Talk about pop art!
New York City painters will unleash their finest works into the arena of public opinion on May 10, where they will compete for the public’s affection and a chance to win a break-out solo show at Greenpoint Gallery.
“I want to win this,” said Justin Lefkowitz, a Staten Island painter. “I want the solo show. ”
Participating painters have each submitted five works for judgement at the McGuinness Boulevard gallery on Friday night, when art fans will cast their ballot for the work they feel most deserves to be called a masterpiece. The winner will net $200 — but the real prize is a chance to fill the gallery with their art for a month-long solo show, according to Lefkowitz, who said his submissions for the contest are merely a preview to the small museum’s worth of paintings he’s ready to present.
“The five works I have are a preview of what’s coming, and I have a lot,” he said.
Lefkowitz, a financial analyst, contracted the debilitating Lyme disease in January of 2016, which left him easily exhausted and highly sensitive to light. As a result, he could no longer endure the glare of television screens or computer monitors, and so he turned to painting as a pastime that did not leave him in total agony.
“I would have loved to see the last few Avengers movies, but I can’t look at a screen for more than a few minutes,” Lefkowitz said. “If not for Lyme disease, I probably never would have gotten into painting.”
Attending the gallery event will not be easy for Lefkowitz, but he plans to wear big headphones and sunglasses to block out the cacophony of the gallery for as long as he can stand it, he said.
The chance to exhibit his art, and the opportunity to bring some smiles to people’s faces makes it all worth it, he said.
“I’m driven to make people smile on a daily basis,” said Lefkowitz. “My life really sucks, and if I can make people smile it makes me feel better on the inside.”
Vote for art at Greenpoint Gallery (390 McGuinness Blvd. between Clay and Dupont streets in Greenpoint, www.thegr
