Tour Artist Studios FREE This Weekend

The 12th Annual Gowanus Artists Studios Tour (A.G.A.S.T.) runs this weekend from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday. This free event is open to the public and presents Brooklynites with an excellent opportunity to peer into the imaginations of their most creative neighbors.

Among the artists whose works will be on display is my fellow blogger and Brooklyn painter Michael Sorgatz (his work is pictured above). His studio is one of many at the collaborative Brooklyn Artist's Gym (BAG) at 168 7th St. between 2nd and 3rd Avenues.

If painting is not your thing, A.G.A.S.T. promises many other artists of all media who will be personally presenting their creations in their intimate work environments. The studios span the Park Slope, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, and Boerum Hill neighborhoods. For a complete tour map and directions, click here.

What's Going On

Here are some of the stories The Optimist has been reading today:

A.O. Scott has a fine appraisal today of former Boerum Hill resident Heath Ledger's short, but admirable career.

The Brownstoner blog, which was highlighted in the Times' initial story about Ledger's death for coverage of the time the actor spent living in Brooklyn, has an article about Councilman David Yassky's proposed bill that would require gas companies to gradually blend biodiesel fuel into the heating oil they provide.

"Much of Downtown Brooklyn Is Going Out of Business". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle's headline tells the whole disheartening story.

The Brooklyn Paper has a striking sneak peek image of artist Olafur Eliasson's "New York City Waterfalls", "which will send water cascading from under the Brooklyn Bridge and from three free-standing scaffolds in New York Harbor".

And finally, Time Out New York's poll this week asks its readers what they think about the Pacific Standard bar in Boerum Hill's "frequent drinker program" that rewards hardcore barflies with prizes for being, uh, hardcore barflies. Since the URL listed in the magazine doesn't take to the right poll, here are the verbatim answers proposed by TONY to the question of whether the promotion is genius or "what".

a) No! It's rewarding people for alcohol abuse - this is a lawsuit waiting to happen.
b) Hells yeah! It's no worse than credit cards offering points for high-interest borrowing.
c) It's okay as long as the bar offers free car service.
d) I'm too drunk to care.

The Optimist hopes you didn't automatically leap (or stumble) at option "d".