Summer Sunday in Brooklyn

My Sunday afternoon was a summertime whirlwind of little cultural happenings in Brooklyn. I began the day with a jaunt to Fort Greene, to find the Brooklyn Urban Arts Market, sponsored and advertised by BAM. After my initial confusion as to where exactly this market was located, I eventually found my way there, on Myrtle Ave. between Grand and Emerson (exactly as the website says, only I hadn't thought to record the address... ), behind the Pratt campus. One reason I think I was so confused? This little market was very small scale. Okay, quality not quantity, but I had expected something a little larger. It was a cute little fair with local and independent vendors and artisans, featuring a lot of local clothing and jewelry. My favorite item was the t-shirt with over-sized lips silkscreened on the the front and "Besos not Bombs" silkscreened on the back. However, I ultimately decided that the market only merited a quick perusal.

Finding my friend afterwards, we decided to experience another event we'd heard rumor of: the Fort Greene Sunday flea market. Now this was impressive. Below is the what/when/where info of the market, taken from the website, http://brownstoner.com/brooklynflea/:

Brooklyn Flea takes place every Sunday from 10am to 5pm—rain or shine—at Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, on Lafayette Ave. between Clermont and Vanderbilt Ave. The Flea features 200 vendors of vintage furniture, clothing, collectibles and antiques as well as new jewelry, art and crafts by local artisans, plus delicious food.

Apparently the flea market just started happening a few months ago, in April. A write-up in the NY Daily News describes the very large-scale nature of the event and reports that 70% of the vendors hail from Brooklyn. The NY Times also has a write-up of the burgeoning flea market in April, "Scavengers on the Urban Savannah," describing how many vendors have left their traditional jobs for this kind of lifestyle, and how the day was a financial success for them. Yet I also found write-ups in both the Daily News and the Brooklyn Paper that detail how the flea market has heightened neighborhood tensions between the established communities and the influx of "hipsters," Pratt students and other more recent transplants to the neighborhood. Mike McLaughlin of the Brooklyn Paper wrote an article last month, "Flea market meeting gets heated," in which he calls the flea market "one of the biggest weekend hits since Sunday brunch itself" and describes how its large-scale nature has altered the vibe of the community, in ways not everyone likes. One reason for the dispute is that it takes place on Sunday and interferes with church attendance, while others simply are angered that it was an intrusion into the community; but as we know, development and changes of communities is the nature of NYC, for better or for worse. I have to say in this case, I think that it is for the better: the flea market had such a festive, friendly vibe to it, and was full of a diverse array of people, vendors and shoppers alike. My only purchase there: a $2 pair of earrings that I honestly think of as a steal.

And then the next event: after strolling around the Brooklyn Flea for about an hour, my friend and I decided to make it to the very last McCarren Pool party. This one was co-sponsored by Jelly NYC and Brooklyn for Barack. The party opened its doors at 2; we arrived a little past 4 pm to an enormously long line. Warned by friends in the area of the long line, my friend and I decided to wait anyway; it appeared to be moving quickly, and it was the very last event of this nature (and my friend had never been to any of the pool parties prior to this!) Sure enough, the line did move rapidly; and we convinced our other wary friends to join us in line. The pool was the most crowded I have ever seen it.

This meant less free space (and less free stuff), but we scored several free Topshop tanktops and enjoyed ourselves strolling, chatting, and hanging for a few hours. We didn't stay for the Yo La Tengo performance, as the last opening band (I'm not sure of its name) had a particularly grating sound -- but overall it was a great last time at the pool party! And a great Sunday out and about in Brooklyn.