From 1952 to 1959, 88 East 10th Street was the home and studio of Dutch-American painter Willem de Kooning, one of the most significant of the abstract expressionists who redefined the international art world and pulled its center to East 10th Street. De Kooning lived and worked here during some of his most important years as an artist when he and his contemporaries helped create the famed “Tenth Street Galleries” on East 10th Street between Third and Fourth Avenues.

Willem de Kooning on 88 East 10th Street Stoop with Novelist Noel Clad, April 5, 1959. Photo © Estate of Fred W. McDarrah These highly influential abstract expressionists found the area anti-picturesque – an ideal setting for their anti-romantic painting – and their presence here precipitated a larger movement of artists from Greenwich Village to the more affordable East Village. 88 East 10th Street was also the first place where de Kooning combined his working studio with his residence – a trend for artists in the mid-20th century which came to transform nearby neighborhoods like SoHo and NoHo, of which this was an early example.

“Woman 1” by Williem de Kooning, 1950-1952 While at this studio, de Kooning completed many of his major works, including those featuring New York City’s downtown and de Kooning’s surroundings on East 10th Street. In his first years at No. 88, de Kooning turned his attention to his Woman series, featured in March of 1953 at the Sidney Janis Gallery in the “Willem de Kooning: Paintings on the Theme of Woman” exhibit. The Museum of Modern Art bought “Woman I,” and Blanchette Rockefeller, the wife of John D. Rockefeller III, bought “Woman II.” In the fall of 1954 through the next year and a half, de Kooning transitioned to painting what Thomas Hess, editor and art critic of the time for ArtNews, referred to as “abstract urban landscape” and what art critic Harold Rosenberg called the “no environment” of the East 10th Street artist enclave.

“Easter Monday” by Willem de Kooning, 1955 “Easter Monday,” the last and most famous of the de Kooning urban abstractions, was finished the day before his second show at the Sidney Janis Gallery on April 3, 1956. In his review of the show, Hess said that de Kooning “had replaced Picasso and Miro as the most influential painter at work today.” After World War II, New York supplanted Paris as the center of the art world, and following the death of Jackson Pollock in 1956, de Kooning was considered the master of that world. It was during the 1950’s that the then-novel concept of artist-run galleries began to flourish, particularly on de Kooning’s block.

88-82 East 10th Street (l. to r.). Among the visible businesses are the New York Hotel Employment Agency, The Stryke Gallery, 84 Gallery, and the J\&J Polishing and Plating Co., August 23, 1963. Photo © Estate of Fred W. McDarrah Though de Kooning found a new, larger studio space by 1958 or early 1959 at 831 Broadway, he continued to work in his East 10th Street studio while a renovation of the new space occurred, and rented out No. 88 until 1963. Today, very few of the structures housing the former galleries and artists’ studios central to this abstract expressionist school of the 1940s and 1950s remain from this period. 88 East 10th Street, by contrast, is nearly intact to its appearance during de Kooning’s time.

Selma Hortense Burke with her portrait bust of Booker T. Washington, 1930s “One of the most notable sculptors of the twentieth century” according to the National Women’s History Museum, the celebrated artist, educator, and self-described “people’s sculptor” Selma Hortense Burke also lived and worked at 88 East 10th Street from 1944 until at least 1949, according to New York City directories. While here, Burke completed “The Four Freedoms,” a 2 ½ by 3 ½ foot relief plaque commemorating President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, which was used as a model for his image on the U.S. dime coin. Burke is celebrated for her lifelong commitment to the art of sculpture and to art education, for her highly regarded portrayals of towering African American figures such as Martin Luther King Jr., Booker T. Washington, and Mary McLeod Bethune, for her significance in the Harlem Renaissance, for her unabashed drawing upon African models for her art, and for achieving success as a Black woman sculptor at a time when few female or Black artists, and even fewer Black female artists, were able to achieve any success or recognition in the United States.

Selma Hortense Burke with her relief plaque of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt In 1941, Burke joined a competition to create a profile portrait of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and in 1943 she won and was commissioned to produce a relief plaque of the President. Burke had two sittings to sketch the President in person, and completed the plaque while living at 88 East 10th Street. In March 1945, as Burke remained at 88 East 10th Street, Eleanor Roosevelt visited her studio to approve the final design. The plaque was dedicated following Roosevelt’s death, on September 24, 1945 at the Recorder of Deeds Building in Washington, D.C. “The Four Freedoms” was unveiled by Frederick Weaver, Frederick Douglass’ grandson, and President Harry S. Truman spoke at the event. While U.S. Mint Chief Engraver John Sinnock is credited with Roosevelt’s image on the U.S. dime coin, Burke’s relief plaque is widely accepted as the model and original version. Throughout her life, Burke herself insisted that her design was plagiarized on the dime coin. Significantly, Burke also established the Selma Burke School of Sculpture while living here in 1946, as recorded in an article published that year in Headlines and Pictures (Chicago, Illinois). At this time, the school was located at 67 West 3rd Street (demolished).

U.S. Dime Coin, 2017 Throughout her life, Burke completed a number of sculptural projects, including Mother and Child (1968) and Big Mama (1972), which focused on the experience of Black women. Some of her other well-known pieces include Torso (1937), Temptation (c. 1938), Untitled (Woman and Child) (c. 1950, now found in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum), Despair (1951), Fallen Angel (1958), and Together (1975, now found in the collection of the Hill House Association). Her final monumental work, an eight-foot tall sculpture of Martin Luther King Jr., which stands in Marshall Park in Charlotte, North Carolina, was dedicated in 1980. Over the course of her career Burke also completed portraits of Booker T. Washington, Duke Ellington, Mary McLeod Bethune (now found in the collection of the Woodmere Art Museum), and other renowned Black figures. Her work is now found in the collection of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, among other museums and institutions. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

The International Workers Order (IWO) was located at 80 Fifth Avenue for its entire lifetime, from 1930 until 1954.

This progressive mutual-benefit fraternal organization was a pioneering force in the U.S. labor movement.

International Workers Order emblem, 1930-1939 For a quarter of a century, the IWO fought relentlessly for racial equality, interracial solidarity, industrial unions, and social security programs that would protect working-class people. At one point, painter Rockwell Kent served as the IWO’s national president.

Rockwell Kent, c. 1920 The IWO contained a number of workers’ schools, which taught painting, sculpture, and music in addition to working-class history, Marxism, and union organizing. It also financially supported other leftist schools, including the Jefferson School for Social Science. Here, IWO members could take painting classes with artists such as Philip Evergood and Anton Refregier. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

By 1940, 68 Fifth Avenue housed The Music Box Canteen, a celebrated World War II entertainment venue for GIs described at the time as “one of the most famous metropolitan service centers, and…‘a home away from home’ to thousands of servicemen.” The Canteen was known not just to American GIs but was popular among allied military men from across the world.

In 1943 the Chinese-American modernist artist Yun Gee (1906-1963) staged an exhibition to raise funds for the Music Box Canteen. Gee had been an active fundraiser for causes in China and a participant in WPA programs since the Depression. Beyond contributing to political causes, from this point on Gee’s work featured overtly political themes. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

In 1962, the magazine Forbes Inc. purchased 60-62 Fifth Avenue.

At this time, Malcolm Forbes, son of the business’ founder B. C. Forbes who in 1964 inherited the company, also purchased the adjacent townhouse at 11 West 12th Street. Forbes lived here, in the Greenwich Village Historic District, while owning and working out of 60 Fifth Avenue.

"Forbes" logo Notably, he renovated the Fifth Avenue building to include the Forbes Galleries in the ground floor, housing his unrivalled collection of Faberge eggs, toy soldiers, and the earliest homemade monopoly board. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

59 Fifth Avenue was home to several members of a family who were among the most important American patrons of the arts of the 19th century: Jonathan Sturges; his son-in-law and daughter, William H. Osborn and Virginia Reed Sturges Osborn; and their children, Henry Fairfield Osborn and William Church Osborn. The house was located in the midst of New York’s emerging arts and cultural center, with the National Academy of the Arts nearby at 58 East 13th Street, the Tenth Street Studios at 51 West 10th Street, the New York Society Library on University Place between 12th and 13th Streets, and the Astor Place Opera House, the Astor Library, the Academy of Music, Cooper Union, the New-York Historical Society, and New York University all just a few blocks away.

Jonathan Sturges, c. 1840 In this context, it’s no surprise that Jonathan Sturges (1802-1874), prominent businessman and patron of the arts, chose to purchase the newly-built house at 59 Fifth Avenue for his new son-in-law William H. Osborn, and his daughter, Virginia Reed Sturges Osborn. They too were extremely generous and prodigious patrons of the arts and cultural and charitable institutions in 19th century New York City — a tradition which would be carried on well into the 20th century by their children, Henry Fairfield Osborn and William Church Osborn, who also lived at 59 Fifth Avenue.

“View near Saugerties” by Asher B. Durand, 1836 According to scholar Christine Isabelle Oaklander, “Jonathan Sturges was a leading force in promoting American art and American art institutions from the 1830s until his death in 1874.” Born in Southport, Connecticut, Sturges came to New York City in 1821 and soon went to work for the man who would eventually become his business partner, Luman Reed (1787-1836), owner of a mercantile business at 125 Front Street. Reed’s tutelage of Sturges extended beyond business and into patronage of the arts. Through Reed, Sturges developed relationships with artists such as Thomas Cole, Asher B. Durand, and William Sidney Mount. Sturges is credited with encouraging Durand to transition from portraits to landscapes, and in 1836 commissioned Durand’s first landscape, View Near Saugerties. Other artists who were the beneficiaries of Sturges’ patronage included Henry Peters Gray, Frederic Edwin Church, John Gadsby Chapman, Henry Kirke Brown, Francis W. Edmonds, Henry Inman, Robert W. Weir, Daniel Huntington, and Charles C. Ingham. Sturges became a leading force in promoting the arts in America, through purchases, financial support of New York’s young arts institutions, and facilitating the sale of art to his friends and colleagues. His art collection was recognized as one of ten noteworthy private collections in New York City by Henry T. Tuckerman in his 1867 Book of Artists. His generosity included paying above asking price for works by artists he supported, and offering them stipends to paint. His name is not nearly as well-known as some of his contemporaries who supported the arts, in large part because Sturges consistently shunned public attention for his philanthropic activities, unlike many of his peers who actively sought and encouraged it. In 1844, Sturges, along with Reed’s son-in-law Theodore Allen, founded the New York Gallery of the Fine Arts, the city’s first public art museum. The Gallery was established to preserve and exhibit Reed’s collections after he passed away in 1836, and Sturges soon became its president. When the New York Gallery of the Fine Arts dissolved, the collection went to the New-York Historical Society, another New York institution which benefited from Sturges’ generosity. So supportive of the aforementioned National Academy of Design was Sturges that he was made one of only a very few non-artist members. The Academy also commissioned his portrait for their permanent collection, and upon his death the Academy’s Council said of Sturges “to no other lay members are we more generously and gratefully indebted.” Sturges was also a founding member of the Sketch Club, a social club of artists and patrons, and its offshoot, the Century Association. Toward the end of his life, Sturges was involved with the planning and founding of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

“The Aegean Sea” by Frederic Edwin Church, 1877 William H. Osborn (1820-1894), born into humble beginnings, proved as successful in business as his father-in-law Jonathan Sturges, becoming one of the country’s most prominent and successful railroad tycoons. By the age of 30 he was a wealthy man, subsequently moving to and settling in New York City. He came to know Jonathan Sturges and married his daughter Virginia Reed Sturges Osborn (1830-1902) in 1853. Much like and perhaps influenced by his father-in-law, Osborn also became a significant patron of the arts. Of particular note is his relationship with renowned Hudson River School painter Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900), perhaps the most famous American painter of his time. Some of the notable paintings by Church that Osborn purchased include Andes of Ecuador (1855), Chimborazo (1864), and Pichinacha (1867). Osborn financed Church’s travel to locations that served as settings and inspiration for these masterpieces, perhaps most famously The Aegean Sea (1877). Osborn’s youngest son William Church Osborn was named after Church. So close were William H. and Virginia Reed Sturges Osborn to Church that Church and his wife Isabel spent most winters when not traveling at their home. Isabel died on May 12, 1899, after a long illness, at their home, and on April 7, 1900, Church died at the same location. Other artists represented in the Osborns’ collection include George Loring Brown, Samuel Worcester Rowse, Thomas Cole, Asher Durand, Daniel Huntington, and Sanford Gifford, among others. Osborn was also one of 19th century New York’s great patrons of the arts, including as one of the founders of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and one of the largest donors to the museum’s initial capital campaign. In addition to monetary support, he donated paintings from his own collection to the museum, and along with Sturges, donated money to a fund to keep a collection of Egyptian antiquities in New York City to be displayed at the museum. Virginia Reed Sturges Osborn also served on the board of the Society of Decorative Arts, which encouraged women to earn a living by creating needlework and ceramics, and the board of the art section of the 1864 New York Sanitary Fair, which was held to raise money for medical provisions for the Union troops.

William Church Osborn, c. 1910-1915 The Osborns had two sons, Henry Fairfield Osborn (1857-1935) and William Church Osborn (1862-1951), both of whom grew up and lived at 59 Fifth Avenue. With the death of Virginia in 1902, William and Henry each inherited half of their parent’s vast art collection, and donated many of those artworks to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. William expanded his personal collection with works by French Impressionists and post-Impressionists such as Monet, Manet, and Gaugin, at a time when such art was largely a novelty in this country. In 1904, William was elected a trustee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and would serve the institution in various critical capacities until his death in 1951. In 1932 he became Vice-President, and in 1933 when the current President William Sloane Coffin died suddenly, the board proposed Osborn as his successor. He declined, instead recommending George Blumenthal for the position, the museum’s first Jewish trustee. Osborn succeeded Blumenthal as President in 1941, remaining in the position until 1947. Osborn’s tenure with the Met came during a pivotal period for the museum. Several building projects were executed, collections and staff were expanded, and practices of museum management were formalized. In 1907 he directed the museum’s first purchase of an Impressionist painting, Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Madame Charpentier and Her Children — a bold and controversial acquisition at the time. He also established the Met’s junior museum, an innovative interactive and educational resource for schoolchildren soon emulated by many other museums. Osborn made several important gifts of artwork to the museum, including Edouard Manet’s The Spanish Singer and Paul Gauguin’s Two Tahitian Women. Through bequests he left works by Monet, Pissarro and William Blake.

William Church Osborn Gates at the Fifth Avenue and 85th Street entrance to Central Park, 2009 William Church Osborn’s contributions to the arts, to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and to New York civic life are memorialized in a particularly prominent and beautiful form with the Osborn Gates at the Fifth Avenue and 85th Street entrance to Central Park, just north of the Museum. Located at the entrance to the Ancient Playground, the gates depict five of Aesop’s fables. Declared by the Municipal Art Society one of the most important pieces in Central Park when installed in 1953, the gates were designed by sculptor Paul Manship and architect Aymar Embury II, and donated by the William Church Osborn Memorial Committee as a tribute to his contributions to the city and museum. By the late 19th century, 59 Fifth Avenue was primarily utilized for commercial, artistic, and literary purposes, just like so many of the buildings in the area south of Union Square. Around 1900, artists and illustrators Annie Blakeslee Hooper and Will Philip Hooper had their studios here. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

The 1928 16-story Colonial Revival style apartment building at 49-51 Fifth Avenue was the home of highly acclaimed expressionist-turned-representational painter Jane Freilicher. Freilicher, known for her vibrant landscapes and still lifes, was a longtime Village resident who studied at the Village-based Hans Hofmann School of Fine Arts in the late 1940s. She resided in the East Village on 11th Street and 16 West 11th Street before moving to 49-51 Fifth Avenue in 1965. The artist lived at this address, where she had a greenhouse studio, until her death in 2014. According to Freilicher, interviewed for the “Greenwich Village Stories” collection published by Village Preservation, she could paint views from her studio “in more or less every direction.” “I have painted these views for years, never tiring of them,” Freilicher affirmed.

“Champion Flowers” by Jane Freilicher likely showing the view from her building at 51 Fifth Avenue, 1999 One of the most esteemed female artists of her generation, Freilicher was a significant, unifying presence in the New York School, an informal group developed in the 1950s that included artists Larry Rivers, Grace Hartigan, Alfred Leslie, Robert Goodnough, Mike Goldberg, and Fairfield Porter. Freilicher was especially close to the School’s poets, Kenneth Koch, John Ashbery, James Schuyler, and Frank O’Hara, with whom she shared deep friendships and a distinctive artistic camaraderie. Each of these individuals wrote about Freilicher and her work, and she in turn painted their portraits, designed their book covers, and corresponded with them regularly. The impact of these relationships on the life and work of Freilicher, Koch, Ashbery, Schuyler, and O’Hara – all renowned artists and writers in their own right – cannot be overstated. While living at 49-51 Fifth Avenue for almost fifty years, Freilicher expanded her portfolio, exhibited across the country, and received a number of major awards including the National Academy of Design Saltus Gold Medal, the Academy of the Arts Lifetime Achievement Award from the Guild Hall Museum, and the Academy of Arts and Letters’ highest honor: a Gold Medal in Painting. By the end of her life, her art had been shown in over fifty solo exhibitions and hundreds of group exhibitions, and it is now in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Whitney Museum of Art. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

The Salmagundi Club was organized in 1871 for the “the promotion of social intercourse among artists and the advancement of the art” and named for the “Salmagundi Papers,” a satirical magazine published by short-story writer Washington Irving in which he coined the term “Gotham.” The Club purchased the grand 1852-1853 Italianate-style building at 47 Fifth Avenue in 1917, and has resided here ever since.

Notable members of the Club include illustrators Edwin Abbey, N.C. Wyeth, and Howard Pyle; impressionist painters William Merritt Chase and Childe Hassam; Arts and Crafts pioneer John LaFarge; designer Louis C. Tiffany; Hudson River School artist Thomas Moran; and architect Stanford White. Today, the organization owns a collection of over 1,500 works of art, undertakes small restoration projects, and opens numerous events and classes to the public. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

Irish-American artist William Michael Harnett (1848-1892), known for his photo-realistic still-life paintings, lived and worked at 28 East 14th Street from 1886 until 1889. Throughout his life, Harnett maintained a remarkably consistent style and is now remembered for his use of trompe l’oeil (French for “fool the eye”). The Metropolitan Museum of Art states that Harnett was the “most imitated and skillful still-life painter in late-nineteenth-century America.” His work includes The Faithful Colt (1890), Job Lot, Cheap (1878), The Old Violin (1886), and his most famous, After the Hunt (1885).

“The Old Violin” by William Michael Harnett, 1886 Trained as an engraver when he was a teenager, Harnett enrolled in the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 1866, then moved to New York in 1869. Here he worked at a silver engraving shop and attended classes at Cooper Union and the National Academy of Design. Harnett later returned to Philadelphia to study again at the Pennsylvania Academy, and after a lucrative painting sale in 1880, was able to study and work abroad. He spent the bulk of this trip in Munich, where he lived for three years. When Harnett returned to the United States, he moved to 28 East 14th Street. Other artists who lived at this address include William J. Johnston and John W. Blake, who together formed the art dealership W.J. Johnston & Co. Artist Jeanne Ogden also rented a studio here in 1908. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

From approximately 1940 until 1943, 30 East 14th Street was the home and studio of painter Virginia Admiral, who lived here first with her friends and then with her husband Robert De Niro Sr. (and perhaps for a short time with their newborn child, the actor Robert De Niro Jr.). Admiral and De Niro Sr. were two people on an almost-unrivaled list of artists who called 30 East 14th Street home in the 20th century. The individuals who lived and worked in this building were part of a trailblazing community who drew the center of the American – and ultimately global – art world below Fourteenth Street.

Virginia Admiral After earning her Bachelor’s degree working on the Federal Arts Project in Oakland, Virginia Admiral moved into 30 East 14th Street along with her friends Janet Thurman and Marjorie McKee. Admiral was visited often by poet Robert Duncan and writer Anaïs Nin, both of whom documented her apartment in their respective journals. Around this time, Admiral received a scholarship to the Hans Hofmann School of Fine Arts, a Greenwich Village-based institution which played a pivotal role in the development of abstract expressionism. Here she met the emerging figurative expressionist painter Robert De Niro Sr., considered one of Hofmann’s most promising students.

Robert de Niro, Sr. Admiral and De Niro Sr. began sharing the loft on 14th Street in 1941, were married by January of 1942, and gave birth to Robert De Niro Jr. on August 17, 1943. This was a formative period in the career of both artists, when they developed friendships with now-esteemed literary and artistic figures including writer Henry Miller and playwright Tennessee Williams. Within a few years both Admiral and De Niro Sr. had exhibited at Peggy Guggenheim’s “Art of This Century” gallery, where many artists of the era launched their careers.

“Flowers in a Blue Vase” by Robert de Niro, Sr. Today, Admiral continues to be known for her art, which was heavily influenced by her activism — particularly in the anti-war movement — and is part of the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice. De Niro Sr. also taught and exhibited throughout his career, and is honored comprehensively by The Estate of Robert De Niro, Sr. and in the 2019 monograph Robert De Niro, Sr.: Paintings, Drawings, and Writings: 1942-1993.

Kenneth Hayes Miller, c. 1910 Other notable artist residents of 30 East 14th Street include “Fourteenth Street School” painter and Art Students League teacher Kenneth Hayes Miller.

“In the Park” by Kenneth Hayes Miller, 1923 Miller was known particularly for his depictions of the sales girls and shoppers that filled the 14th Street and Union Square neighborhood.

Yasuo Kuniyoshi in his studio at 30 East 14th Street, October 31, 1940 By 1940, social realist painter Yasuo Kuniyoshi also had a studio at 30 East 14th Street, and in 1945 modernist Howard Daum moved into Studio K on the second floor, living and working here for the rest of his life and frequently painting from the rooftop. While Daum was here, painter Carl Ashby and painter, activist, and poet Helen DeMott had studios in the building. Painter, printmaker, and cartoonist Charles Keller had a studio at 30 East 14th Street from 1945 to 1953, formerly occupied by sculptor Arnold Blanch, which he shared with muralist and printmaker Harry Sternberg, who stayed here from 1945 to 1967. Realist and surrealist painter Andrée Ruellan and representational painter Edwin Dickinson had studios here as well. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

In the late 19th and early 20th century, this striking 1892 seven-story store and loft Beaux-Arts Belle Époque structure at 24 East 13th Street housed Heinigke & Bowen, producers of architectural stained glass and mosaics. Owen J. Bowen was a former associate of both Tiffany and La Farge, while Otto Heingeke was a sought-after glass artisan who enjoyed a career as a successful watercolorist.

Woolworth Ceiling Mosaic by Heinigke & Bowen Their firm was employed by some of the leading architects of the time, including McKim, Mead & White, Cass Gilbert, and John Russell Pope. They were the designers of the stained glass in such noted landmarks as the Library of Congress, Carnegie Hall, the New York Stock Exchange, and the Woolworth Building. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

Julian Alden Weir (August 30, 1852 – December 8, 1919) was a leading American impressionist painter and a founding member of “The Ten American Painters” or “The Ten,” a group of dissident artists who found the American academy hostile to their embrace of impressionism and banded together to advance their own work. According to the 1880 Census, Weir lived at 24 East 10th Street with his parents and siblings, and according to the 1884-1885 City Directory, he lived at 31 West 10th Street. But in 1886, Weir and his wife Anna moved into 11 East 12th Street, remaining until 1907, as documented in the Cultural Landscape report for the Weir Farm National Historic Site.

Julian Alden Weir, late 1800s Weir married Anna at the nearby landmarked Church of the Ascension at Fifth Avenue and 10th Street. When the church’s interior was remodeled in 1885-1889 by Stanford White, Weir joined John LaFarge, D. Maitland Armstrong, and Louis Comfort Tiffany in contributing designs for new memorial windows. Weir’s “An Incident in the Flight into Egypt” remains there today.

“The Red Bridge” by Julian Alden Weir, c. 1895 Weir was the first president of the Association of American Painters and Sculptors, and later became president of the National Academy of Design. He was also a member of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts from 1916 until his death in 1919. Today Weir’s paintings are in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. He was one of the leading proponents of impressionism in America, helping to bring this modern and groundbreaking style from Europe. He also helped move the American Academy away from its exclusive loyalty to classical styles, thus assisting in ushering in a new era when America would join, and eventually lead, the avant-garde in western art, as opposed to merely employing accepted styles from the western canon.

“Smoko, the Human Volcano” by Reginald Marsh, 1933 Social realist painter Reginald Marsh (1898–1954) lived at 11 East 12th Street in the 1930s, the period in which he gained his greatest prominence and his most celebrated works were produced. Marsh first resided at 11 East 12th Street from February 1933 until January 1934, then moved to 4 East 12th Street in May 1934. At this time, he was one of the key figures of the “Fourteenth Street School” of painters, an influential group of artists in the 1920s and 30s who lived and worked in this area. The Fourteenth Street School painters came to redefine realist painting, often focusing on their immediate and workaday surroundings on or near their namesake street, a center of shopping and entertainment for average and working-class New Yorkers. In addition to Marsh, the group included Kenneth Hayes Miller, Isabel Bishop, Arnold Blanch, and twin brothers Raphael and Moses Soyer. Marsh was born in Paris to expatriate artist parents who returned to the United States around 1900. In 1916, he entered Yale University, where he majored in art and drew illustrations for the Yale Record. Following graduation, he arrived in New York and soon established himself as a successful freelance illustrator, working for popular publications including the New York Daily News, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, and Esquire. In 1921, Marsh began attending classes at the Art Students League, where he studied with other members of what would become the Fourteenth Street School. A careful though detached observer, Marsh excelled at representing crowds of New Yorkers, showing lively scenes of both the unemployed and the working class going about their daily activities. Burlesque shows, movie houses, elevated trains, Depression homeless encampments, and places of work all figured prominently in Marsh’s paintings. Often the scenes he depicted were not far from his perch just off Union Square. Marsh also made linocuts, lithographs, drawings, engravings and etchings. His etching ‘Box at the Metropolitan’ was printed on his press at 4 East 12th Street. In his later years Marsh would teach at the Art Students League, where a young Roy Lichtenstein, who would cite him as one of his most prominent influences, was one of his students. Today, Marsh’s murals grace the rotunda of the landmarked U.S. Customs House at 1 Bowling Green, and his work can be found in the collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Brooklyn Museum. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

Social realist painter Reginald Marsh (1898–1954) lived at 4 East 12th Street in the 1930s, the period in which he gained his greatest prominence and his most celebrated works were produced. Marsh first resided at 11 East 12th Street from February 1933 until January 1934, then moved to 4 East 12th Street in May 1934. At this time, he was one of the key figures of the “Fourteenth Street School” of painters, an influential group of artists in the 1920s and 30s who lived and worked in this area. The Fourteenth Street School painters came to redefine realist painting, often focusing on their immediate and workaday surroundings on or near their namesake street, a center of shopping and entertainment for average and working-class New Yorkers. In addition to Marsh, the group included Kenneth Hayes Miller, Isabel Bishop, Arnold Blanch, and twin brothers Raphael and Moses Soyer. Marsh was born in Paris to expatriate artist parents who returned to the United States around 1900. In 1916, he entered Yale University, where he majored in art and drew illustrations for the Yale Record. Following graduation, he arrived in New York and soon established himself as a successful freelance illustrator, working for popular publications including the New York Daily News, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, and Esquire. In 1921, Marsh began attending classes at the Art Students League, where he studied with other members of what would become the Fourteenth Street School.

“Sorting the Mail” mural by Reginald Marsh, 1936 A careful though detached observer, Marsh excelled at representing crowds of New Yorkers, showing lively scenes of both the unemployed and the working class going about their daily activities. Burlesque shows, movie houses, elevated trains, Depression homeless encampments, and places of work all figured prominently in Marsh’s paintings. Often the scenes he depicted were not far from his perch just off Union Square. Marsh also made linocuts, lithographs, drawings, engravings and etchings. His etching ‘Box at the Metropolitan’ was printed on his press at 4 East 12th Street. In his later years Marsh would teach at the Art Students League, where a young Roy Lichtenstein, who would cite him as one of his most prominent influences, was one of his students. Today, Marsh’s murals grace the rotunda of the landmarked U.S. Customs House at 1 Bowling Green, and his work can be found in the collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Brooklyn Museum.

“Four Figures” by Betty Waldo Parish, 1950 The artist Betty Waldo Parish (1910-1986) created an etching called “4 East 12th Street,” the address at which she also lived and had a studio. Born in Germany, Parish is known for her work inspired by the Ashcan School of painters, a group of early 20th century New York City urban realist artists. A student of the Art Students League, Parish worked with Kenneth Hayes Miller, John Sloan, Reginald Marsh, and Eugene Speicher. Additionally, she participated in the Printmaking Project of the Works Progress Administration. Parish’s work is part of the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the New York Public Library, the Library of Congress, and many other institutions. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

In 1948, art dealer Lou Pollack opened the Peridot Gallery at 6 East 12th Street, an important platform for abstract expressionist and other avant garde art. Here he exhibited the work of Philip Guston, James Brooks, and Alfred Russell. 6 East 12th Street was just blocks away from the “Tenth Street Galleries” that emerged between Third and Fourth Avenues around the same time. In the 1940s and 1950s, these galleries transformed the area into the epicenter of the New York, and international, art world. Later, the Peridot Gallery moved uptown to Madison Avenue. 6 East 12th Street was later the home of mid-20th century artist-writer Rosemarie Beck in 1966. Beck was part of the second generation of abstract expressionists, but by 1958 she had moved into figuration painting. Throughout her life, Beck wrote extensively in the form of letters, journals, and essays on art. Her work was featured at the Art Institute of Chicago, the National Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and the Whitney Museum of Art, where her creations are part of the permanent collections. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

From 1957 to 1959, the celebrated “New York School” poet Frank O’Hara lived at 90-92 University Place while he was also a curator of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA).

Frank O'Hara He alluded to his home here in his poem “University Place.” O’Hara chose to live at this location because of its proximity to the Cedar Tavern, and because of University Place’s association at the time with the abstract expressionists. O’Hara was deeply involved with the abstract expressionist community through his work at MoMA and as a writer. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

In the early 20th century, 88 University Place was the home of the prominent art auction house Kaliski and Gabay. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

By 1937, Barney Gallant opened a restaurant in the raised basement level of 86 University Place called “The Royalist.” By the early 1940s, the establishment expanded to the first floor with a cabaret. Gallant, a lifelong bachelor, was an opponent of Prohibition and had gained celebrity as the first person in New York to be prosecuted under the Volstead Act in 1919 for serving alcohol. When police prepared to arrest several of his waiters for serving alcohol, Gallant took full responsibility, refused to comply with the law, and was sent to the Tombs for thirty days. Following this, Gallant opened a series of successful speakeasies and cafes throughout the neighborhood that earned him the name “The Mayor of Greenwich Village.” Originally from Hungary, Gallant was a member of the Liberal Club in the 1910s. The Liberal Club was a social, political, and artistic organization founded as a lecture society in 1912 which ran until 1918. It quickly evolved into a gathering place for free thinkers, especially those with feminist, socialist, anarchist, and bohemian leanings. Throughout its lifetime, the club was known for its experimental theater and political demonstrations. Gallant also worked for a time as the business manager of the Greenwich Village Theater, and was Eugene O’Neill’s first roommate upon his arrival to New York. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

The 1894 Romanesque Revival style loft at 84 University Place housed the studio of graphic designer and artist Stanley Glaubach (December 26, 1923 - January 12, 1973) until his death.

“Man of the Year” by Stanley Glaubach, 1972 Throughout his career, Glaubach designed covers and other illustrations for Time, Esquire, and New York magazines, and contributed work to The New York Times. One of his more memorable covers was the 1972 “Man of the Year” image of President Nixon, which appeared in Time magazine. His 1966 Esquire cover of Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey and President Lyndon B. Johnson earned him an Art Directors Club Award. Additionally, Glaubach executed advertising projects and completed exhibits for corporations, organizations, and television networks, and was known especially for his papier-mache sculpture. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

The famous Cedar Tavern was the number one hangout for New York School artists like Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Robert Motherwell, Mark Rothko, and Franz Kline, just to name a few. They gathered here at least every other night to drink, socialize, and discuss art. In fact, it is often said that it was here that Abstract Expressionism was born and bred. The tavern changed locations several times, but in 1945 it moved to 24 University Place, where it experienced its heyday. Pollock and the like were fond of the Cedar for its cheap drinks (15 cents a beer, to be exact) and its unpretentious location on then off-the-beaten-track University Place. Long after its prime, the Cedar Tavern moved to a now-much-altered building at 82 University Place. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

Renowned Egyptologist William C. Hayes lived here until his death in 1963. Hayes started working at the Metropolitan Museum’s Egyptian Expedition in 1927, then served as Assistant Curator of Egyptian Art before becoming Curator of Egyptian Art. He was the author of many articles and books on Egyptian history, including an exhaustive handbook to the Metropolitan Museum’s collection titled “The Scepter of Egypt,” and chapters for Cambridge Ancient History. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

Over the years, the four buildings that comprised the Albert Hotel hosted many of the most prominent names in American arts, literature, music, and radical politics.

Albert Pinkham Ryder, 1905 At the turn of the 20th century, painter Albert Pinkham Ryder, who was the brother of the hotel’s manager, frequented the Albert.

“The Race Track” by Albert Pinkham Ryder, c. 1896-1908 In 1896, he famously based his painting “The Race Track” on one of the hotel waiters who spent all of his money on a losing horse. Novelist Robert Louis Stevenson also stayed at the Hotel St. Stephen (now part of the Albert Hotel complex) in 1887, where he hosted sculptor Augustus St. Gaudens, for whom he posed. Photographer Keith Carter lived in a room in the Albert after graduating from college in 1940. Abstract expressionist painter Jackson Pollock frequented the hotel’s restaurant throughout the 1940s, which as much as the hotel itself was a gathering place for the leading artists, writers, and musicians of the day. Fellow abstract expressionist painters Bradley Walker Tomlin and Philip Guston stayed here in the 1950s. In the 1960s, Chicago sculptor Steve Urry rented a room at the Albert, around the time a number of people associated with Andy Warhol did as well.

From 1946 until 1968, Joseph Brody, who ran the Albert French Restaurant, exhibited cartoon art he had collected on the restaurant walls. The artists represented here included Bill Steig, Hoff, Ted Key, Larry Reynolds, John Day, and Derso and Kelen. Brody also provided customers with a free tour of Greenwich Village starting in March 1959. The tour was given on a motorized“train” and then a “bus.” Both were called the “Loconik” and designed by artist Salvador Dalí. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

During the 1850s and 1860s, 58 East 13th Street served as the home of the National Academy of Design, the first institution in the United States established by and under the exclusive control of professional artists. Called by architectural historian Christopher Gray “New York’s most powerful art group during the 19th century,” it was founded in 1825 by a group of artists and architects including Samuel F.B. Morse, Asher B. Durand, Thomas Cole, Rembrandt Peale, and Ithiel Town. The National Academy of Design was the very first art school established in New York, and its mission was and remains the promotion of the fine arts in America through exhibition and education.

“Breezing Up” by Winslow Homer, 1873-1876 The Academy was previously located in a series of rented and shared spaces throughout Lower Manhattan, including the nearby 636 Broadway (since demolished) from 1848 to 1854. Around this time Thomas S. Cummings, a long-time member of the Academy who served as its treasurer and later the superintendent of its school, had a studio at the newly-built 58 East 13th Street, a 4-story building located just west of Broadway. Upon his suggestion, the Academy moved here “temporarily,” though it ended up staying for a dozen years, during a crucial period of the organization’s development.

“The Heart of the Andes,” by Frederic Edwin Church, 1859 Throughout this period the Academy’s members included Winslow Homer, James Henry Beard, Frederic Edwin Church, William Parsons Winchester Dana, George Inness, Emanuel Leutze, Jervis McEntee, Victor Nehlig, and Arthur Fitzwilliam Tait.

“Merry Old Santa Claus” by Thomas Nast, 1863 The young Thomas Nast (1840-1902), now considered the father of the modern political cartoon, was also a student of the organization during its time at 58 East 13th Street. Nast and his family immigrated to the United States in 1846. He dropped out of school by age 13 and attended the Academy until 1855, when he got his first job as an illustrator at Leslie’s Weekly. At his next job at Harper’s Weekly, he would gain fame for his cartoons criticizing slavery and corruption, most famously of William Magear “Boss” Tweed, which helped lead to the Tammany Hall leader’s downfall. Nast is also responsible for creating the modern image of Santa Claus, which he illustrated for the first time on the cover of Harper’s Weekly on January 3, 1863.

“Étretat,” by George Inness, 1875 While located on East 13th Street, the Academy began the practice of holding artists’ receptions, which other organizations soon replicated, which has now become a standard part of artist exhibitions.

National Academy of Design building at East 23rd Street and Park Avenue, c. 1863-1865 The Academy’s success and growth while at this site also allowed it to, for the first time in its existence, build and own its own home at 23rd Street and Fourth Avenue. The now-demolished Venetian Gothic palazzo, designed by architect Peter B. Wight, is considered one of the great landmarks of New York in the 19th century.

National Academy of Design council members at the annual exhibition, 1922 Since the founding of the National Academy of Design, over 2,100 artists and architects have been elected to its membership list, which reads like a who’s-who of the art and architecture world over the last two centuries. Following the departure of the Academy, No. 58 continued to serve as home and studio for many artists throughout the 19th century, as the surrounding neighborhood grew into the epicenter for the 19th century New York art world. Besides Thomas Cummings, painters including John Gott, William Morgan, Fridolin Schegel, and William O. Stone had studios here. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

The famed abstract expressionist Jackson Pollock spent most of his career in the Village, where he was influenced by the intensity, expanse, and rhythm of the city. He lived and worked in numerous places during his time here, including 240 West 14th Street (his first recorded address in NYC), 46 Carmine Street, 46 East 8th Street, 76 West Houston Street, and 47 Horatio Street. One of his lesser-known homes, when he himself was a still-unknown painter just starting out, was 49 East 10th Street.

“Achelous and Hercules” mural by Thomas Hart Benton, 1947 At the age of 18, Pollock followed his brothers to New York City, and began studying at the Art Students League. In October of 1931, when registering for a mural painting class with Thomas Hart Benton, Pollock listed his address as 49 East 10th Street.

Spectators at the Washington Square Art Show, c. 1950 Around this time, in 1931, Pollock was in desperate need of money, and began to set up his art for sale on a sidewalk near Washington Square Park. Soon he was joined by other Village artists, including Willem de Kooning, Alice Neel, Saul Berman, and Ilya Bolotowski. The informal sidewalk exhibition garnered attention and support, developing into the Washington Square Outdoor Art Exhibit, which still occurs twice a year on the weekends surrounding Memorial Day and Labor Day.

Jackson Pollock Following his time on East 10th Street, Pollock worked on the Work Progress Administration’s Federal Art Project from 1935 to 1942, which gave him the financial security to live and experiment with his art. By 1947, he had developed his iconic “drip style” for what came to be known as his “action paintings.” Using sticks, trowels, or knives, he would drip and splatter the paint, and sometimes he would simply pour the paint directly from the can. Pollock was to become one of the most well-known and influential artists in the abstract expressionist movement, also called the New York School, which was responsible for moving the center of the art world from Europe to New York City, and specifically Greenwich Village.

John Sloan, 1891 In 1934, The Artists and Writers Dinner Club, a Depression-era group that provided nightly dinners to destitute people in the arts, was located at 49 East 10th Street.

“McSorley’s Bar” by John Sloan, 1912 Members of the club included, among many others, artist John Sloan, one of Pollock’s teachers and mentors. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

Artist, poet, philanthropist, teacher, writer, and inventor Yun Gee (1906-1963) was the first Chinese-American artist to hold an important position in the history of Western contemporary art. Considered one of the great modernist avant-garde painters, Gee enjoys a number of other “firsts.” He was the first Chinese-born artist invited to join the Société des Artistes Indépendants; the first Chinese artist to display his work internationally; the first Chinese artist to show at MoMa; and the first Chinese artist to show in the salons of Paris. His art made frequent reference to his Chinese heritage either through form, style, or subject matter. He also developed his own signature style, Diamondism, which was derived from Cubism, and he promoted it through his art, writings, and teachings. From 1942 until his death in 1963, Gee lived and worked at 51 East 10th Street. Also in 1942, he married Helen Wimmer, who opened the country’s first commercial gallery focused on photography: Limelight photography gallery at 91 Seventh Avenue South. While living here, Gee taught classes, and wrote about his theory of Diamondism. In 1943, Gee staged an exhibition at the Milch Galleries on West 57th Street to raise funds for the Music Box Canteen. Located at 68 Fifth Avenue, the Music Box Canteen was a celebrated World War II entertainment venue for GIs described at the time as “one of the most famous metropolitan service centers, and…‘a home away from home’ to thousands of servicemen.” This was not Gee’s first exhibit to benefit the allied forces; he had held others, the proceeds of which went to the British and American Ambulance Corps. The following year, in 1944, Gee’s work was showcased in the group exhibition “Portrait of America.” His work completed during his time at 51 East 10th Street includes Wanamaker Fire (1956), Old Broadway in Winter (1943-44), and Nude in Studio (1952). Gee was also an inventor who designed a four-dimensional chess game. He received a patent in 1950 for a tongue and lip holding device “for aiding correct English speech.” There was even a report by a few periodicals from the time of his plans started in 1946 for a project of a tunnel to the moon which apparently he started in his own backyard in 1949. The projected cost was $9,000,000, and as reported in 1949, he had not gotten any financial backers to that date. In 1963, Gee passed away and as reported by The Daily News in 1964, Velma Aydelott, his companion in the last part of his life (he and Wimmer divorced in 1947) was acting as caretaker of his art in their Greenwich Village apartment. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

Originally built c. 1870 as a residence, 32 East 10th Street was altered for manufacturing usage in 1898. By the mid-1950s, as the surrounding neighborhood transformed into the center of the art world, no. 32 became the home and studio of abstract expressionist painter Franz Kline. Kline lived here from 1953 to 1957, during which time he produced some of his most noteworthy works. After holding his first one-man show at the Egan Gallery in New York in 1950, in 1954 Kline showcased a one-man show of large paintings at the Institute of Design in Chicago. That same year nine of his paintings were included in the Twelve Americans show at the Museum of Modern Art.

Franz Kline, 1960 Franz Kline (1910-1962) was born in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania and moved to New York City in 1938. He started his artistic career as a realist painter, but after meeting Willem de Kooning his style evolved into abstract expressionism. Kline was especially known for his black and white abstractions using house paint, and his style of painting came to be known as what art critic Harold Rosenberg referred to as “action painting.” Later in the 1950s, while living at 32 East 10th Street, Kline began to employ color, as demonstrated in Orange Outline (1955).

“Painting Number 2” by Franz Kline, 1954 One of the key figures in the abstract expressionist movement, Kline was a founding member of “the Club,” an extremely influential collective of New York School painters organized in 1949 and located at 39 East 8th Street, two blocks south of his home. He was also very connected to the 10th Street Gallery Scene, located just east. Like many of the abstract expressionist painters of this period, Kline was also a regular at the nearby Cedar Tavern, located around the corner at 24 University Place near East 9th Street. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

Architectural renderer Hugh Ferriss lived at 33-45 East 9th Street until his death in 1962. According to Carol Willis, Executive Director of the Skyscraper Museum, “Ferriss was the master draftsman of his time of the American metropolis, both real and ideal.” Over the course of his career, Ferriss rendered hundreds of buildings and projects around the country, but it was his visions for the ideal city, particularly as illustrated in his book The Metropolis of Tomorrow, that would earn him his fame and legacy, which still resonates today.

"Drawing, Study for Maximum Mass Permitted by the 1916 New York Zoning Law" by Hugh Ferriss, 1922 Born on July 12, 1889, Ferriss earned his degree in architecture from Washington University (MO) in 1911. The following year, he moved to New York and worked for Cass Gilbert as a draftsman until 1915, when he set out on his own and worked as a freelance delineator (an artist who creates renderings of other architects designs usually for promotional or planning purposes). Initially his commissions were for illustrations and advertisements in magazines, but by the early 1920’s he was working with architects such as Raymond Hood He developed a unique style employing chiaroscuro, a treatment of light and shadow, with the light falling unevenly or from a particular direction, to create his depictions of buildings and streetscapes. In 1922, working in collaboration with architect Harvey Wiley Corbett (who, perhaps not coincidentally, was also one of the architects of the Greenwich Village building Ferriss lived in until his death in 1962), Ferriss created a massing study in response to, and as an explanation of, the relatively new 1916 zoning law of New York City. The 1916 Zoning Ordinance, the first of its kind in the United States, regulated building use, area, and height of new buildings. It imposed height and setback limits and distinguished between residential and industrial districts. The Hugh Ferriss drawings of 1922, known as “The Four Stages” or “Evolution of the Set-back Building,” are perhaps the most iconic and influential architectural images of the 1920s. “Widely exhibited and published, they inspired other architects to understand the rules of New York’s 1916 zoning law not as a restriction, but as a form-giving principle for a new, modern skyscraper,” Willis states. As Ferriss explained in his article “The New Architecture,” published in The New York Times in 1922 along with his renderings: “It should be mentioned that the new laws do not prohibit the erection of tall buildings as has been assumed in some quarters…The result (of the zoning ordinance) will be that towers will rise from the center of the masses that they dominate. Terrific verticals will no longer spring from nothing but a sidewalk. The result will be altitude poised and unified. Summits will have the composition of mountain ranges.”

Hugh Ferriss, c. 1925 In 1929 Ferriss published his masterpiece, The Metropolis of Tomorrow, which included some of his finest drawings from the 1920’s, as well as new work. It is composed of three sections, titled Cities of Today, Projected Trends, and An Imaginary Metropolis, the latter showcasing his new drawings and visions for an urban utopia. In his text he bemoaned the lack of planning in the contemporary city, and called for architects to maintain human values in the face of unbridled urban growth for capitalistic gain. During the mid-20th century, Ferriss’ practice and stature continued to grow. He often served as official delineator and consultant on large projects, including the 1939 New York World’s Fair and the United Nations Headquarters. Additionally, he published another book in 1953, Power in Buildings, with more renderings of cities, buildings and other structures from around the country. He was the President of the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects and the Architectural League. On January 29, 1962 Ferriss passed away at his home at 33-45 East 9th Street. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

827-831 Broadway From 1958 to 1964, leading abstract expressionist painter Willem de Kooning lived in a loft on the top floor of 831 Broadway, during one of his most creative periods. He remained at this address until he decamped from New York City entirely for East Hampton.

Willem de Kooning in his studio at 831 Broadway, March 23, 1962. Photo © Estate of Fred W. McDarrah It was while living here that de Kooning became an American citizen, and painted “Rosy-Fingered Dawn at Louse Point,” the first of his paintings acquired by a European museum, and “Door to the River,” which is now at the Whitney Museum of American Art.

Willem de Kooning in his studio at 831 Broadway, March 23, 1962. Photo © Estate of Fred W. McDarrah It was also here, in 1962, where he was photographed by noted portraitist Dan Budnik. That image, “Willem de Kooning, 831 Broadway, New York,” is now in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art. De Kooning and his fellow abstract expressionists shifted the center of the art world from New York to Paris after World War II, and much of that artistic ferment took place in and around 827-831 Broadway.

“John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 1963” by Elaine de Kooning Elaine de Kooning, artist, teacher and chronicler of the American art scene, also had a studio on the third floor of no. 827. She was working here on a commission of John F. Kennedy’s official portrait for the Truman Library when he was killed in November 1963. In later years, the noted abstract expressionist painters Larry Poons and Paul Jenkins lived and worked in studios in these buildings. Jenkins moved into the building in 1963 and here painted his celebrated work “Phenomena 831 Broadway.”

Rolling Thunder Revue poster, 1975 William S. Rubin also resided at no. 831 in the late 1960s until 1974 when Larry and Paula Poons took over his loft. Rubin, Director of the Department of Painting and Sculpture at MoMA from 1973-1988, is credited with playing “a crucial role in defining the museum’s character, collections and exhibitions in the 1970s and 1980s,” according to the New York Times. His loft, which he hired the young architect Richard Meier to redesign, served as a showcase for his own considerable collection, as well as a meeting place for artists. During the Poons’ long residence at no. 831, the space continued to be used as a gathering place for artists, especially during the ’70s and ’80s. Their long-time friend and Bob Dylan’s former road manager, Bob Neuwirth, held tryouts in their loft for the Dylan 1975-76 “Rolling Thunder Review” tour in the loft.

Patti Smith performing, 1978 That night, Patti Smith and T-Bone Burnett were in attendance.

Paula Poons, 2017 Listen to Paula Poons’ Oral History here.

“Voyage” by Jules Olitski, 1962 Abstract expressionist artist Jules Olitski (1922-2007) also made his home at 827 Broadway during the 1970s. Olitski was one of the leaders of the Color Field school of painting, an offshoot of abstract expressionism. This technique involved the color staining of canvases, rejecting brushwork popular with other abstract expressionists. During his lifetime, Olitski exhibited widely, including 150 one-man shows. In 1969 he became the third artist in history to have a one-man show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

St. Denis Hotel (now demolished), 2014 Marcel Duchamp (July 28, 1887 - October 2, 1968), considered the progenitor of conceptual art, was a crucial influence in the development of surrealism, Dada, and pop art. Born in France and trained as a painter in Paris, he moved to 210 West 14th Street in 1942, later moving to 28 West 10th Street. Greenwich Village was a perfect match for Duchamp’s anti-authority stance and eclectic persona, but the neighborhood’s creative vibe was not his main reason for moving here. Duchamp wanted to be near the famed Marshall Chess Club, located at 23 West 10th Street. Duchamp had a lifelong passion for chess, even giving up his art career from 1926 to 1934 to play competitively, and traveling to places like Buenos Aires throughout his life to devote time to his other passion.

Marcel Duchamp, 1927 Later, Duchamp lived and maintained a studio at the former St. Denis Hotel at 799 Broadway, once one of the most elegant and desirable hotels in the country. Here, Duchamp worked on his final artwork until he died in 1968. The piece, called “Étant donnés,” was an elaborately detailed and beautifully disturbing room-encompassing tableau, which could be peered at through two peepholes upon entering the room.

“Étant donnés” by Marcel Duchamp, c. 1948-1968 Duchamp had labored over “Étant donnés” secretly for over twenty years. After his death, the art world was stunned to find the artwork hidden in his home, and in 2014, Serkan Ozkaya built a scale model of the project, discovering that it resembled a face.

In late 2018, after plans were announced to demolish the historic building to make way for another tech-related development, Village Preservation staged a protest outside the building attended by hundreds of local residents. Nevertheless the city refused to act, and in 2019 the building was demolished, with the new office tower replacing it. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of extant historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

In the 1880s, Beer Brothers Fine Gold and Bronze Picture Frames was located here, which in its advertisements claimed “many of our frames are on the most important paintings in public and private galleries throughout the United States.” This was not mere hyperbole. In addition to framing, they renovated paintings, bought and sold paintings, and held painting exhibitions. At the time of his death in 1914, The New York Times said that Samuel A. Beers was "widely known as a renovator of the old masters and had done considerable work for the Metropolitan Museum of Art as well as for private collectors." Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

Renowned Hudson River School and Luminist painter David Johnson (May 10, 1827 – January 30, 1908) had his studio at 812 Broadway in the mid-19th century at the height of his career.

“Bayside, New Rochelle, New York” by David Johnson, 1886 That building was demolished and replaced with the existing building. His studio was just around the corner from the National Academy of Design where he was educated and became a member. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of extant historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

The American Book Company, formerly located at 806-808 Broadway, employed noteworthy artists and illustrators.

Norman Rockwell, 1921 These artists included Norman Rockwell and Frederick Remington.

“Saying Grace” by Norman Rockwell, 1951 In fact, Rockwell’s first published assignment was for the American Book Company: illustrations for Fanny Eliza Coe’s history book Founders of Our Country (1912). Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of this and other historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

The Hansa Gallery, one of the “East 10th Street Galleries,” was located at 70 East 12th Street (now demolished).

Wolf Kahn, 2014 Painter Wolf Kahn was one of the former Hans Hofmann students to start this cooperative gallery. Listen to Wolf Kahn’s Oral History here. Click here to send a letter supporting landmark designation of extant historic buildings south of Union Square. . . .

Renowned artist and lithographer Henry Atwell Thomas (1834-1904) was located here from around 1881 until 1883. A painter by training, Thomas began his career around 1860, operating a printing press called Crow, Thomas & Eno Lithographer Company, specializing in the chromolithographic printing of district maps, prints relating to American history, playing cards, administrative documents, product labels, and show posters.

"L’Éclair: Journal Politique Indépendant" by Henry Atwell Thomas Around 1873, he opened his own studio, producing portraits of many of the most prominent actors and artists in New York. In 1886, the American Academy of Music made him its official portrait illustrator. In the 1890s, Thomas changed his company name to HA Thomas & Wylie Lithographer Co, and in 1897 he won a poster competition from among 500 entrants organized by the Belgian newspaper L'Éclair. During the Art Nouveau era, Thomas printed the works of many designers such as Maxfield Parrish and Ernest Haskell.