Rendering courtesy of LEVENBETTS
An organization that’s spent 74 years shaping how the world looks at photography is about to become an Upper West Side neighbor. Next Friday, September 18, it’ll open a free, permanent home in an 1886 building a few steps from Central Park, and the opening installation includes work by Diane Arbus, Robert Frank, Nan Goldin and Carrie Mae Weems.
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Aperture, the nonprofit publisher behind Aperture magazine and decades of photography books, is moving into the first two floors of 380 Columbus Avenue, at the corner of West 78th Street, directly across from the American Museum of Natural History. The organization announced its opening program last month and told us the space was designed to be a public gathering place where visitors can explore photography, not just an office with a gallery attached.The ten-thousand-square-foot space, designed by architecture firm LEVENBETTS with construction by Sciame, was adapted to keep the building’s historic character. It includes a gallery, a bookstore, flexible areas for installations and talks, and offices where Aperture’s staff will work. The layout gives visitors direct views into the work areas, so you’ll be able to see some of the publishing operation in action. And just inside the entrance, a Majestic Photobooth will let you take home a souvenir of your visit.
The inaugural installation, “Aperture Loves New York,” is curated by Aperture’s executive director, Sarah Meister, and pays tribute to photographers who’ve shaped the city and been shaped by it. It pairs photographs with the Aperture books they appeared in. Featured artists include Diane Arbus, Tina Barney, Dawoud Bey, Awol Erizku, Robert Frank, Lee Friedlander, Nan Goldin, Deana Lawson, Stephen Shore, Coreen Simpson and Carrie Mae Weems. The gallery will host a rotation of smaller photography presentations going forward, while Aperture continues to mount larger touring exhibitions with partner institutions elsewhere.
The bookstore will be stocked by Dashwood Books, which describes itself as the city’s only independent bookstore devoted entirely to photography. It’ll also feature a rotating series of guest publishers, starting with Anshika Varma of Offset Projects in New Delhi, who’ll present a selection of books from India’s independent publishing scene through the end of September. There’ll be launch merchandise and a line of products made with the Japanese stationery brand HIGHTIDE, with more artist collaborations coming this fall.
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To mark the opening, Aperture is hosting a series of ticketed conversations in the gallery between artists and curators working in New York. Tickets and details are at aperture.org/events.“Our new home marks an exciting chapter for Aperture,” Meister said in the announcement. “At 380 Columbus, we are creating an open, dynamic space for encountering photography, one that invites dialogue, fosters discovery, and brings us into closer engagement with our community.”
Aperture was founded in 1952 and publishes a quarterly magazine along with books, limited-edition prints and exhibitions. The move was funded through a capital campaign that included grants from the New York State Council on the Arts, the Manhattan Borough President, the City Council and the Department of Cultural Affairs.
Admission is free. The gallery and bookstore will be open Wednesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday from 12 to 5 p.m. It’s closed Monday and Tuesday.
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