luca. Cubomania forms new meanings from found images and allows the subconscious to create more freely. Both activities will utilize paper collage materials and require no special skills.
12 pm: Kid’s Smash Art event led by Jac Lahav, one of the artists in Greater Gravity. One of the show’s sculptures is a sleeper artwork filled with candy inside! Artist Jac Lahav will ask kids to smash it open - in the tradition of piñata, pignata, and general artwork iconoclasm - turning our traditional notion of art appreciation on its head.
1 - 4 pm: Open artist studios - Come tour the spaces at ICS and learn about the practices of the artists working here. Make sure to stop by our Artist-in-Residence, SK Reed’s studio!
2 - 3 pm: LawnChair Theatre Workshop, “Introduction to Breath and Body Song-work”, led by Lorna Whittemore. Lorna is a voice and drama coach specializing in breath and body work. Utilizing the Linklater technique for actors and singers, her natural approach focuses on connecting the body and the voice, with the goal of creating a seamless voice. At this workshop, you will have an opportunity to learn some breathing and vocal exercises, and to begin to apply those exercises to your own singing. Bring a song you love to sing.
3 - 4 pm: LawnChair Theatre Workshop, “Acting for Anyone”, led by Mat Young. Mat Young is an actor, director, writer, and theatre educator. A graduate of The New Actor’s Workshop, Mat was trained by some of America’s finest directors and acting teachers. In addition to founding multiple improvisation troupes, Mat is the artistic director of The Naked Shakespeare Company and has directed and acted for LawnChair Theatre for over a decade. Mat wrote and directed LCT’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Queen in 2021. In this workshop, you will be lead through a series of acting exercises. Mat will begin with exercises from the Viewpoints method, designed to center you, both in the present and in your body. You will use dialogue, to act and react, using the concepts of Objective and Action to achieve a character’s goals. We promise you an exciting and informative time.
4 - 5 pm: LawnChair Theatre Workshop, “Yes, and now what?”, led by Mario Fuentes and Kevin Rishel. Get ready to unleash your inner improviser and learn the power of agreement! We're thrilled to invite you to our one-hour Improv led by the dynamic duo, Mario Fuentes and Kevin Rishel. These two pros have been teaching and performing in Manhattan for almost 20 years and are ready to share their foundational skills with you. From active listening to reacting truthfully in a scene, they'll guide you through exercises and games that will boost your confidence and help you make your partner look like a star. But it's not just about being a better performer on stage - the skills you'll learn can be applied to all areas of your life, whether you're speaking in public or just communicating more effectively in your relationships. And the best part? You'll do it all in a supportive and super fun environment! So don't miss out on this incredible opportunity to learn from two of the best in the biz. Get ready to enrich your life both personally and professionally - we can't wait to see you there!
5:30 - 8 pm: Opening reception celebration for the Greater Gravity exhibition.
All events are free and open to the public, with no requirement to register in advance.
Please note: photography will occur at these events.
