2022
MCHAP
Amant
SO–IL
Brooklyn, United States
May 2021
PRIMARY AUTHOR
Florian Idenburg, Jing Liu, Kevin Lamyuktseung, Ted Baab, Pietro Pagliaro, Grace Lee, Sanger Clark, Lucia Sanchez-Ramirez, Álvaro Gómez-Sellés, Kristen Too, Christopher Riley, Alexandre Hamlyn, Regina Teng, Etienne Vallat, Marisa Musing, Tyler Mauri, Julie Perrone, Mario Serrano, Diego Fernandez, John Chow
CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR
Paratus Group, Silman Associates, Future Green, Buro Happold Engineering, Bohler Engineering
CLIENT
Lonti Ebers
PHOTOGRAPHER
Iwan Baan
OBJECTIVE
Central to Amant’s design was the idea of an urban oasis, a space where the pace of art-making could slow down to allow experimentation and meaningful reflection. The facility was to function as an innovative cultural incubator, both privately and publicly, housing artist studios, galleries, offices, a performance space, and a cafe. A transitional exhibit and event program as well as a full-time artist residency program and staff workspaces would be accommodated.
CONTEXT
Amant is spread across three blocks of rapidly changing, industrial North Brooklyn, the site’s neighbors include a slaughterhouse, busy warehouses, a truck depot, and storage containers. The client, Lonti Ebers, Founder of the Amant Foundation, was to build a Brooklyn home for the non-profit arts organization to foster experimentation and dialogue through exhibitions, public programs, and artist residencies.
PERFORMANCE
By being porously weaved into the urban fabric of Bushwick, the campus became a world within the city. A breath of spatial typologies emerged for mindful artistic creation, unique curation and careful contemplation. Today, Amant attracts Bushwick locals, New Yorkers from all boroughs, and visitors from abroad to experience the serene arts oasis, free of charge.
Pockets of outdoor spaces, multiple entries, and openings cohabit the ground with neighboring buildings. Public routes channeled through large city blocks circulate the community. Courtyards and thoroughfares weave through and between existing buildings and make public functions accessible to all visitors.
Each of the four buildings in this campus contributes a gallery unique in proportion, size, light quality, and infrastructure. This has thus far allowed for multiple types of exhibitions with art ranging from the two-dimensional, to sculpture, installation, and performance, as well as events and gatherings. The spaces remain flexible to curation as a group or individually, and facilitates programs ranging from technically demanding to large scale to intimate.
