The Blue Bat Dance – and Self-Taught Art Flourishing in NYC

    BRONX, NY, May 29, 2024 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Elisa Huberman—an incredible artist breaking barriers in the heart of New York City. She's not just an artist but a storyteller, a children's book creator, and an illustrator, going against expectations and showcasing her talent globally. Elisa's latest masterpiece, "The Blue Bat Dance," is now lighting up screens on Amazon KDP.

It is a 32-page wonderland painted with watercolors and brought to life with pen and ink. "The Blue Bat Dance" is a magical journey where blue bats come out to dance in the moonlight during the witching hour. It's not just a children's book; it's a visual feast for readers of all ages. And that's just one of Elisa's creations; she's also given life to characters like the "Upside Down Giraffe" and the "Odd Duckling," weaving stories of embracing uniqueness and finding acceptance. Her stories, some of which have already been published and others which are still in the works, contain a range of imaginative characters, including Thaddeus, the one-eyed dragon wizard, Kira the warrior princess, Hamish the lost alien, Umbela-Isolba the Ring Genie, Spotty the Bunny Clown, and a quite unique Odd Duckling.

Self-taught artists, like Elisa, tend to come from neurologically different or marginalized backgrounds. Many have notable vocal or physical challenges, but they find ways to express themselves via outstanding art.

Pure Vision Arts (PVA) is Elisa's artistic home, a studio in the Flatiron district managed by Shield Institute for artists living with a variety of challenges. PVA is home to an array of well-known artists, including Susan Brown, Simone Johnson, Walter Mika and Alba Somoza, whose artworks feature eclectic cats, bizarre urban environments, and appealing abstracts.

Self-taught art is growing more popular. Self-taught artists are currently being encouraged and exhibited at New York City galleries and studios like the Summertime Gallery in Williamsburg, the League's LAND gallery in Bedford-Stuyvesant, and AHRCNYC's ArTech Collective in the Bronx. The Autism Museum, a peripatetic museum, had a 2022 exhibit in Brooklyn by artists on the autism spectrum that drew outsider artists from across the United States, and this year launched an exhibit of Ghanaian outsider art. The Outsider Art Fair will return to Manhattan from February 29 to March 3, 2024. Elisa herself has a painting now on exhibit at the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn.

The Blue Bat Dance's innovative graphics are ideal for young readers to connect to. Some have no words, encouraging young readers to join in the interesting nighttime journey through their own unique imaginations. The Blue Bat Dance is now available on Amazon KDP (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0997509112/ref=x_gr_bb_amazon?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_bb_amazon-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0997509112&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2). It is also available for purchase at the Focal Point Gallery and the Kaleidoscope Gallery on City Island in the Bronx, Elisa's neighborhood. Next year, the author will voice an Audible Book version of The Blue Bat Dance.

To get in touch with the author for book signings or interviews, or for information on how to pre-order the Audible Book version, send an email to [email protected] with the topic "Blue Bat Dance" in the subject line.

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