New Views/Old Pews – December 30 is the deadline!

New Views/Old Pews – January 15th is the deadline for a pew proposal!

CAST (Center for Advocacy Support & Transformation) is teaming up with North Fork Contemporary to give new life to the wooden pews recently removed from the former Southold Methodist church that is now CAST’s Southold headquarters. They are issuing a call for proposals from artists, architects, craftspeople, carpenters, or anyone else with ideas for ways to transform 19th century church pews into works of art, architecture, landmarks, or follies.  The call is in two phases. The first requests that people submit their application form and an image or description of their idea to nfc.pews@gmail.com (images should be no larger than 1900 pixels) by December 30, 2023.  An exhibit of the ideas will be held at CAST and online – February 4^th through 17^th, 2024. The chosen artists may then work on their pews, which will be shown at CAST from April 7, 2024 – April 14, 2024. The culmination will be an auction of the reimagined pews on April 14.

The proposals will be judged and auctioned by Barry Bergdoll, the Meyer Schapiro Professor of Art History, Columbia University. He has curated exhibitions for several institutions, including the Canadian Centre for Architecture and the Museum of Modern Art, where he served as Philip Johnson Chief Curator from 2007 to 2013.

CAST is a charitable organization that promotes self-sufficiency and provides a safety net for North Fork and Shelter Island residents in need. North Fork Contemporary, (NFC), a new arts organization, suggested “re-cycling” the retired antique pews by commissioning artists to transform them to give them new lives.