Powerhouse Arena
Neighborhood: DUMBO
Type of Place: Brooklyn
Event Space
Description:
So what's this we've heard about overnight lines, camping tents, and pepper-spray incidents as folks attempt to grab up holiday deals? Come on now: If people are ditching loved ones and celebrations, causing retail clerks to ditch theirs, physically hurting others, or getting hurt themselves, the end result is not a deal. It's embarrassing and tacky at best; at worst, it's a shameful disaster.
The announcement I saw this past week from Powerhouse Arena (a bookstore/gift shop/art space/performance space, and an offshoot of art-book publishers Powerhouse Books) did not blare promises of cut-throat prices or "Everything Must Go." What it said was that there would be a free stenciling workshop, in cooperation with Etsy, to celebrate the publication of master stenciler Ed Roth's "Stencil 201." Attendees could bring t-shirts, totes, or fabric to stencil; or they could purchase totes at the store. Free wine and cookies would be served (something Walmart would not be advised to try).
I arrived to find cheerful chaos—brushes, ink pads, stencils, fabric-marking Sharpees, and lots of folks sharing these materials and showing off their results. I also found a large, beautiful space (people rent it out for their weddings!) that could contain a lot more merchandise for sale than it does. Instead, the people in charge here have gone for quality over quantity and open space over inventory surplus. But what they have is wonderful. After I tried my hand at stenciling (totally fun) and got a glass of wine (delish), I browsed around and admired, for example, "Coco Chanel: An Intimate Life" ($27.95); "Best Music Writing 2011" ($16, and how excellent: a writing category overlooked for greatness until recently); and "The Fran Lebowitz Reader" ($17.95, in the "staff picks" section). Non-book-wise, I admired the wide array of elegant picture frames; the candles (starting at around $14; most labeled hand-crafted; and one from Paddywax, $24.95, with a lovely 'tis-the-season Dickens quote: "I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year"); the pottery (such as a white porcelain vase in the shape of a soda can, $10), the holiday cards (one pictures a yellow cab with a Christmas tree strapped to its roof; $15.95 for the box); and a big gift tag with a drawn map of Brooklyn ($14) that was pretty enough to frame.
The space's website states, "Powerhouse Arena showcases a series of landmark exhibitions, performances, and controlled mayhem, fusing the worlds of art, photography, design, fashion, pop culture, advertising, music, dance, film, and television into a glorious whirlwind of captivating spectacle." I'd say that yes, 50 or so happy novice stencilers did make up a glorious whirlwind. Coming soon is a screening of "wonderfully terrible music videos" (December 8) and an attempt to set a record for the "biggest group hug in a bookstore" (December 9). Both events are free. This—not pushing and shoving, not lines for half a day, not grabbing wildly for things you don't need—is a shopping experience that's also a lot of fun. - Pamela Grossman; Dec 05, 2011
Powerhouse Arena
37 Main Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201
(718) 666-3049
Website
Map
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