Usdan to Display NYC Student Art Exhibits This Spring

Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts, the nationally renowned summer arts day camp, will present three different free student art exhibits in Manhattan this spring, at the lobby gallery at 430 Park Avenue (between 55th-56th Streets) during March and April, and in May at the 7th floor gallery of the UJA-Federation at 130 East 59th Street (between Park-Lexington Avenues). This will be the largest series of off-site exhibits ever shown by the Long Island center, which for several years has displayed the work of its visual arts students on Long Island and New York City. The artists to be displayed were ages 10-18 when the works were created during the 2014 (the information included below are their current ages) season.

The first show, titled Humankind: Portraits, is a set of 13 portraits, some painted, some photographed. It will show at the lobby gallery at 430 Park Avenue from Monday March 9th through March 31st. The artists are Delaney R. Cone, 15, of Patchogue, Molly Kaye, 17, of Dix Hills; Emily Kehrli, 18, of Merrick; Hannah Elise Kline, 14, of Manhasset; Justin Meyer, 16, of Huntington; Madeleine Mottel, 19, of Plainview; and Rachel Spiegler, 13, of Old Bethpage.

The second, simply titled Humankind, April 1-30, also at 430 Park Avenue, is completely diverse, including photography, painting and images of ceramics pieces. The artists are Christie Brand, 10, of Huntington; Ally Braunschweig, 15, of Jericho; Delaney Callaghan, 16, of Wantagh; Katharine Colgan, 13, of Sea Cliff; Diya Chadha, 13, of Woodbury; Rachel Dehan, 15, of Commack; Julia Ferrugio, 15, of Farmingdale; Jason Glazer, 14, of Plainview; Kristen Goepfert, 16, of Hicksville; Adrian Ke, 13, of Roslyn Heights; Emily Kehrli; Jessena Maxwell, 16, of the Bronx; Ethan Means, 13, of Brooklyn; Ava Nederlander, 14, of Manhattan; Sophia Santella, 15, of Centereach; and Sierra Schlesinger, 11, of Merrick.

The third exhibit, titled On Hope and Humankind, will show May 1 to 25 at the 7th floor gallery of the UJA-Federation (there will be an opening reception on Thursday May 7 at 6 PM). Usdan Center is an agency of the UJA, although it is open to all children, and frequently creates works on Jewish themes. Last June, several of its visual arts classes collectively created a Holocaust-themed multi-media piece titled "Hope," based on interviews with Holocaust survivors, and the work won a first prize in the annual student competition of Long Island's Museum of Tolerance. The work of all of the student artists in the previous two exhibits will be featured.

Usdan's former Manhattan exhibits have included "In Focus," it 2014 display of student photography, and in previous years, shows combining painting, drawing and multi-media work. The Center's students have also had dedicated shows at the Huntington (Long Island) Library, the Atrium at Long Island's Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, the Heckscher Museum's "Best of Long Island," and other Long Island venues.

The exhibits are curated by Rochelle Morgan, Chair of Usdan Center's Visual Arts Department. Several teachers worked with the students over last summer to prepare the work for exhibit. They are: Lorraine Angeletti, Jackie Eggleton, Dan Gosnell, Heather Heckel, Melissa Johnides, Lori Oldaker, Lori Sklar and Bailey Whitney.

Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts, on a magnificent 200-acre woodland campus in the Huntington section of Long Island, is now entering its 48th season. It has introduced the arts to more than 60,000 Tri-State Area children, many on scholarship, since its founding in 1968. The Center is open to all young people from ages 5 to 18, and no audition is needed for most courses, only an interest. Usdan offers more than 40 programs, in music, dance, theater, visual arts, creative writing, nature and ecology and chess, in flexible 3, 4 and 7-week sessions. Although the mission of the Center is for every child to establish a relationship with the arts, the unique stimulation of the Center has caused many to go on to arts careers. Alumni include Natalie Portman, Mariah Carey, jazz star Jane Monheit, Seth Rudetsky, Jackie Hoffman, Olivia Thirlby, Taylor Dane and members of Broadway shows and major music, theater, and dance ensembles such as the Boston Pops and the New York City Ballet. Usdan's 2015 season begins June 29 and runs through August 14, and the Center is now holding Open Houses for it. For more information, write to info@usdan.com, Call (212) 772-6060 or (631) 643-7900, or visit www.usdan.com