Flux Factory

Flux Factory

Flux Factory was an artist-run collective and residency space established in 1998 in Long Island City, Queens. The organization provided studios, exhibition space, and collaborative residency programs that intersected with institutions, museums, galleries, and cultural organizations across New York City and internationally. Through experimental exhibitions, public programs, and partnerships with museums and foundations, Flux Factory played a role in the contemporary art ecosystems of New York City, Queens, Brooklyn, and beyond.

History

Flux Factory was founded in 1998 amid the late-1990s artist-run space movement alongside entities such as PS1 Contemporary Art Center, Artists Space, The Kitchen, New Museum, and Dia Art Foundation. Early activities connected with art biennials and alternative spaces including Whitney Museum of American Art initiatives, SculptureCenter, A.I.R. Gallery, and Art in General. The collective hosted residencies and exchanges with artists associated with MoMA PS1, Chelsea Art Museum, Guggenheim Museum, J. Paul Getty Museum, and regional organizations like Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia and Walker Art Center. Flux Factory’s development paralleled the expansion of contemporary art networks such as Creative Time, Services for the Arts, and Lower Manhattan Cultural Council initiatives, and its membership engaged with grants and awards from institutions like the National Endowment for the Arts, New York State Council on the Arts, Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, and private foundations connected to the Ford Foundation and Rockefeller Foundation.

Facilities and Projects

Located in converted industrial lofts in Long Island City, Flux Factory’s facilities included communal studios, a gallery, performance areas, fabrication workshops, and project rooms used by residents and visiting collaborators drawn from networks connected to Cooper Union, Parsons School of Design, Pratt Institute, Yale School of Art, and Rhode Island School of Design. Projects ranged from site-specific installations referencing practices at Storm King Art Center and Society for Contemporary Art to interdisciplinary collaborations with practitioners affiliated with Columbia University School of the Arts, New York University, Harvard University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The space hosted sound art, performance, video, and new media experiments that aligned with programs at Anthology Film Archives, Roulette Intermedium, BRIC Arts Media House, and The Public Theater. Fabrication capabilities enabled projects comparable to those produced for exhibitions at Tate Modern, Centre Pompidou, and Kunsthalle Basel collaborators.

Organizational Structure and Membership

Flux Factory operated as a collective with rotating membership and artist residencies, modeled after peer organizations such as Bread and Puppet Theater, Red76, and Group Material. Leadership roles rotated among members who coordinated fundraising, grants, and partnerships with agencies like New York Foundation for the Arts and municipal offices such as Queens Museum of Art programming offices and Department of Cultural Affairs (New York City). Members and residents included artists who had exhibited at Venice Biennale, Documenta, Sundance Film Festival, and international galleries represented by dealers active at Armory Show, Frieze Art Fair, and Art Basel. The membership network connected with curators and critics from publications such as Artforum, Art in America, The New Yorker, The New York Times Arts section, and with collectors and institutions including Metropolitan Museum of Art and regional museums like Brooklyn Museum.

Notable Events and Exhibitions

Flux Factory mounted exhibitions, performances, and events that attracted collaborations with curators and organizations like Hans Ulrich Obrist, Monica Ramirez, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, and curatorial platforms linked to Dia Beacon. Events included multidisciplinary programming resonant with festivals and institutions such as Performa, Frieze Projects, New York Film Festival, Whitney Biennial adjuncts, and public art initiatives coordinated by Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. The collective hosted themed exhibitions, curated salons, and public projects that intersected with artist commissions at Public Art Fund, Percent for Art, and participatory projects similar to those organized by Fluxus-adjacent practitioners. Collaborative events involved musicians and composers associated with Bang on a Can, filmmakers with ties to Sundance Institute, and performance artists who performed in venues like La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club and Judson Memorial Church.

Community Engagement and Education

Flux Factory engaged in community programs and educational initiatives partnering with local schools, cultural centers, and nonprofit entities such as Queens College, Staten Island Arts, Bronx Museum of the Arts, Long Island University, and community media organizations like WNYC and Brooklyn Rail. The collective offered workshops, artist talks, open studios, and mentorship comparable to programs at School of Visual Arts, Museum of Modern Art Learning, and community arts programs backed by National Endowment for the Arts funding streams. Outreach included partnerships with neighborhood development groups, local galleries, and civic cultural initiatives connected to Queens Library branches and municipal arts festivals that engaged residents through participatory projects and collaborative public programs.

Category:Artist-run collectives Category:Arts organizations based in New York City