Thursday, December 17, 2009
Artists leaving LIC, losing work spaces
From the Daily News:
EMERGING artists struggling to afford studio space in Long Island City's many industrial buildings may soon face yet another loss.
The Space, a neighborhood art organization that works with up-and-coming artists, may be on the brink of losing its work and performance area.
While this might have little effect on the neighborhood's established galleries and museums, it would leave struggling artists with one less venue after well-known art spaces 5Pointz and the Art-O-Mat L.I.C. closed this year.
"We've seen a lot of artists move out since this summer," said The Space's executive director, Kristy Schopper. "The gap between the institutions and the individual artists seems much bigger."
She found padlocks on her group's West St. location last week. The space was temporarily donated to the nonprofit by the Modell family and has changed property owners several times over the last few months.
"I am not sure that I can keep that property open," she said.
But she still plans to hold on to the group's Fardom Gallery and the Winter Cabin, used for studios and activities.
Art-O-Mat closed in May after husband-and-wife Kenny Greenberg and Diane Hendry couldn't find a group to take over their four-year-old gallery and community space, Greenberg said.
He believes that the closing of spaces like his have had a negative impact on struggling artists.
Meanwhile, "the development and the so-called upscaling of the neighborhood have forced people out of studios and forced people out of apartments," he added.
15 comments:
"the development and the so-called upscaling of the neighborhood have forced people out of studios and forced people out of apartments,"
Same old story. The son-of-bitch landlords lure artists to tame and civilize an area, give it a reputation..then they effectively throw them out with rent increases.
Look at Greenwich Village and the Lower East side, most of the "artists" that can afford to live there now work in advertising.
When I got out of school in '79 and started work fulltime in the theater industry, nearly everyone I knew lived in Manhattan.
Some had inherited regulated apts (or still lived w/parents in same) others just got lucky and found affordable units in low cost areas or above bars, clubs etc.
By the early 1990s everyone who didn't have a Broadway or TV income was exiled to Fort Greene, Flatbush (really bad in those days) or Jersey City.
The Giuliani-Potaki-Bruno era furnished the coup de'gras to anything resembling an arts community by their loyal buttboy service to the landlords.
The fact that little, cheap dumpy places are less available in LIC is a very good thing.
These artists should look for places in Maspeth, there are probably lots of affordable places there.
No subway in Maspeth. That's a must for an artist.
Oh no, what will they do? Hopefully they return to whatever part of bumblefuck they came from.
Oh no, what will they do? Hopefully they return to whatever part of bumblefuck they came from.
Has a study of tax revenue from all these "artists" ever been done?
everything happens to artists first! they are the canaries in the coal mine.
get ready to move you smug old drunks who are jealous of artists, writers, actors and puppeteers.
It might not happen in 2 weeks, but your world is going to shift.
Crappy has been trying to wake you up.
Open your eyes as you walk down Queens Boulevard. the encroaching Colombian restaurants should be a hint, those day laborers standing milling around outside, another hint.
I am sure the real estate agents and developers are salivating while watching where the artists will migrate to next. This will be the next neighborhood that they will rave about being "up-and-coming", and then exploit as it becomes trendy, the "next Williamsburg". Then the guinea pig artists will be out on their asses again, scouting out the next neighborhood to be gentrified.
Lino, the artists of today are not the artists of the 70s.
By and large they, along with young people moving into a community, are a big disappointment.
If Bloomberg tried some of his stunts 30 years ago there would be riots in the streets.
Today?
First: they all fall over themselves as apoligists for the developers. As evienced by everyone from the developer decal slathered kayacks to Suna's little waterfront park at the end of Broadway, the creative set are either calmly follow orders from the pols or actively plump for the developers.
Second: the Tower People and other youngsters of that age could not give two shits about the community or its displacement. Grumble about train noise, advocates for bike lanes, and saying nothing about a waterfront park (because they ae told to) complete the picture. Look at that thread on astorians.com bitching about Christmas Music on Steinway Street. Shameful.
Third: Art-O-Mat had offers to work with other people. It didn't happen and the community lost the space. PS1 is famoulsy aloof from the community. QCA is trying to move into a gentrified developer wrought sterile mess that LIC is becoming.
Lino, my fried, the old lines don't hold any more.
I guess its time for hipsters and artists to have some kids. A great career move if you con't find a job.
Wolfoff, Suna, Plaxall, Modell, Aquisto,
Why does that line from a Dickens book keep coming to mind? "please sir, can i have another bowl sir?"
They are not the Salvation Army. They are not the Red Cross.
What that f*k to you want - they are freakin developers. They only care about making money. You could be a fat rendering plant as far as they care.
Go out and stand on your own two feet or you get screwed by the process everytime.
Grow up people!
I have a hard time believe that this is all the big bad developer. 2 or 3 years ago...maybe. But now? I think the issue is that the artists and those supporting them are receiving less funding and cannot afford to keep up with the spaces. Not because rents are going up.... but because there is just less to go around. No landlord (or developer) would rather have an empty space. They would rather have someone paying something for that space. No one is demolishing these buildings today. There is no market for office or more upscale loft like spaces in LIC. All those units that were built recently are still largely available. Bottom line, the landlords and developers are not forcing them out... because there is nothing else that they can do with the space in this current economy.
Miles Mullin said...
Today?
First: they all fall over themselves as apoligists for the developers. As evienced by everyone from the developer decal slathered kayacks to Suna's little waterfront park at the end of Broadway, the creative set are either calmly follow orders from the pols or actively plump for the developers.
Second: the Tower People and other youngsters of that age could not give two shits about the community or its displacement. Grumble about train noise, advocates for bike lanes, and saying nothing about a waterfront park (because they ae told to) complete the picture. Look at that thread on astorians.com bitching about Christmas Music on Steinway Street. Shameful.
Re: Not sure you are refering to but the folks largely older also in Gantry park are not artists and the upper crust youngsters from Astorian's are not artists, they are wanna be comedians and folks wanting to be in the movie atmosphere etc who know nothing of good original talent.
The artists I know dont follow any orders from bloomberg and didnt vote for that fool so I think the wanton generalizing is wrong again by what you view around through a myopic lens.
The artists I know dont follow any orders from bloomberg and didnt vote for that fool so I think the wanton generalizing is wrong again by what you view around through a myopic lens.
======
Maybe you should expand your circle of acquaintances - LIC Cultural Alliance, for example, or Chocolate Factory, or even APAC are all political.
With a few exceptions, as Susannah Troy, the arts community remained mute during the past elections. Silence = death.
The arts community in general remains a passive force, calmly receiving directions from the developer/politican complex, standing respectfully with their hands out for ice cream money, or, if they disagree, quietly sitting down with a vacant dreamy smile (reminding me of someone on Soma)
Activism is dead. Art as an instrument of change is dead. The arts community is dead.
Until they wake up, they get what they deserve.
As I suggested earlier in this tread, they should veg out and go to Bermuda to be neighbors with their buddy Bloomberg and have babies until they can think of something better to do with their pointless lives.
I think the artists should take a page from how the machine embraced the gays - outside the tent, but articulate and in a position to use their creativity to inflict a lot of damage.
They are brought in real fast damn what the public wants.
These pols get several $100,000s and give the arts community pennies, while shovelling a king's randsom to developers,
or on questionable programs for seniors, kids and immigrants whose primary purpose is not to help these groups but give the pols photo ops.
(I mean guys, if you want to help seniors, design programs to keep them in their apartments instead of warehousing them,
if you want to help kids, build schools,
and if you want to help immigrants do something about their dreadful living conditions in illegal conversions - and using that as an excuse for more building is not an answer).
Publish how much these bums get, and expose how most of these enormous sums of money (read your tax dollars) gets squandered on this shit - and almost nothing gets to you.
They will wise up fast.
And for those of your brethren that pander to the pols and tweeders, heap scorn upon them.
That will get them into line.
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