Newsletter, March 14, 2025
Shortly after my last newsletter went out, I found myself doing a deep dive into the NYFA listings and scouring Stephanie Diamond’s email listings project to see what kind of studio space...
Shortly after my last newsletter went out, I found myself doing a deep dive into the NYFA listings and scouring Stephanie Diamond’s email listings project to see what kind of studio space was available. I was exploring rentals in Long Island City, a gritty but bustling neighborhood bisected by the 7 train. It’s convenient to my apartment – a pleasant, efficient walk away. At an opening, a fellow artist tipped me off about a 1400-square-foot space just north of the Queensboro Plaza stop on the 7.
The space had previously served as storage for the late Graham Nickson, and when I visited, his name was still on the door. Situated on the sixth floor of a mixed-use building, it offers sweeping views of the neighborhood’s older sections, featuring industrial relics, auto body shops, JoeCoffee roasting headquarters, fancy cake shops, and small-scale office buildings, along with a few modern glass-and-steel apartment complexes that have come to be identified with LIC in recent years. Of course, 1400 square feet comes with challenges – primarily the rent. To make it work, I envisioned dividing the space into three sections: one for my practice, another for a fellow artist, and a third for the modest Two Coats of Paint Residency Program.
When I started the program in 2016, I wanted to provide a place for artists who lived outside the city to bring their work and have studio visits with other artists, curators, dealers, collectors, and anyone else with whom they wanted to start or continue a conversation. The idea was to offer the residency in manageable blocks of time that fit their scheduling and budgetary constraints. I always advise students to create the project they believe the art community needs, and a short, sweet residency in New York was exactly the kind of thing I’d have loved to take advantage of in the early aughts after leaving Williamsburg to teach in the art department at Eastern Connecticut State University.
In 2010, after earning tenure and a promotion to full professor, I began spending more time in New York. Eventually I left the university to pursue other opportunities and focus more on painting and expanding Two Coats of Paint. Once back in New York, I wanted to support others who, due to their circumstances, were compelled to live elsewhere. The residency program was geared towards academics with faculty development grants from their universities and mid-career artists funded by state arts organizations. The fees helped sustain Two Coats of Paint. When the pandemic hit and lockdown ensued, I had to put the project on hold, but I’m looking forward to resurrecting it.
Last week, I hired a team of builders to install walls that provide privacy while allowing light and heat to flow through the space. By the time you read this, construction should be complete. I plan to move in within the next few days. After ten weeks of traveling, writing,socializing, and working on 12 x 9-inch canvases in my apartment, I’m eager to stretch out and return to larger work. I’m also excited that my old friend Chris Joy, co-founder of the Gorky’s Granddaughter studio-visit video series, will occupy the second space. Chris is a talented artist whose presence will bring dynamic energy. As for the Two Coats of Paint Residency Program, the response has been phenomenal. My first resident will be Bryce Speed, an abstract painter from the faculty at the University Alabama. He arrives in May.
Back in December, after packing up and leaving my old studio in Dumbo, I stored everything and contemplated moving abroad. I spent a couple of weeks in Dublin to assess Ireland as a potential home. This month, I realized I wasn’t ready to leave. I feel compelled to stay and bear witness to the unfolding crisis our country faces and do what I can to help stop it. Departing seemed a little too forlorn and defeatist. When I left the New York art community in 2000, I couldn’t wait to return. It’s like a sturdy piece of burlap. It would be hard to unravel my thread and try to weave it into a less familiar community.
So that’s the update. Thanks for reading. Look for the next newsletter on April 12 when I’ll have some news about an upcoming talk in Long Island City and a lovable group show in Brooklyn.
On view this month:
NEW MEMBERS / March 8–29, 2025 / Gallery MC / 545 West 52nd St, New York, NY / Hours: Fri–Sun 1–6p. NOTE: I’ll be in the gallery on Friday, March 21, 1-6 pm. Please stop by and say hello.
“American Abstract Artists is pleased to announce an exhibition featuring its most recently inducted members. This exhibition not only highlights the innovative works by these new member-artists but also continues the organization’s 89 year legacy of fostering abstract art and the communities around it, thereby extending the legacy of both non-objective art and American Abstract Artists.”
Featured Artists: Sharon Butler, Beth Dary, Carrie Golkin, Erick Johnson, Sarah McDougald Kohn, Russell Maltz, Tom McGlynn, Christian Nguyen, Megan Olson, Alex Paik, Debra Ramsay, Leslie Roberts, Marcy Rosenblat, Sonita Singwi, Audrey Stone, Jason Stopa, Tamar Zinn
Connections
To see images and information about recent projects, visit my website at www.sharonlbutler.com. Follow me on Bluesky at @sharonbutler.bsky.social and on Instagram at @sharon_butler. See you IRL in LIC.
Sharon, what a space to inhabit!! I hope I can be your guest resident one day soon. Congratulations!
Congrats! Your new space looks great and just in time for Spring new beginnings!