Friday, July 18, 2014

Roosevelt Island Photographers Prints For Sale At The Saturday FarmersMarket - Excellent Photos By Paul Katz And Tony Vita, Stop By And TakeA Look

I spotted two new vendors at last Saturday's Roosevelt Island Farmers Market. Lloyd Woltz and Tony Vita were selling photography prints.  Mr. Woltz was selling prints on behalf of Paul Katz and Mr. Vita was selling his own prints.

Image Of Lloyd and Tony Selling Photography Prints At July 12 Roosevelt Island Farmers Market

Mr. Woltz reports:
I've been a Roosevelt Island resident since January 1989. I first met Paul Katz shortly after he moved to the Island in 2003. A few months before his passing (in August of last year) he asked if I would be interested in helping him sell his prints. When it became obvious that he didn't have much time left, he told me "to do whatever [I] wanted" with his work. When I proposed that his share of the proceeds go to the Youth Program to help facilitate Island kids' access to photography (by hopefully providing equipment, supplies, etc.) his eyes lit up.

Image Of Lloyd Selling Paul Katz Photography Prints At Roosevelt Island Farmers Market

His family has graciously offered their full support to this endeavor.

Paul loved it here, and in retrospect, it is apparent just how important it was for him to remain at home on the Island as long as he possibly could...

Island residents may recognize some of Paul's work from the Main Street Wire and Trellis, where his prints cover a couple of walls.

Image Of Paul Katz Photography

Also familiar to many, though more anonymous, is work of his that has been featured in print ads and on websites over the years.

Paul's personal history can best be described as just as eclectic as his work is. He commanded military photo units in Vietnam and later Central America. At different times he had his own studio, worked for and taught at colleges around the City (including NYU, where he met and befriended Island resident, artist Tony Vita over 35 years ago,) and also served as an auxiliary police officer and part-time Federal Marshall.

Many will remember him as the white-haired 'gentleman' regularly at Trellis, who liked every small child (as well as most women) he ever met.

 Image Of Paul Katz From Reserveinc

His work encompasses an incredibly broad range of styles and methods too numerous to elaborate on here. Suffice it to say that he saw every new advance and innovation in photographic technology as a toy that he would play with until he found what he considered 'neat' things to do with it.

Prints will be available for purchase (and browsing) at the Island's green-market on Saturdays when weather permits. As noted earlier, proceeds from all sales will benefit photography at the Roosevelt Island Youth Program.
If you are at the Farmers Market tomorrow, stop on by and take a look at some of the prints for sale by Lloyd and Tony,

Image of Tony Vita At Roosevelt Island Farmers Market

chat with them and maybe even buy a print or two.

2 comments :

PeaceandPlenty said...

It's dangerous and should not be done. Just because you did it, just because you have the physical strength and coordination to maneuver a stroller on an escalator and protect your little one, doesn't mean that all parents do. And if a parent is travelling with one child in a stroller and one child holding their hand, it's even more dangerous. The advisory by the MTA asking people not to do so is there for a reason.

Kate said...

We have a double stroller for our not-yet-walking twins and regularly have to head to the UES for doctor's appointments. In the event that both the tram and the 63rd St elevators are out, we are effectively trapped on the Island (unless we ride the subway to another station and then walk an extra who knows how many blocks to get to our 72nd St doctor's office - tough going with twins in the summer and/or winter months!). Thanks to everyone who is working on this issue -- your efforts are much appreciated. (And in our case, the stroller really can't be taken on escalators - you do not want to be the person behind us when the double stroller carrying two 20-pound babies starts falling!)