SVA MFA Fine Arts Thesis Show May 16th–June 6th
The feast for the eyes currently at the once Gem Discount Store on 695 Grand Street was plated by Lumi Tan. She is the curator of this show and also the associate curator of The Kitchen. The works on view are the creative efforts 35 students of the School of Visual Arts MFA program submitted for their theses.
In the past this exhibit has been presented at the SVA Chelsea Gallery. This first-time switch of venue was selected for a variety of reasons. Setting it in Williamsburg is placing it in a neighborhood whose influx of artists, past and present, attracted the potential and producers of development. The space at 695 Grand Street has been used for four previous cultural events: Holiday Fun for All, NYC Salon Showcase, and NEW WORK NEW YORK parts I and II. And in the words of Lumi Tan, “As a temporary space for exhibitions that will then be demolished for the construction of affordable housing, the storefront quite bluntly speaks to the context of reinvention. By engaging with disparate audiences—those who seek out the exhibition, artists living and working in the neighborhood, and curious passersby—the work moves from the certain comforts of the Chelsea gallery district and the school studio into an undefined space in which it must speak for itself.”
The idea of hosting arts events at this vacated discount store was the brainchild of Arts@Renaissance and St. Nicks Alliance. For the former it was a great way to reaffirm their arts foothold in the community while waiting for their new home at 601 Metropolitan Ave to be built, and St. Nicks Alliance saw it as an opportunity to engage the community and utilize an empty space that later this summer they will demolish in order to build affordable housing.
The SVA MFA Fine Arts Thesis Show: Thursdays –Sundays through June 6th from noon–6pm at 695 Grand Street, Brooklyn, New York. Admission is free and open to the public.
The Greenline 