Poughkeepsie Pop-up Shop: A Closer Look at the Art and Artists

Behind every piece of art there is an interesting story about the pieces themselves and the actual creators of the masterpieces. This is no different when it comes to the artwork being sold at the Poughkeepsie Pop-up Shop.

One of the artists is Jose Acosta. He was born in Cuba and immigrated to the United States with his family at the age of two in 1969. “I have been creating art as long as I can remember,” Acosta said. In 2003, he started creating art to exhibit and sell at galleries. In his 13 years of creating art professionally, he has been in over 500 group exhibitions and 80 solo exhibitions. His art is in many private collections and he has won numerous awards and honors.

Some of the art that Acosta has in the Poughkeepsie Pop-Up Shop are some of his smaller pieces. His paintings that are displayed in the shop include “Strength in Numbers,” “Musica,” “Together,” and “Having Fun.” “I would love to have more pieces but with space limitation, I could only have some of my smaller works,” Acosta said. “The rest of the works that are more recent creations are exhibited in museums in Puerto Rico and the Union City Museum of Art.”

Every month, the Poughkeepsie Pop-Up Shop has a featured artist of the month. Acosta was featured this past month. He was invited as a guest artist to the exhibit as part of Hispanic Heritage Month. Since he has participated in group exhibitions at the Mid-Hudson Heritage Center in the past so he accepted the invitation. “I live in the Town of Poughkeepsie so it’s great to be able to have an exhibit so close to home,” he said.

Another artist whose art is displayed at the Poughkeepsie Pop-Up Shop is Paola Bari. She grew up in Italy where art surrounded her so it was “nearly impossible” for her to not be involved with art. “Growing up, art was mandatory in my school program and we had to learn art in different mediums,” Bari said. “We learned how to do porcelain painting and I found it so fascinating and intriguing that I had to continue painting in procaine, and it just became my life. Being an artist’s wasn’t a choice; it is a natural expression of my life.”

The items she currently has in the Poughkeepsie Pop-up Shop are her porcelain mugs and little tea set, as well as her craft boxes which are a different form of her expression of art. The craft boxes are made out of recycled materials and most of the proceeds go to the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF).

Bari is also on the Board of the Cheetah Conservation Fund. The objectivity is to help cheetahs to survive out in the wild. “Cheetahs are one of my favorite animals,” Bari said.

Every year, Bari goes to Namibia in Africa to help on a project for the CCF. “We help the women make craft projects that they can make profit off of and support themselves like the gift boxes or jewelry,” Bari said.

The art that Bari brings to the Poughkeepsie Pop-Up Shop are more of her functional sides of her pieces. “I bring my art to the Poughkeepsie Pop-Up Shop because I really want to see local art flourish,” Bari said. “I think it is a good way to help revitalize Poughkeepsie and I really want to be a part of that.”