CELEBRATE KENSINGTON! (FREE)

 

Celebrate Kensington!

Saturday, July 25th

1:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

 

Join NOCD-NY, Arts & Democracy, Kensington Cultural Council and community partners for a celebration of our neighborhood’s rich culture and the close-knit network of people who cultivate it!    Event information is posted at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/celebrate-kensington-tickets-1993874615649.  Avenue C Plaza will feature: 1pm: Music Jam with local musicians including Yoshie Fruchter, Nilofar Jahan, Naqibul Islam, Roy Nathanson, Shai Wetzer, and Brian Drye 2:30pm: Embroidery and Storytelling with author Roohi Choudhry, Farida Ruhul and Casa Cultural, including readings from Candace Hall, Asia Begum, Nurun Nahar, Roy Nathanson, Ienna Dela Torre, and Diya Abbass 4pm: Performance with Bangladesh Institute of Performing Arts (BIPA) Ongoing: Exhibitions including How to Create Kensington Culture and Bangladeshi Ladies Club’s Nakshi Kantha display Kantha and Mexican embroidery, with Farida Ruhul and Casa Cultural Youth-led Mural Making Engagement with community groups and initiatives including DRUM, Sakhi, Kensington-Windsor Terrace Mutual Aid, Windsor Terrace Food Coop, Department of City Planning South of Prospect Park Neighborhood Plan, Fifth Avenue Committee, and Mixteca Kensington Plaza with The Singing Winds presents: 2:00 - 7:00pm: Crafts Market, featuring hand-made toys and jewelry 5:30 - 7:00pm: Music on the Plaza with Kalimba Unity, Led by Kevin Nathaniel, the ensemble features kalimbas, flute and percussion. JOIN US!   photos: Shiva Muthiah and Angela Co   This event is presented by Arts & Democracy and Naturally Occurring Cultural Districts NY (NOCD-NY), in collaboration with the Kensington Cultural Council.   It is supported in part by public funds from NYC Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the New York City City Council, NYC Department of Transportation, National Endowment for the Arts, and New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature.   It is also made possible by grants from Partnerships for Parks through the NYC Green Fund, Brooklyn Org, The New York Women’s Foundation, and Crafting the Future.

Locations

Avenue C Plaza

556 McDonald Avenue at Avenue C

Kensington, Brooklyn

(map) 

 

Kensington Plaza

Beverley Road

between Church Avenue and E. 2nd Street

Kensington, Brooklyn

(map) 

MUSLIM WOMEN AND GENDER-EXPANSIVE FOLK WILL READ FROM THEIR CREATIVE WRITING AND ENGAGE IN A DISCUSSION (FREE)

The Mouth of the Sun:

Performance and Discussion

Tuesday, July 7th

7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. 

 

From Arts & Democracy:

Join Arts & Democracy and author Roohi Choudhry for The Mouth of the Sun: Performance and Discussion on Tuesday, July 7th, at The Urbane Arts Club.

 

Listen to new creative writing by Muslim women and gender-expansive folk and join a powerful discussion on harnessing personal stories to create change. 

 

This free event celebrates the 2026 cohort of participants in The Mouth of the Sun, a creative incubator program.

 
Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-mouth-of-the-sun-performance-and-discussion-tickets-1991510394199 

Location

Urbane Arts Club

1016 Beverley Road

between Coney Island Avenue and Stratford Road

Ditmas Park, Brooklyn

UrbaneBrooklyn@gmail.com

https://www.facebook.com/p/The-Urbane-Arts-Club-100064234354845/ 

https://www.instagram.com/urbane_brooklyn/

JOIN A CREATIVE INCUBATOR FOR MUSLIM WOMEN AND GENDER-EXPANSIVE FOLK (FREE)

From Arts & Democracy:

The Mouth of the Sun: A creative writing incubator program focused on Muslim women and gender-expansive folk

Harness the power of your own stories and turn them outward to effect change.

Apply to join a talented cohort that will gather in Brooklyn this spring in a safe space to dig deep and write together over a weekend, guided by author and cultural organizer, Roohi Choudhry, a resident of Kensington, Brooklyn.

Over the summer, we’ll curate a public performance and discussion event focused on how to channel personal narrative into a movement. Along the way, you’ll receive one-on-one coaching and feedback.

 

Presented by Arts & Democracy. No fee to apply or participate. All levels of writing experience welcome.

 

Application deadline: March 1, 2026. 

Apply at bit.ly/mouthofthesun

CRAFTING AND WRITING WORKSHOP: STITCHING COMMUNITY: TELLING STORIES THROUGH EMBROIDERY AND WRITING (FREE)

 Stitching Community:

Telling Stories

Through Embroidery and Writing 

Thursday, January 15th

6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

From the Kensington Library:

In this workshop, participants will learn traditional kantha running stitch embroidery. Together, we will weave stories about home and belonging with our neighbors.

Embroidery instructor Farida Ruhul [member of the Bangladeshi Ladies Club] and writer Roohi Choudhry will guide us through the first half of the session stitching and chatting together. Afterwards, we will write and share stories. This is a bilingual program open to Bangla and English speakers.

Craft and writing supplies will be provided. All experience levels welcome. Please RSVP in advance!

For more information and to register, go to https://www.bklynlibrary.org/calendar/stitching-community-kensington-library-20260115-0600pm.

 

Location

Kensington Library

4207 18th Avenue

between E. 2nd and E. 3rd streets

Kensington, Brooklyn

(718) 436-0545

https://www.bklynlibrary.org/locations/kensington 

https://www.facebook.com/KensingtonLibraryBPL