ROOT HILL CAFE'S FEATURED ARTIST: KATHERINE GRESSEL REARVIEWS: BROOKLYN

Katherine Gressel's scenes from moving vehicles aim to show the tension between the safe, stable inside of a vehicle and the fluctuating, transient, and sometimes unrecognizable landscapes seen over the course of one ride. The work in Rearviews: Brooklyn investigates issues of development, nostalgia, and branding in her current home of Brooklyn (and in particular the changing neighborhoods of Park Slope/Gowanus and Downtown Brooklyn/DUMBO). Katherine juxtaposes views of contemporary transitional public spaces seen from car windows with images of new buildings in progress and their visual advertising campaigns. She appropriates historic Brooklyn images (including old Brooklyn real estate ads), to show both contrasts and connections between past, present, and future perceptions of Brooklyn. 

Katherine is an artist, writer and curator based in Park Slope, Brooklyn. In addition to painting the Root Hill Cafe mural in 2009, Katherine has exhibited her artwork at such venues as the Brooklyn Arts Council gallery, Brooklyn Public Library, City Without Walls in Newark, and the 2010 FIGMENT season-long sculpture garden on Governors Island. She was a 2008 Abbey Mural Fellow at the National Academy of Fine Arts and a 2009 CEC ArtsLink travel grantee to do public art projects in Russia. She currently serves as Programs Manager at Smack Mellon gallery, and is also currently curating exhibits at Brooklyn’s Old Stone House and FIGMENT 2012 on Governors Island. Katherine also works as a live event painter, capturing scenes of weddings, fundraisers and other private parties. 

Please visit www.katherinegressel.com for more information.

Gowanus Corners

In honor of Root Hill Cafe's upcoming 4year anniversary, the RHC Arts Series is celebrating not only the neighborhood's vibrant local arts community, but also the unique industrial landscape that inspires it.

This month, don't miss "GOWANUS CORNERS," a photo exhibit by local artist  Donna Schneiderman, whose love for Gowanus grew over the past 10 years.

"Along my daily travels between home, school, work and back again, I adopted particular corners and buildings as quiet companions," said Schneiderman. "Most of these structures no longer stand sentry – having been demolished or renovated as part of the ongoing (re)development of the neighborhood."

Her exhibit at Root Hill captures a moment in Gowanus before many changes took hold, with a focus on light, color, shapes and shadows during "a fleeting phase when children were younger and days were defined by crossings of the Gowanus Canal."

ABOUT THE ARTIST
Originally from Ohio and then New Jersey, serendipity brought Donna to Carroll Gardens in 1986. Her photos combine two loves – vintage cameras and neighborhood discoveries, utilizing low-tech cameras, forgotten film formats and large darkroom prints to best capture the treasured pockets in and around Red Hook, Gowanus, and Coney Island. For more on Donna Schneiderman, visit her website.

Artists previously featured as part of the RHC Arts Series include Caleb Crawford, Frank Ishman, Lourdes Sánchez and Percy Aguayo

Rose-Emma is a contender!

Photo by Stefano Giovannini

Rose-Emma uses a sword to make latte art

Love is in the Air

Love is in the air in Gowanus, Root Hill Cafe continues its ongoing series celebrating local art with a new exhibit by Brooklyn-based artist and architect Caleb Crawford. His collection of hand-drawn Valentine’s Day cards, saved over the past 10 years, began as a tribute to “the two women in his life,” his wife Annie, and 14-year-old daughter, Madeline. 

“The cards are a parallel to a series of drawings I variously call Form Poems, Autodidactic Drawings, and Useless Drawings,” Crawford said of his work. “These Valentines are confections. Their sole intent is delight.”  

Because they were gifts, the original drawings displayed are not for sale, but framed copies, as well as postcard sets of 10, are available for purchase at Root Hill through the end of February. Custom drawings can be commissioned for Valentine’s Day, birthdays and anniversaries.  

Caleb Crawford is a practicing artist and architect living and working in Brooklyn. He is a graduate of Pratt Institute and SCI-Arc in LA. To learn more about Caleb Crawford, or to commission his work, visit his  blog and website.  

Crawford’s wife of 18 years, renowned artist and designer Annie Coggan, recently displayed her own work as part of the RHC Arts Series in a 3D exhibit, "The Chair Show." Other local artists previously featured in the space include  Frank Ishman, Lourdes Sánchez and  Percy Aguayo.

Winter Time

Holiday Hours

The Best Gift Idea Ever!

Ok, so we have the perfect gift for your coffee crazed friend or family member! 

This is our Gift Certificate: 

This glorious form of currency can be any amount you desire. It can be used to purchase anyone of our coffee or expresso drinks made by our fabulous baristas.... or be used to grab a bag of the new Root Hill Blend! It can also be used to purchase a sweet pastry in the morning or something savory in the afternoon. It is the ultimate gift. 

Here it is again in a different light. 

Just look at it! It's so pretty! 

Don't just think of it as a slender piece of paper with a really cool looking design on it, but view it as an opportunity for its recipient to get a sip or bite of pure goodness.

People will totally be envious of this gift, so it's best to go ahead a get a few so none of your friends or family get jealous.

Happy Holidays!

Take us with you

Next week many of you will be heading off to see your family and friends in other parts of the world. You should know that we will miss you very much. We will miss seeing your sleepy-eyed faces in the morning and your awake selves in the evening; we will miss the brief conversations we have that give us an insight into your exciting day; we will miss the simple nod or tip of the hat from some of you; and we will really miss that smile you give after your first sip of coffee. All of this means so much and that smile in particular means that all our hard work has been worth it. But we understand you have to go away, so why not take something with you... something that will make us both smile.
How about your very own Root Hill Coffee...

What's inside is a blend that's a little bit artist, a little bit city, and made with a whole lot of love. Grab the very first bag of the Root Hill Blend today!

Art Up: Annie Coggan

If you stop by this week you will immediately notice something different about the our space. Hung along the north wall is a row of wooden chairs all painted with light blue. Some parts of these chairs are painted with green, yellow, & red; some parts of these chairs have been replaced by seemingly unrelated objects.

So what's the deal? Is Root Hill becoming a furniture store? No, these beautiful pieces are created by artist and designer Annie Coggan, who's work we'll be featuring this month. Annie Coggan work uses furniture as a means of story telling. Her work personifies everyday objects, in order to give them a whole new meaning. Her work has been shown nationwide and she has been noted by Interior Design Magazine, Design Sponge, Bloesem, and Yatzer, to name a few.

Come by and see this very unique neo-folk art.

You've earned it

You've had a busy post-holiday week and you deserve something special. There is a mountain of muffins available or something else rewarding for all your hard work this week. Come by and enjoy!

If you're not in too much of a rush or even in a tired haze you might want to considered justing down and enjoying your treat. This is what you do: grab a treat, grab a coffee, and just stare out our large window. Do a little people watching... and then, if you really have to, go rush off to your day.