Open Source space after the fire (image from thelmagazine.com)
Open Source Gallery, a storefront art space in South Slope, was damaged in a fire last friday and has been forced to relocate, The L Magazine reports. The “three-alarm fire at 17th Street and 5th Avenue” was caused by an exploding boiler and destroyed a supermarket and apartments as well. Events scheduled at the gallery have been moved, but there has been no word on the future of the space.
Open Source was founded in February 2008 by Gary Baldwin and Monika Wuhrer as “a place for art in the midst of daily life,” “a nexus-point between long-time residents and recent transplants.” Ongoing projects at the gallery included “Thrift Shop,” which transformed the Open Source project space into a bazaar, as well as “Soup Kitchen”, which took a relational aesthetics tack in inviting artists to cook for the public over the month of December. The L Magazine reviewed Peter Feigenbaum’s “Trainset Ghetto: Streetsmart” show at the space here.
We hope that Open Source finds a way to keep moving forward soon and continues to provide hugely necessary support for the presence of art in every day life and in the fabric of the community. Follow @open_source_ on Twitter for updates on the space’s situation.
oh man.
I really hope none of the art that was on view was damaged. It’s such a shame.