Artists Space (New York)

Artists Space (New York)
Name	Artists Space
Established	1972
Location	New York City
Type	Nonprofit contemporary art space
Director	(see Leadership and Organization)

Artists Space (New York) is a nonprofit contemporary art organization founded in 1972 in New York City that has presented exhibitions, performances, and publications by emerging and mid-career artists. Founded amid debates in the 1970s art world and the rise of SoHo (Manhattan), the institution has intersected with movements and figures associated with Conceptual art, Feminist art movement, and Postmodernism. Over decades Artists Space has been linked to influential curators, critics, and artists active in cultural centers such as Whitney Museum of American Art, Museum of Modern Art, and New Museum.

History

Artists Space was established by activists and curators in 1972, in the aftermath of exhibitions at The Kitchen (arts center), Galleries of Soho, and independent venues associated with the Alternative art scene. Early activity occurred alongside organizations such as Artforum, P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center, and A.I.R. Gallery, and involved figures from the worlds of AIDS activism and Visual Arts Coalition. The 1970s and 1980s saw Artists Space present exhibitions resonant with debates represented at Documenta, Venice Biennale, and the Whitney Biennial, while engaging critics from The New York Times, Art in America, and Artforum. In the 1990s and 2000s the organization navigated New York real estate shifts affecting spaces like Chelsea, Lower East Side, and TriBeCa, and partnered in programming with institutions such as The New School and Columbia University. Recent decades include collaborations with curators and artists connected to Sotheby's, Christie's, and independent foundations such as Guggenheim Foundation and Warhol Foundation.

Mission and Programs

Artists Space's mission centers on supporting risk-taking practices by artists linked to contemporary dialogues in venues including Lincoln Center, Cooper Union, and Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM). Program types have included curated exhibitions, residency programs, artist talks, and publications produced in dialogue with publishers like Aperture, Tate Publishing, and MIT Press. The organization has offered professional development initiatives akin to programs at Robert Rauschenberg Foundation, MacDowell Colony, and Sundance Institute, while fostering discourse with curators from Tate Modern, Centre Pompidou, and Hammer Museum.

Exhibitions and Notable Shows

Artists Space mounted early influential exhibitions that amplified artists later shown at Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. Landmark projects engaged practitioners associated with Marina Abramović, Cindy Sherman, Jenny Holzer, Barbara Kruger, and Kara Walker, and intersected with thematic shows referencing the practices of Joseph Beuys, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Keith Haring. The space has presented curatorial projects by figures related to Hans Ulrich Obrist, Walter Hopps, Lucy Lippard, and Thelma Golden, and hosted performances linked to companies such as Merce Cunningham Dance Company and artists appearing at festivals like Performa. Special initiatives have addressed critical topics also explored at Sundance Film Festival, New York Film Festival, and the Human Rights Watch Film Festival.

Artists and Alumni

Artists Space background lists alumni who later exhibited at Tate Modern, MoMA PS1, and international biennials including São Paulo Art Biennial and Venice Biennale. Associated artists include practitioners in lineages with Helen Frankenthaler, Richard Serra, Sol LeWitt, Anselm Kiefer, Yayoi Kusama, Ellsworth Kelly, Brice Marden, Shirin Neshat, and Kiki Smith. The roster has included photographers and multimedia artists with careers touching Annie Leibovitz, Nan Goldin, Gordon Matta-Clark, and Lorna Simpson, as well as younger artists who later engaged with galleries like Gagosian Gallery, David Zwirner, Hauser & Wirth, and Pace Gallery.

Leadership and Organization

Artists Space has been led and advised by curators, directors, and board members who have held roles at institutions including Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, Brooklyn Museum, New Museum, and Dia Art Foundation. Leadership conversations have included trustees and patrons linked to foundations such as Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and Kresge Foundation. Guest curators and advisors have been drawn from ranks associated with Tate, Centre Pompidou, SFMOMA, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and academic departments at Yale University, Columbia University, and New York University.

Facilities and Locations

Artists Space has occupied multiple sites in Manhattan, responding to neighborhood shifts from SoHo (Manhattan) to Chelsea, Manhattan and locations near Bowery. Facility types ranged from storefront galleries to larger white-cube spaces comparable to those of P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center and satellite projects in partnership with venues such as China Institute in America, Japan Society (New York), and Asia Society. The organization has curated site-specific commissions in public sites akin to projects at High Line, Rockefeller Center, and Times Square.

Funding and Partnerships

Artists Space receives support from private donors, foundations, and public arts funds aligned with grantmakers like the National Endowment for the Arts, New York State Council on the Arts, and New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. Collaborative partnerships have involved museums, universities, and cultural institutes such as American Folk Art Museum, Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), Japan Foundation, British Council, and corporate supporters comparable to patronage models at MoMA and The Whitney. Fundraising activities have intersected with benefit auctions at houses like Sotheby's and Christie's and philanthropic initiatives associated with collectors appearing in lists published by ArtReview and ARTnews.

Category:Art museums and galleries in Manhattan Category:Non-profit organizations based in New York City