Lia Chang
Celebrate the opening of the FAB Cafe & East Village Visitors Center, located at 75 East 4th Street, at the Center’s grand opening party on January 12, 2011, from 6pm-8pm. The festivities will include performances by cafes baristas, an exhibit from Harumi Ori made from her signature orange mesh, and FREE samples of MUD coffee and Ceci Cela pastries for all.
Fourth Arts Block (FAB), a not for profit organization that leads the marketing and development of the East 4th Street Cultural District, decided to expand the meaning of “non-profit” last fall when they assumed the lease on 75 East 4th Street, formerly the Cuppa Cuppa Coffee Shop. After the original cafe’s closing in the summer of 2010, FAB recognized the need for an artist and audience gathering place within the Cultural District. “People wanted a place to meet, to get a great cup of coffee, and without that, the block just feel didn’t the same,” said Tamara Greenfield, Executive Director of FAB. In opening FAB Cafe & East Village Visitors Center, FAB has created a hub for artists and art lovers who spend their time in any of the 16 theaters on the block.
At the same time, FAB was able to move the East Village Visitors Center, a collaboration with the Lower East Side History Project, into the space, creating a vibrant spot for tourists and locals alike to learn more about the neighborhood. “Eventually, we hope that FAB Cafe & East Village Visitors Center will financially support FAB’s other efforts in serving artists, but for right now, we are happy to give coffee & information to our community,” said Greenfield.
About FAB Cafe
FAB Cafe & East Village Visitors Center is a hotspot for artists and art lovers to gather and grab a cup of MUD coffee or a delicious snack. Open from 7am-8pm on weekdays and 9am-8pm on weekends, FAB Cafe is great for community members to grab breakfast, people working in the area to grab an afternoon pick-me up, or for audiences to visit pre theater. Tuesday-Friday 1pm-6pm, the East Village Visitors Center staff, co-sponsored by Fourth Arts Block & Lower East Side History Project, will offer concierge service to tourists and locals wanting to know more about their neighborhood, helping them find information, learn about the history of the East Village, and connect them to upcoming cultural events via FAB Tix, our 2-for-1 ticket program. FAB Cafe is staffed and managed by artist-baristas who help make the Cafe an even better creative hub for the neighborhood – check out FAB’s Meet the Baristas spotlights at FAB’s blog to get to know them all.
About Fourth Arts Block
FAB is the leadership organization for the East 4th Street Cultural District, creating a vibrant, lasting home for the arts in the heart of the East Village. To learn more about the Fourth Arts Block, visit www.fabnyc.org
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Derek Walcott’s White Egrets Due Out March 2010
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Lia Chang
Lia Chang is an actor, performance and fine art botanical photographer, an award-winning multimedia journalist.
As a photographer and videographer, Lia collaborates with artists, organizations and companies in establishing their documentary photo archive and social media presence. She has been documenting her colleagues and contemporaries in the arts, fashion and journalism since making her stage debut as Liat in the National Tour of South Pacific, with Robert Goulet and Barbara Eden.
This year, selections of Lia’s archive of Asian Pacific Americans in the arts, fashion, journalism, politics and space will become part of newly created LIA CHANG THEATER PHOTOGRAPHY PORTFOLIO in the ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN PERFORMING ARTS COLLECTION housed in the Library of Congress Asian Division’s Asian American Pacific Islander Collection.
Lia’s portraits and performance photos have appeared in Vanity Fair, Gourmet, German Elle, Women’s Wear Daily, The Paris Review, VIBE, TV Guide, Daily Variety, Interior Design, American Theatre, Broadwayworld.com, Life & Style, OUT, New York Magazine, InStyle, Timeout.com, Villagevoice.com, Playbill.com, Theatermania.com, thelmagazine.com, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, USA Today, The Boston Globe, New York Times and Washington Post. A former syndicated arts and entertainment columnist for KYODO News, Lia is the New York Bureau Chief for AsianConnections.com. She writes about culture, style and Asian American issues for a variety of publications and this Backstage Pass with Lia Chang blog.
