In Memory of Greg O’Connell

Former president Audrey Anastasi presented Greg with an appreciation award from BWAC on May 20, 2000.

Greg O'Connell passed away August 2, 2025. He was tall in stature but even larger-than-life in character. From substitute teaching in his early working days to becoming a New York City Police detective, where he served for 17 years, Greg was just getting started. Driven by his sense of fairness rooted in his upbringing, responsibility to community and vision for a better tomorrow, he began acquiring properties in Brooklyn, while he was still a police detective, with the thought of revitalizing neighborhoods he felt had been overlooked.

Greg working on the Red Hook waterfront in 1998. Behind him is where Fairway Supermarket (now Food Bazaar) is located.

It's safe to say there would be no Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition in Red Hook if it weren't for Greg O'Connell. Greg turned his eye to the Red Hook waterfront in the 1970s. He had been friends of BWAC and BWAC members for years, and now that he had the space and the vision of what a vibrant waterfront could be, he invited the art group to exhibit there in the 1990s.

For two decades, BWAC was mounting annual outdoor sculpture shows in Empire Ferry State Park between the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges. Their move to Red Hook would be a monumental change in more ways than one.

Greg in his pickup truck when the supermarket building was under construction.

As Greg envisioned the restoration of several buildings, BWAC was given space to exhibit in a variety of places. BWAC was mounting annual shows, and was thrilled to have the raw space on the waterfront. After moving around for a few years, at the end of the '90s he offered BWAC the space it now occupies, prompting the opportunity for quarterly exhibitions.

Greg was always interested in seeing what this group of artists brought to exhibit, attending openings and reveling in his association with artists. Former BWAC president Audrey Anastasi, in remembering Greg, said, "He was always excited to express how the artists helped him to pay attention to light and space. And so much of his generosity came from a deep-seated sense of fairness."

To say that BWAC will miss his presence is an understatement. Perhaps current BWAC president Alicia Degener summed it up best when she said, "I never actually met Greg Sr., but we spoke several times on the phone. One of the things we talked about was how BWAC was one of the few places people could come to see art and not feel stressed in a crowded gallery. Thank you Greg, for always having the best interests of BWAC in mind, working through any and all obstacles to allow the BWAC art community the space to exhibit their art. Your gift will be forever treasured by the artists and art lovers of Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition."

(Please read the family obituary of Greg O'Connell by clicking here)

Greg, Ray Hall and Earl.

Photos by Debra Hershkowitz

An Open Call For Heavy Metal

Heavy Metal is an exhibition of contemporary artists who use metal as a primary material in their work. From traditional techniques such as cast sculpture to more recent technologies such as laser engraving artists have long used metal as a source material and medium. 

Heavy Metal will feature artists who make work out of metal using a variety of different techniques, methods, aesthetics and scale. Particular interest will be given to artists who consider the origin of their materials and who use metal as subject matter, addressing topics such as recycling, mining, human consumption and the changing climate.

The exhibition will consist of artworks made with metal and other mediums – wood, glass, printmaking, collage, film, sound, installation and performance. Design objects such as furniture and jewelry may also be included in the exhibition.

Artworks need not be made exclusively with metal and can include other materials so long as metal is a primary medium.

This exhibition will ideally include approximately 20-25 artists from Brooklyn and beyond. There will be a curator and artist talk during the run of the exhibition.

CALL TO ARTISTS FOR SUBMISSIONS

●      Submission Deadline: Final Application Deadline Wednesday, October 1, 2025

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, November 1 – Sunday, November 23, 2025 Weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, November 1, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Complete details in the PDF Prospectus

Submit Entries here

An Open Call for NuYoRICAN Soul

We invite submissions from Puerto Rican, Nuyorican artists, and artists of any background whose work thoughtfully engages with Nuyorican themes, culture, history, or community --- whether through solidarity, collaboration, or deep personal interest.

We’re looking for compelling artwork that captures the depth and complexity of the Nuyorican experience --- works that speak to the themes of migration, cultural memory, resilience, joy, and the dynamic relationship between the diaspora and the island.  

This exhibition offers a platform to be part of a rich and layered visual narrative: an exhibition that serves both as a celebration and a conversation --- rooted in history, rhythm, and the voices of those who carry the island in their hearts, wherever they are.   In this space, we seek to honor the soul of Puerto Rican identity as it manifests in New York ---through vibrant color, texture, form and imagery that tells a story.  

We welcome a wide range of visual expressions, for example: portraits that celebrate community and family, abstract works that channel ancestral rhythms, street photography that captures life in the diaspora, installations that explore identity and displacement, or mixed media pieces that blend language, music, and memory. 

Tell the story.  Join the conversation.  

All visual art forms are welcome, including both traditional and contemporary forms such as painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, mixed media, installation, and digital art.

The exhibition will be curated by Tamavis D. Santiago, a Visual Artist and Independent Curator.

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition (BWAC Gallery) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, artist-run organization housed in a historic Civil War-era warehouse on the Red Hook waterfront in Brooklyn.   Spanning 25,000 square feet of exhibition space, BWAC cultivates a dynamic artistic community by offering artists at every stage of their careers the opportunities to showcase their work and participate in a meaningful creative exchange.  Explore membership opportunities at bwac.org

CALL TO ARTISTS FOR SUBMISSIONS

●      Submission Deadline: Final Application Deadline Friday, August 22, 2025

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, September 13 – Sunday, October 12, 2025, weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, September 13, 2025, from 1‐6 P.M.

See the full PDF Prospectus here

Submit your work on Smarter Entry here

ELEMENTS OF MOVEMENT

This summer member artists explore how motion can be seen through art.  Whether it’s the sweep of a brushstroke, the suggestion of change, or the rhythm of repeated forms.

Movement can be expressed in many ways: a figure in motion, a shifting composition, a fluid gesture, or the passage of time.  This show invites our members express motion in paint, sculpture, photography, mixed media, and various other medium.

• Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, July 19– Sunday, August 24, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

Brooklyn X Pittsburgh: The Industry of Art

Pittsburgh, PA (July 11, 2025) — Associated Artists of Pittsburgh, in partnership with the Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition, is proud to present Brooklyn X Pittsburgh: The Industry of Art, a juried exhibition featuring over 140 works by Pittsburgh and Brooklyn-based artists with a Pittsburgh connection. 

“In the footsteps of Andy Warhol, it is important for Pittsburgh’s artists to have an opportunity to engage with New York, the epicenter of the contemporary art world,” notes exhibition juror Eric Shiner. “This exhibition will give a platform to our city’s artists in the heart of Brooklyn so that they can connect, commune and engage with their NYC peers, collectors and institutions and hopefully expand their practice and network in so doing.”

Eric Shiner is the President of Powerhouse Arts, a Brooklyn not-for-profit committed to creative expression that hosts a network of art and fabrication professionals and educators who work together to co-create and share artistic practices. Shiner was also the director of The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh (2010-2016) and the Milton Fine Curator of Art at The Warhol (2008-2010).

“It’s great to have such a strong advocate for Pittsburgh artists working on this project,” says AAP Executive Director Madeline Gent. “After visiting the BWAC space in New York, Eric immediately identified the similarities between our organizations and suggested this partnership. We were thrilled that he also jumped on board as exhibition juror when we asked.” 

BWAC is open for regular viewing hours Saturdays–Sundays, 1:00pm–6:00pm and by appointment. To learn more about the exhibition, visit https://www.aapgh.org/brooklyn-x-pittsburgh or https://www.bwac.org/. You can also call BWAC at 718-596-2506 or email info@bwac.org

An Open Call for AEROSOL EUPHORIA: The Urban Street Art Scene

Aerosol Euphoria: The Urban Street Art Scene is a national juried exhibition celebrating the raw power, rebellious spirit, and ecstatic energy of urban creativity.

Inspired by the legendary graffiti-covered walls and alleys of NYC and beyond, this exhibition seeks to spotlight the full spectrum of street-influenced expression.

Artists from across the country are invited to submit work that captures the pulse of urban life – its grit, its vibrancy, and its unfiltered voice. From aerosol-spray, gritty graffiti tags to the stories captured in street photography; we are looking for art that embodies the essence of street art. The art that lives outside the lines -- sprayed, tagged, pasted, sculpted, snapped and shouted.

So, if your work drips with grit, color, voice and movement -- submit it today.

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, September 19– Sunday, October 12, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Submission Deadline: Sunday, August 22, 2025

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, September 13, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Read (and/or download) the full prospectus by clicking here 

Ready to submit? Click here

AMPED: The Art of Rock & Roll

This exhibition celebrates the cultural and historical impact of rock and roll, showcasing the exhilarating synergy between visual art and music while exploring the music’s transformative influence on art.

Amped is a visual expression of the energy you experience when this music moves through you and ignites a fire in your soul. We challenge you as an artist to capture and amplify that energy. The exhibition is open to all visual media.

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, July 19– Sunday, August 24, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

Biophilia

From the forests that surround us to the mycelium beneath our feet, nature’s wonders are woven into our world—leaves, needles, branches, fruit and more.

This exhibition explores the beauty, mystery, and pleasure of nature in all its forms. Whether delicate or untamed, fleeting or enduring, organic life inspires and connects us.

Opening soon

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, June 7 – Sunday, June 29, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, June 7, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Creating with Sustainability

We are stewards of this planet we call home and as such have a responsibility to maintain it. This exhibition examines what that stewardship looks like from an artist’s point of view as the BWAC members utilize repurposed and found materials to create wonderful works of art.

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition is proud to partner with Materials for the Arts, who have provided access to free materials for non-profits like us as well as public schools and city agencies since 1979. For more information visit them at https://www.materialsforthearts.org/.

Opening soon

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, June 7 – Sunday, June 29, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, June 7, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Fungi

Fungi, is one of the most mysterious and least understood realms in biology. It holds the power to influence, sustain, and even kill us. This multimedia art exhibition brings together diverse creative expressions all inspired by the enigmatic world of fungi.

Coming Soon!

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, June 7 – Sunday, June 29, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, June 7, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M

An Open Call For AMPED: The Art of Rock & Roll

Amped: The Art of Rock & Roll is an exhibition celebrating the cultural and historical impact of rock and roll, showcasing the exhilarating synergy between visual art and music while exploring the music’s transformative influence on art.

We are looking for work that captures the rebellious spirit of rock and roll.

Amped is a visual expression of the energy you experience when this music moves through you and ignites a fire in your soul. We challenge you as an artist to capture and amplify that energy. The exhibition is open to all visual media.

CALL TO ARTISTS FOR SUBMISSIONS

●      Submission Deadline: Final Application Deadline EXTENDED Sun, June 29, 2025

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, July 19– Sunday, August 24, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, July 19, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Complete details in Prospectus PDF

Ready to submit? Click here

New Yorkers Capturing Nature

This show is designed to showcase how we, as photographers, see nature throughout the city from a variety of perspectives—ranging from up-close details to sweeping, wide-angle views and everything in between. We encourage unique interpretations of nature and aim to highlight the thriving natural world within our
metropolitan environment.

Sierra Photo NYC is a sub-group of the New York City Sierra Club. We bring together nature photographers and enthusiasts who support the Sierra Club’s environmental goals. 

We welcome visitors to our monthly meetings so they can meet others who share their love of nature photography and the environment.

Opening soon

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, June 7 – Sunday, June 29, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, June 7, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

An Open Call For Fungi

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition & Brooklyn Mushroom is proud to announce its open call for the international juried art exhibition “FUNGI.”

 Fungi, one of the most mysterious and least understood realms in biology, holds the power to influence, sustain, and kill us. This multimedia art show brings together diverse creative expressions — such as but not limited to visual art, sculpture, sound art, video, and performance-all inspired by the enigmatic world of fungi.

 We welcome both emerging and seasoned artists to apply. The show will exhibit approximately 40 works. Join us in exploring a realm that bridges art, science, psychedelics, and biology.

 The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition is an artist-run, 501(c)3 nonprofit. With 25,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space set in a Civil War- era warehouse on the waterfront of Red Hook Brooklyn. BWAC provides exhibition opportunities to artists of various levels of experience as well as professional development and public engagement. Explore membership opportunities at bwac.org

 Brooklyn Mushroom is a platform dedicated to cultivating knowledge sharing, arts, culture, and community around all things mycological. This past winter, they held their third biannual Fungi Festival, which drew 1,200 people to the one-day event.

●      Submission Deadline: Final Application Deadline Sunday, May  16, 2025

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates: Saturday, June 07 – Sunday, June 29, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, June 07, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Complete details in the Prospectus PDF here

Ready to submit? Click here

Order/Chaos

Order and chaos are often considered opposites, but they are actually interconnected and can coexist.

In this exhibition BWAC Members tackle questions of how artists in general and how they themselves deal with this dynamic in art. Do they employ techniques governed by outside or objective concerns (physical shape, space, distance, etc. This show is about how do they approach order from that chaos.

If you enjoyed our “Creative Process” exhibition last year you will like Order/Chaos as the member artists share not just a collection of wonderful works but a bit of context as well.

We hope to see at the pier.

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, April 26 – Sunday, May 18, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, April 26, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Dreamscapes: Reimagining What Was Left Behind

BWAC is proud to feature Member artist Sergei Saakian's solo show Dreamscapes: Reimagining What Was Left Behind.

This show blends personal memory and imagination of landscapes and figures from Sergei's childhood in Dagestan. Through subtle abstraction and vivid imagery, his works explore the shifting nature of memory and identity, reflecting on how the places and people we leave behind continue to resonate within us.

Sergei Saakian (b. 1959, Makhachkala, Soviet Dagestan) is a New York-based artits whose work explores themes of displacement, identity, and cultural memory. Growing up in a multicultural, historically complex region deeply shaped his approach to painting and drawing, which continues to evolve since his move to NYC in 1990.

The exhibit will be on view on the second floor for our Spring open.

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, April 26 – Sunday, May 18, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, April 26, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Animalia

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition is proud to announce its national juried art exhibition “Animalia.”

45,000 years ago Homo sapiens pulverized ochre into a powder and mixed it with water to produce a vivid paint they used to represent something with deep symbolic significance and spiritual value on their cave walls in Indonesia: a pig. These “warty pig paintings” are the earliest known examples of abstract thinking and artistic skills by early man. Since that time our obsession with representing animals in art has not waned but flourished.

BWAC kicks off our 2025 season celebrating our relationship with “Animalia” of all kinds represented in various media.

In partnership with local animal rescue groups; dogs and cats will be available for adoption during the show. Trap, Neuter and Release (“TNR”) workshops will also be available for people to get involved helping to maintain NYC’s exploding feral cat communities. “Animalia” celebrates artists long fascination with animals and the art that began with a pig in ochre. 

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, April 26 – Sunday, May 18, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, April 26, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Threaded Visions

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition is excited to announce the national juried art exhibition “Threaded Visions: Fashion in Art.”

Fashion has long been more than just clothing—it is a statement, a form of self-expression, and a reflection of culture, identity, and time. Throughout history, artists have depicted fashion in their work, immortalizing trends and styles that tell stories of class, power, and innovation. Simultaneously, fashion designers have drawn inspiration from art, incorporating techniques, textures, and narratives from paintings, sculptures, and architecture into their creations. Threaded Visions presents a dialogue between these two worlds from traditional to experimental expressions of art. 

This is an interesting show.

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, April 26 – Sunday, May 18, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, April 26, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

An Open Call, Biophilia

BIOPHILIA: The Love of Nature

 From the forests that surround us to the mycelium beneath our feet, nature’s wonders are woven into our world—leaves, needles, branches, sprouts, plants, trees, vegetables, and fruit.

 BWAC invites artists to explore the beauty, mystery, and pleasure of nature in all its forms. Whether delicate or untamed, fleeting or enduring, organic life inspires and connects us.

We welcome all media, including digital, drawing, printmaking, painting, sculpture, collage, and photography. Original and framed work only.

Whatever appeals to you in nature, we want to see.

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition is an artist-run, 501(c)(3) nonprofit. With 25,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space set in a Civil War-era warehouse on the waterfront of Red Hook Brooklyn. BWAC provides exhibition opportunities to artists of various levels of experience as well as professional development and public engagement. Explore membership opportunities at bwac.org

CALL TO ARTISTS FOR SUBMISSIONS

●      Submission Deadline: Final Application Deadline EXTENDED TO 8AM MONDAY, May 12, 2025

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, June 7 – Sunday, June 29, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, June 7, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Complete details in the Prospectus PDF here

Ready to submit? Click here

An Open Call, ANIMALIA

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition is proud to announce its open call for the national juried art exhibition “Animalia.”

45,000 years ago Homo sapiens pulverized ochre into a powder and mixed it with water to produce a vivid paint they used to represent something with deep symbolic significance and spiritual value on their cave walls in Indonesia: a pig. These “warty pig paintings” are the earliest known examples of abstract thinking and artistic skills by early man. Since that time our obsession with representing animals in art has not waned but flourished.

BWAC kicks off our 2025 season celebrating our relationship with “Animalia” of all kinds represented in any media. In partnership with local animal rescue groups; dogs and cats will be available for adoption during the show. Trap, Neuter and Release (“TNR”) workshops will also be available for people to get involved helping to maintain NYC’s exploding feral cat communities. “Animalia” celebrates artists long fascination with animals and the art that began with a pig in ochre.

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition is an artist-run, 501(c)(3) nonprofit. With 25,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space set in a Civil War-era warehouse on the waterfront of Red Hook Brooklyn. BWAC provides exhibition opportunities to artists of various levels of experience as well as professional development and public engagement. Explore membership opportunities at bwac.org

CALL TO ARTISTS FOR SUBMISSIONS

●      Submission Deadline: Final Application Deadline Sunday, March 30, 2025

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, April 26 – Sunday, May 18, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, April 26, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Complete details in the Prospectus PDF here

Ready to submit? Click here

An Open Call THREADED VISIONS: Fashion in Art

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition is excited to announce its open call for the national juried art exhibition “Threaded Visions: Fashion in Art.”

Fashion has long been more than just clothing—it is a statement, a form of self-expression, and a reflection of culture, identity, and time. Throughout history, artists have depicted fashion in their work, immortalizing trends and styles that tell stories of class, power, and innovation. Simultaneously, fashion designers have drawn inspiration from art, incorporating techniques, textures, and narratives from paintings, sculptures, and architecture into their creations. Threaded Visions presents a dialogue between these two worlds.

BWAC invites artists to submit original pieces of artwork that respond to the theme of “Fashion in Art.” 

The Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition is an artist-run, 501(c)(3) nonprofit. With 25,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space set in a Civil War-era warehouse on the waterfront of Red Hook Brooklyn. BWAC provides exhibition opportunities to artists of various levels of experience as well as professional development and public engagement. Explore membership opportunities at bwac.org

CALL TO ARTISTS FOR SUBMISSIONS

●      Submission Deadline EXTENDED: Final Application Deadline Friday, March 21, 2025

●      Gallery Exhibition Dates:  Saturday, April 26 – Sunday, May 18, 2025 weekends 1‐6 P.M.

●      Opening Reception: Saturday, April 26, 2025 from 1‐6 P.M.

Complete details in the Prospectus PDF here

Ready to submit? Click here