STREET / ART, Gowanus (Brooklyn)

Rich Garr leads this comfortable open-air exploration through the Gowanus waterfront. He is a longtime area collage artist focusing on public art and community. These walks respond to both current events and history, and a central component of his interdisciplinary collage art practice. These public walking tours are on the 2nd weekend of each month. Each one focuses on art in and about the streets, with histories layered into the experience. They're carefully planned, but unscripted and collaborative. Always fresh. Check @GothamSideWalks on Instagram for monthly themes- now announced in advance. Feel free to propose themes there, too!

Tickets for these monthly Brooklyn walks often sell out. So try early. They cannot be purchased after 8am on the morning of the walk.

Guild, Captain Eyeliner, RaeBK, Billy Barnacles and other street art is often featured. So are historical landmarks (you all know about the Battle of Brooklyn, right?), architectural gems, hidden art spaces, art by anonymous "green guerillas," and renowned graffiti writers. While old pollution lingers, so do new issues surrounding gentrification and re-zoning. The area is changing rapidly, and this tour offers real-time information & insight. Walks pass historic businesses, hip new bars & cafes, and quirky art & recreational spaces (i.e. shuffleboard, climbing and ax throwing)... with plenty to taste and see before or after. Walks have been attended by a mix of tourists and locals alike for over a decade!

Host or Publisher Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club