BEDFORD-STUYVESANT — Organizers of an annual art festival held on the front steps of Bed-Stuy’s brownstones are hoping to expand this year’s event by offering performances in a wider region of the neighborhood.
STooPs, an all-day art fair, returns for the third year this summer with the goal of reaching more community members.
“We’re trying to spread out in Bed-Stuy with concentrated performance zones and cover more surface area,” said founder Kendra Ross.
In previous years, the festival hosted artists on the sidewalks, backyards and stoops within a large radius from Marcy and Patchen avenues to Putnam Avenue and Fulton Street, Ross added.
Performances in certain outer lying areas did not get as much traffic, prompting the change.
This time around, there will be four zones with up to six stoops each to encourage participation. The locations have yet to be determined.
STooPS was created in 2013 to “use art as a tool to build community,” Ross said. Onlookers can pick up a guide at the 375 Stuyvesant Ave. mansion and walk from house to house for a hodgepodge of local talents.
The organization is currently accepting artists’ applications for a series of diverse, interactive performances on June 28. Past productions included traditional dancers, theater skits, spoken word, recipe swaps and hair designs.
Artists with strong ties to Bed-Stuy are preferred and submissions must be received by March 23.
Dancer Maxine Montilus, who performed at STooPs for the past two years, said she wouldn’t miss the opportunity to connect with her neighbors this June.
In 2014, she presented a gentrification piece on the stoop of Councilman Robert Cornegy’s home. Participants were asked to write down their thoughts on developments in the neighborhood as Montilus danced to an instrumental version of Bruce Hornsby and the Range’s “The Way It Is.”
“The idea of STooPs was always exciting to me because so many artists live in Bed-Stuy and yet we’re always leaving to go to other parts of the city to perform,” Montilus said.
“Even though changes are happening in this neighborhood there are still not many access points for the different art forms showcased in STooPs. This is a great way for locals and those beyond to get a taste.”
The organization is hoping to raise up to $40,000 for the event. For updates, visit the STooP Facebook page.
