NEW WAY TO CONTRIBUTE TO CULTURAL GROUPS ONLINE
As a service to the field, the Alliance for the Arts has partnered with NYCharities.org, to enable donors to make secure online contributions to their favorite cultural organizations via the Alliance's Web site, NYC ARTS (www.nyc-arts.org). NYCharities.org, a nonprofit dedicated to increasing donations to New York charities, provides the service. To contribute to the organization of your choice, click here. (Once you locate an organization, click on the Venue tab where you'll find details about that organization, including a link to contribute.)

ARTS & LEISURE WEEKEND JAN 7-9
The fourth annual New York Times Arts & Leisure Weekend will be held Jan 7-9. The event, the largest in its four-year history, will feature buy-one-get-one-free pricing for more than 1,300 events at participating cultural organizations across the U.S and Europe, as well as special offers nationwide at select movie theaters, restaurants, spas and health clubs. While the majority of the offers apply to events occurring that weekend, some discounts are available for additional dates as well. In addition, the Times will host TimesTalks: Special Edition at CUNY Graduate Center (365 Fifth Avenue, between 34th and 35th Streets), featuring luminaries such as Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, Bill Murray, Dame Edna, Chuck Close and others in conversation with Times critics, reporters and editors.

STATUE OF LIBERTY CONSTRUCTION PHOTOGRAPHS ONLINE
A selection of photographs documenting the construction of the Statue of Liberty, the 1886 gift from the French people to the United States as sign of friendship, is now available online. The photographs are part of Bartholdi: Building of the Statue of Liberty, a new exhibition at the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris, which chronicles the creation of sculptor Auguste Bartholdi's remarkable monument, now the pride of New York Harbor.

NEW WTC MEMORIAL DETAILS ANNOUNCED
On Dec 16, architects Michael Arad, Peter Walker and Max Bond unveiled the schematic design for Reflecting Absence, the memorial to be erected at the World Trade Center site. The schematic design is a key step in the design process.

AT THE ALLIANCE
Lea K. Green will join the Alliance on January 10 as the fourth Robert F. Wagner, Jr. Fellow for Public Policy and the Arts. Lea comes from Citigroup where she was an associate with the Art Advisory Service. She is co-chair of the Contemporary Friends Young Collectors Group at the Studio Museum in Harlem. She earned a law degree from the University of Connecticut School of Law and a master's in visual arts administration at New York University.

Esther McGowan has joined the Alliance as development director. Esther comes to the Alliance from Arts International, where she was development director. Her experience also includes positions at Downtown Arts Projects, the Art Matters Foundation, Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts and Karin Bacon Events.

REQUESTS ISSUED FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST IN BAM CULTURAL DISTRICT AND SNUG HARBOR
The BAM Local Development Corporation, in partnership with the NYC Economic Development Corporation and the Department of Cultural Affairs, has issued a RFEI to nonprofit cultural organizations interested in becoming a part of the cultural and mixed-use facilities on BAM Cultural District's North Site. To assist interested organizations with the RFEI process, BAM LDC will sponsor a free informational workshop on January 5 from 9:30 am to noon at the 80 Arts Building (80 Hanson Place at South Portland Avenue, Brooklyn). For workshop reservations (by January 3) and questions call (718) 907-4403. Responses are due no later than February 7 at 5 pm. For complete submission requirements, click here.

The New York City Economic Development Corporation, in conjunction with Department of Cultural Affairs and Snug Harbor Cultural Center, has issued an RFEI for the rehabilitation, adaptive reuse and ongoing cultural-educational operations of Building E. For more information, contact Matthew Brian at (212) 312-4214. Responses are due by February 14 at 4 pm.

DUCCIO ARRIVES AT THE MET
The rare painting, Madonna and Child, by Duccio di Buoninsegna is now on permanent view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. For more information or to view an image, click here.