The Invisible Dog Art Center

The street view of the Invisible Dog Art Center at 51 Bergen street.

The Invisible Dog Art Center was founded by Lucien Zayan in 2009.[1] The center gets its name from the historical use of the building, (The building was a factory for Invisible Dog toys,) and is located in the neighborhood of Boerum Hill in Brooklyn, New York. Some buckels, belts, molds, and industrial fixtures remain as remnants throughout the building. The Art Center now plays host to performance[2] and visual art,[3] as well as artists in residence, some of whom have taken on inspiration from the industrial nature of their surroundings.

History

Lucien Zayan pitched his idea to building owner after discovering the space in 2008.[4] Once he acquired the keys, there was a lot of work to be done to get the building into working order. Zayan shrewdly collected all the remnants from the building's days as a factory and held a flea market, "What was junk at first glance turned out to be a treasure-trove of vintage merchandise and furniture–particularly the thousands of belts on hand from the 1960s." [5]

Building

The Invisible Dog's location at 51 Bergen street in Brooklyn, New York was built in 1863. The building was purchased in the 1950s as a factory to produce belts and jewelry. In the 1970s the novelty concept of the invisible dog was invented here.[6] When Lucien Zayan came across the building in 2008, "the building was packed full of stuff and junk and furniture. All 68 windows were broken and needed to be replaced. "[7]

The building has a large manually-operated freight elevator, which is still in use, and displays a mural by Giuseppe Stampone along the shaft (c.2009) of illustrated text from Dante's Inferno (in the original Italian).[8]

References

  1. ↑ "About The Invisible Dog." The Invisible Dog Art Center RSS. Theinvisibledog.org, n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2013.
  2. ↑ Acocella, Joan. "DAVID WAMPACH’S AFTER-RITE" The New Yorker. http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/culture/2013/01/david-wampachs-after-rite.html n.d. Web 23 Jan. 2013.
  3. ↑ Collins, Lisa M. "Our Local, International, Not-So-Invisible Gallery" http://southbrooklynpost.com/2011/03/the-invisible-dog-gallery/#comments-title/, n.d. Web. 16 Mar 2011.
  4. ↑ Barker, Jeremy M. Culture Bot. "Lucien Zayan on the Birth of the Invisible Dog Arts Center" http://www.culturebot.net/2012/09/14415/lucien-zayan-on-the-birth-of-the-invisible-dog-arts-center/, n.d. Web. 14 Sept 2012.
  5. ↑ Barker, Jeremy M. Culture Bot. "Lucien Zayan on the Birth of the Invisible Dog Arts Center" http://www.culturebot.net/2012/09/14415/lucien-zayan-on-the-birth-of-the-invisible-dog-arts-center/, n.d. Web. 14 Sept 2012.
  6. ↑ Make Well Made. "Brooklyn Design Tour" http://tours.makewellmade.com/images/MAKEWELL_south-brooklyn-map.pdf/, Web. c.2013
  7. ↑ Collins, Lisa M. "Our Local, International, Not-So-Invisible Gallery" http://southbrooklynpost.com/2011/03/the-invisible-dog-gallery/#comments-title/, n.d. Web. 16 Mar 2011.
  8. ↑ giuseppestampone. "CARONTE - Giuseppe Stampone with Julia Kent" Youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38hJYkrw_Qw/, n.d. Web. 2 Mar 2010.

External links

Coordinates: 40°41′14″N 73°59′28″W / 40.68716°N 73.99119°W / 40.68716; -73.99119

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