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Urban Farmers Captured on Canvas

“Bird’s-Eye View of Brooklyn Grange-Future,” a portrait of the Brooklyn Grange rooftop farm. Elizabeth Downer Riker

An exhibition by the painter Elizabeth Downer Riker documents a decade of urban gardening.

By Florence Fabricant
New York Times
April 26, 2021

(Must see. Mike)

“Re-Enchanting the City,” an exhibition in Chelsea, highlights the visual record of the many vibrant local farms, community gardens and rooftop plantings around the city by the artist Elizabeth Downer Riker. About 10 years ago she started painting rooftop farms in Long Island City, Queens, and parts of Brooklyn, and then took her oils and canvas to other neighborhoods in the city, and even upstate. The exhibition features 20 of her works, and they are for sale, $1,000 to $2,200.

“Re-Enchanting the City: Greening New York City,” April 27 through May 22, Ceres Gallery, 547 West 27th Street, Suite 201, 212-947-6100, ceresgallery.org.

From the gallery website:

Ceres Gallery presents RE-ENCHANTING THE CITY a collection of paintings by Elizabeth Downer Riker, The exhibition will feature her oil paintings that provide the unique chance to look at and contemplate one of the great hidden stories of contemporary New York City – the slow rise and continued growth of rooftop farms and community gardens that are prophetic in proclaiming that another city is possible.

The exhibit opens at the end of a year of the pandemic. During this time there has been a huge explosion of interest in how to create a more habitable environment in urban areas like New York City. “Being on the rooftops, painting young New Yorkers with their hands in the soil and seeing the monochromatic, urban landscape surrounding them inspires me to think about what if these small patches of green could be spread across the whole city. Why wouldn’t that benefit us all?” said Ms. Riker. “If Covid has taught us anything, it’s that it’s time to green our urban spaces — not only will it improve the climate within cities, it will reduces flooding, pollution, noise and increase people’s wellbeing. New York has tremendous opportunities to embrace and expand upon this trend. With ‘Re-enchanting the City,’ I hope to spark a broader conversation about this possibility.”

Ms. Riker, who spent years painting farmers using traditional techniques in southern Mexico was astounded when she first learned about these rooftop farmers. “To see that they are creating a whole ecosystem on the rooftops and in the process are building community and educational programs for children was remarkable. In painting this subject I wanted to celebrate their efforts and make this visible to all of us who crisscross New York City at the street level and never see it.”
The exhibit will showcase her futuristic vision of what a “green” Long Island City would look like with the addition of eco buildings, windmills, solar roofs and rooftop farms like the ones she has painted to date: Brooklyn Grange: Navy Yard, Long Island City, Sunset Park; Gotham Greens Greenpoint; Eagle Street Rooftop Farm and others. Community gardens like the Garden of Happiness and Eagle Slope Community Garden, both in the Bronx, will also be featured, as well as upstate farms and Greenbelt woods in Staten Island.The exhibition will be accompanied by a virtual opening on May 1 at 1pm and 6pm, where visitors can view the works and meet Ms. Riker, as well as a video of the show.

About Elizabeth Downer Riker
The artist, born in Boston and raised in Paris, started out as a filmmaker, earning her MFA at NYU’s graduate film program. After discovering her love for painting, she studied at the Art Students League in Manhattan. For many years she lived in the Central Valleys region of Oaxaca, where Riker developed a close relationship with villagers, accompanying them with her easel as they worked the land. A selection of her Oaxaca paintings will be included in this show. Riker returned to New York in 2011, still passionate about the theme of people working the land, and found a new subject here — on the city’s rooftops. Since 2015 she has painted over 20 paintings of New York City’s rooftop farms and met numerous residents committed to cultivating a sustainable ecosystem here. elizabethdownerriker.com

Artist will be present from 4-6 pm,
Saturday, May 1; Saturday May 15; Saturday May 22

See:

Exhibit

Artist’s website with more urban agriculture paintings.