At Open Source Gallery, we are always looking for ways to expand our programming and serve new communities. Until June 2019 OS Gowanus was a program located at 234 Butler Street in Gowanus that intended to support the kind of process-based work that we exhibit at Open Source. As a newcomer to the neighborhood ourselves we wanted to, first and foremost, get to know the community so that we may collaborate to develop programming that addresses the interests and needs of Gowanus residents. Exhibitions and programs at this space prioritized work by Gowanus-based artists.
In June 2019 we were forced to move out of OS Govanus because of eminent domain. Paul Amento and Chris Fox installed Eminent Domain as a direct response to the NYC City Council’s plans to demolish the historic Gowanus Station, the location of OS Gowanus, Spoke the Hub, and a sanitation repairs company.
Like Open Source, OS Gowanus was located in a unique, and somewhat challenging, physical venue in which to present art. Amongst Gowanus industry, NYCHA housing complexes, artist studios and newly-built luxury condominiums, we aimed to provide a space where artists can work with the community, developing art that responds to and reflects the community surrounding OS Gowanus. Our mission was (and is) to address environmental and social issues in Gowanus by working closely with arts and cultural organizations in the area and collaborating with long-time residents and newcomers alike. Creating art in a site-specific context requires artists to work with, not against, the community, architecture and elements that already exist. Our mission at OS Gowanus is to do just that: collaborate with residents of Gowanus to present community-driven art that speaks to–and speaks for–the community.
Currently we opened up a new space in Gowanus, that allows us to only have our education program called KoKo NYC, but there is not sufficient space for OS Gowanus. Stay tuned for more!
