Chelsea / Lower East Side galleries

Galleries' walks around NYC make me think of past lives in neighborhoods, of gentrification in the making, of new lives and new fortunes, of style and architecture and changing tastes, of fashion, of course, of the “cool” and the “hip” being dead and being re-invented to die again in the cycle of the making of “the contemporary”. And of the crazy velocity of these processes in NYC. Chelsea's galleries story begins in the 90's; a result of an over priced Soho art scene. Chelsea had to offer cheap rent for huge spaces; warehouses, abandoned factories, inheritance of early 20 century industrialization, in a relatively residentially abandoned urban space (particularly between 10 ave. and the river). Galleries in Chelsea excel in size, depth and heights. A Richard Serra sculpture (roughly 60 by 25 feet!) fits comfortably in the Gagosian generous space. 

 They offer a convincing set for well established artists or emerging stars; beautiful wooden ceilings (converted inheritance of old warehouses), cleverly designed open skylights and almost total erasure of normal street life. Residential/architectural activity is new and clearly builds upon the booming art scene; High Line district; Frank Gehry IAC building, Jean Nouvel etc., all manifest reverence of artistic hype and accompanied real estate climbing values . Walking in Chelsea feels like stepping into the contemporary art hall of fame. 

 It is powerful, intimidating, and somehow alienating.

Lower east side art scene is still in the making, a scene that is on the verge of success. There is still room here for emerging artists relatively new to the scene. It is friendlier, definitely smaller and more approachable. Even if the art-fashion pairing may be already too cute and too expensive,

 it hasn't reached yet Chelsea's arty heights of Commes de garcons and Balenciaga. 

 

and you can still find a shade of past sweat shops if you look hard

The street still has its presence here, invading galleries' space and vice versa. The noise of a near-by construction site (they are really everywhere you look ) makes it hard not to think of Henry Roth's “Call it Sleep”, of past immigrant life here in another century and another world that is being transformed.