Meet Darya Golubina | Artist, Photographer & Beacon Open Studios Director
We had the good fortune of connecting with Darya Golubina and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Darya, why did you pursue a creative career?
From as far back as I can remember, I found it hard to socialize. There is a photo of me at 4 years old using the bench outside our apartment building as my drawing table. I can recall the neighborhood kids playing around me. My family immigrated to the United States from Kiev, Ukraine when I was 8, we didn’t speak the language, and had nothing but the items in the duffle bags my grandma sewed herself. I was a super introverted kid, and the experience of moving to a foreign country did not help me out of my shell.
My first teacher here in the States allowed me to draw in class (Mrs. Urfalie). She noticed me doodling in my notebooks, gave me art supplies and let me spend my lunch time in her classroom instead of in the cafeteria where unfortunately not everyone was so receptive to the new, non-speaking weird kid. I drew, silently, in the safety of her classroom for a full year just people-watching, while the new language slowly permeated. The following year, after summer break, I was fluent. One day as I watched my third grade teacher deny someone a hall pass, I realized I had understood the words that came out of her mouth.
Friends came much later and one of those few, is my best friend to this day.
My teachers and my peers started noticing my art and for the first time I felt comfortable connecting. When the conversation turned to what I was working on, I no longer felt like an outsider, it was my in! If someone needed a poster made, or help with an art project, they asked me! A creative career was not so much a choice as my solution, my language and as I got older, my purpose.
Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Beacon Open Studios (BOS) is an annual, free to attend, community event during which artists open their studios to the public in Beacon, NY. The city-wide event is set for July 21-23rd and aims to facilitate a weekend of much needed connection. This year’s event will include a music showcase each evening, shining a light on Beacon’s talented musicians as well.
Visitors are invited to view new works and work in progress, with a chance to meet as many as 60-70 participating artists, some nationally and internationally exhibited. This self-guided exhibition draws thousands and is one of the largest events of its kind in the Hudson Valley. It is a perfect way for art lovers, collectors, and curators to discover new talent, and purchase artwork directly from a diverse group of artists. BOS gives artists a platform and visibility to reconnect to their community, utilizing their talents to heal, unite and inspire.
BOS will be a part of UPSTATE Art Weekend, along with 140+ participants across Columbia, Delaware, Dutchess, Greene, Orange, Putnam, Sullivan and Ulster counties. Past participants include Dia Beacon, Storm King Art Center, OLANA, and MOTHER Gallery.
*An event schedule and map will be available for download or use on mobile devices, and will be posted to our website: www.
Beacon Open Studios is a fiscally sponsored project of BeaconArts (501)(c)(3).
This project is made possible with funds from the Statewide Community Regrants Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and administered by Arts Mid-Hudson.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
BEACON, NY
SHOP:
Hyperbole was started by two former jewelry designers and of course, friends.
Our goal is to support artists and makers. Our clothing, jewelry, and art shop located in the Hudson Valley in New York, allows emerging artists and independent designers to share their work with consumers without ever leaving the studio.
We carry an assortment of original artwork, thoughtfully designed clothing, and sustainably produced jewelry with an emphasis on small batch production.
Our business was founded on the belief that the absolute best products on earth are the ones that make you feel good about shopping: made by real people, designed with purpose, and unique to your personal style. Almost everything you’ll find on this site was made by an actual, super-talented person doing their best to produce quality goods with integrity and consideration for unnecessary waste. YES. Our artists really are THE BEST. No hyperbole. We’re just here to showcase their work and introduce them to consumers with like-minded values. Like you!
SEE:
https://www.
Artist collective Gallery space
D0:
https://www.happyvalleybeacon.
The best Arcade Bar in the Hudson Valley!
EAT:
https://melzingahtaphouse.com/
Melzingah Tap House is a gathering place for craft beer enthusiasts, cocktail connoisseurs, and food fanatics located in historic Beacon NY.
https://www.kitchen.coffee/
A 100% gluten-free, vegetarian cafe & bakery. We source local & organic ingredients, local micro-roast fair-trade coffees & fair-trade teas.
Bank Square Coffeehouse | Beacon, NY | Coffee, tea, beer, wine, events
Live music, coffee and Beer.
Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have people in my corner who listen to my craziest ideas with wide eyed enthusiasm instead of judgement. I would first like to “shout out” my parents, who never once said “an artist” isn’t a viable career choice and although I have my own doubts, I am grateful they never voiced theirs. They are on my mind each time I get to start a new painting. Moving to Beacon, NY from Brooklyn 5 years ago jump started my community building efforts and the pandemic acted as a pressure cooker. I felt an overwhelming need to build a stronger platform for the artists who call Beacon home.
Beacon Open Studios is truly a team effort, impossible without two incredibly talented individuals who help me with every aspect of the event: Evan Samuelson (@ulfy), and Chris Ams (@chrisamsart), fellow artists, educators and exemplary human beings.
Many of us struggle with imposter syndrome and few of us get lucky enough to find “their crowd”. If we muster the strength to leave what doesn’t fulfill us and we find the courage to stay open when life shuts us down, we can find people who see us. If you keep howling at the moon because you feel it in your gut that you simply must, I guarantee someone somewhere will feel inspired to join, someone will find it beautiful, they will hope you howl a little louder. Although you might be doing it for you, to start, you are also doing it for those who have not yet found their voice and they will give you enough strength to ignore those who tell you to stop. Humans weren’t put on this planet to be left alone, connection and community are the core of our existence.
Additional shoutouts to:
Bobbijo McCauley, Owner and founder of Wild Cube design (https://wildcubedesign.com/). Bobbi created all of our promotional and marketing materials.
Jessica Kravit, Entrepreneur, Owner and Founder of River Valley Guild (https://rivervalleyguild.com/
Website: https://www.beaconopenstudios.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/openstudios_beacon/
Nominate Someone: ShoutoutMiami is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
