LES Galleries Reaction

            Visiting the Lower East Galleries was a complete different experience then visiting the art galleries in Chelsea. The three galleries I visited in the LES were “UNTITLED, Orchard Windows Gallery, and the Lesley Heller Workspace.

My first impression in the “UNTITLED” gallery was that it was under construction because the interior looked unfinished. I was surprised to discover that the appearance was intended and was part of the exhibition. The floors were unpolished, objects were lounging in the middle of the space, and the artwork looked unfinished. The atmosphere was different than some of the galleries in Chelsea because, in the Chelsea area there’s a clean, pristine feel to the spaces. There’s even a distinction in the neighborhoods where Chelsea has a more serious tone to their art galleries and the LES has a more lax appearance.

            The second gallery, Orchard Windows Gallery, also has a relaxed, laid-back atmosphere. I have personally walked down that specific block for years and was oblivious to the fact that there housed an art gallery. My initial reaction to the space was that there wasn’t much walking space to view the paintings. The gallery also had an unpolished appearance to it. The exhibition, however, housed paintings by an unknown artist. That particular artist did fit the tone of the gallery- new, different, and not so stuffy.

            The third gallery, the Lesley Heller Workspace, featured a different variety of artwork. There were two exhibitions, the first held paintings that were geometrically complex. The artist used fun, vibrant colors and created different variations of geometric shapes. The second exhibition had different pieces that were “unique.” There were these polymer ring-like objects that stood upright on display. The artist used a special type of printer to create these shapes, and it was unique in the sense that I didn’t find anything like that in Chelsea. Another piece, which stood out to me, was a sheet of metal that had bullet holes that hung on the wall. That was also something I didn’t find in Chelsea.

            Mainly what made the difference between the Chelsea and LES galleries were the collections and the atmosphere. If I were an art collector browsing through the Chelsea galleries, I would expect to find clean cut, well known and expensive artwork. If I were browsing through the LES, I would expect to find raw, unique, a little less known and less expensive artwork. Personally, I’d rather buy something that’s one of a kind.