Sen. Joseph Addabbo Jr. held a concert and artist showcase at the Forest Hills Jewish Center to display a wide range of his constituents’ talents last weekend on Oct. 26. Some of the favorites present at the showcase were a geometric origami creator, a comic book illustrator, a woman who preserves mixed media with resin, a ventriloquist, a musical impressionist and a 95-year-old Korean War Veteran opera singer.
Artists with talents of all kinds were welcomed to apply to Addabbo’s ad, just as long as they lived within the large swathe of Queens’ District 15, which covers the neighborhoods of Howard Beach, Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, Woodhaven, Middle Village, Glendale, Forest Hills, Rego Park and Maspeth. The art gallery portion of the event is strictly for display purposes only, but Addabbo says there’s no harm if the artwork swaps hands out in the parking lot. Protected under the First Amendment, artistic works do not require a general vendor license to be sold on the street.
The second annual showcase, Addabbo says he plans to continue the event in the future, as the it not only shows everyone the talent hidden in their community, but is an excellent chance for artists to connect with each other. If any hopeful creatives missed out on their opportunity to perform or display their works they simply need to record or document some samples of their work on social media in preparation for the next announcement.
“Thank you to everyone who participated in our second Artist Showcase. It was a truly inspiring afternoon and a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the rich talent within Senate District 15. I look forward to hosting our third Artist Showcase next year,” Addabbo said.
The community event is one of many Addabbo organized in recent months to keep people both entertained and informed. Other recent events include a live Jazz concert and a guided bird watching tour in Forest Park, and upcoming next week is Addabbo’s annual job fair.
