By Carla Zanoni
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
INWOOD — Upper Manhattan has long been home to a community of artists — it was only a matter of time before the kids caught on.
And when they did, Karin Dando-Hanish and Diane Ninos — local moms and artists in their own right — were there to harness that talent and showcase it in a temporary gallery-style show in the neighborhood.
The two organized a painting party last month where kids ages four to 10 were taught about mixing colors and asked to answer one question through painting: “What’s your favorite color?”
The answer is a multi-colored collection of 48 painted canvases painted by approximately 25 kids (some had more than one favorite color and a few parents participated as well) that run the gamut from sherbet orange to ruddy brown and vibrant purple to ruby red.
Hannah Kleinbardt, one of Ninos’ twin eight-year-old daughters, said she chose purple and red of their brightness. Her sister, Gracie, chose yellow and orange “just because.”
Five-year-old Nolan Dando-Haenish, who accompanied his brother, Caleb, said he chose his colors – red, brownish grey and green — because he was “feeling a little happy and silly.”
Paloma Martinez, who is also 5-years-old and has an art station in her room, said she picked the color green, because it reminds her of grass.
Declan Peterson, 8, chose gray blue, because he liked it that day.
The result of their collaboration is a strikingly modern collection organized into one piece by Dando-Hanish and Ninos that looks like something one might find in a modern museum or gallery.
“It comes through them,” Dando-Hanish said of the work, which they plan to immortalize in a commemorative poster. “We’re merely setting the stage for what they can do.”
“What’s Your Favorite Color?” hangs in a vacant storefront at the Inwood Center at 5030 Broadway, a space with large windows on street level that allow passersby to peek in and view the more than 6-foot grouping of canvases. The project was supported through donations by local businesses.
“It’s kind of depressing to see empty storefronts,” Ninos said, adding that the idea came from seeing pop up art galleries further downtown.
Hector Rivera, 53, is a mechanic at a nearby garage and said the children’s artwork brightens his day when he passes by.
“Broadway can be lonely here,” he said. “This makes me happier.”
"What's Your Favorite Color" will run at 5030 Broadway through the end of November.
