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Major art publications have recently taken an interest in our tiny art community. The artist-run Regina Rex, which only had its first show in June, was listed in ArtForum‘s Critic’s Picks in the October 2010 issue. Regina Rex, with only a handful of shows under its belt, is the youngest exhibition space on the Bushwick frontier; the second-youngest is Famous Accountants.
But FA wasn’t overlooked: though a few months late, Tunneling, a group show curated by local artist Will Pappenheimer, received an extensive review in Art in America‘s November 2010 issue very near to the gallery’s one-year anniversary. Before this, the Bushwick scene was covered by only a few local blogs and the Brooklyn Rail; now the press has expanded to national and even international interest.
Everyone was shocked when the New York Times published a feature-length article on Troutman Street’s Privateer Gallery in March of 2009; other Bushwick galleries were interviewed, including Ad Hoc and Factory Fresh, but the art itself was not reviewed. Similarly, the Washington Post published a piece listing many spaces in Bushwick, but did so alongside restaurants and other cultural attractions, not reviewing the exhibitions.
Before this, coverage consisted simply of gallery names and phone numbers being rattled off by art critic Jerry Saltz in New York Magazine. The Times feature described Ellie Murphy’s solo exhibition in art-star detail, and foregrounded the only (at the time) white-box-style gallery in Bushwick. Privateer, like Regina Rex, was then also the youngest on the scene.
Now that our alternative exhibition spaces have captured the attention of major art and mainstream publications, what does this indicate about the international art world? And crucially, what does this mean for Bushwick? In the wake of Arts in Bushwick’s BETA Spaces, and innumerable openings around the neighborhood, it will be interesting to see who is in attendance, and what kind of press shakes out of this weekend.
We’re recommending some must-sees for this weekend (it’s interesting to note they are all just over the Queens border).
Art Editor’s Picks for November 13-14, 2010:
#The Social Graph, curated by Hrag Vartanian, Outpost, 1665 Norman Street
Andrew Ohanesian, Famous Accountants, 1673 Gates Avenue
Megan Pflug: Go Outside, Regina Rex, 1717 Troutman Street
Brandon November 13th, 2010 at 1:38 pm
So maybe we can start talking about a Ridgewood art scene.
Stephen Truax November 13th, 2010 at 3:06 pm
Not sure if we should be splitting hairs about the North and South sides of Cypress Ave. All of the spaces are “culturally” in Bushwick and certainly most of their patrons are Brooklyn residents.
Chris November 13th, 2010 at 3:40 pm
Famous Accountants is also artist run. Although I haven’t made an inventory, I imagine that artists operate most if not all galleries in greater Bushwick.
Ali Ha November 13th, 2010 at 4:02 pm
Have you ever been to my press section Stephen?
http://www.factoryfresh.net/factoryfreshcontact.html
Where do you get your research from?
Jeremy Sapienza November 13th, 2010 at 8:55 pm
Ali, I apologize for the error, which was in editing; Stephen meant to point out the difference between the critical reviews of Regina Rex and Privateer versus the “about town” cultural-event listings in which your gallery and some others were mentioned. In an attempt to make his words more concise I removed his more precise meaning.
Brandon November 15th, 2010 at 2:52 pm
Stephen, I know it’s a losing battle, but as a Ridgewood resident I find it funny/slighty annoying how places can be presumed as “culturally” Bushwick when most of those participating in said “Bushwick” culture are recent transplants from elsewhere (past decade at most) and a small minority themselves in that neighborhood. This subculture is very new to both sides of the border, not endemic to Bushwick. I just find it odd that my neighborhood doesn’t seem to be considered a “valid” place of its own by the media, or even by those who actually dwell in and run galleries/venues there and list their locations as Brooklyn for cachet. As an analogue, nobody is ashamed of being located in Greenpoint vs. Williamsburg, so this whole phenomenon irks me. Silent Barn are practically the only ones pretty good about this, and they are literally across the street.
Maybe this keeps my rent down, though.
Christopher Taylor Edwards November 18th, 2010 at 11:04 am
I love Ridgewood. A lot. I think it’s an overlooked gem. But it is in Queens. And Queens will never be cool. Greenpoint is still in Brooklyn.