303 Gallery is an art gallery in Manhattan, New York. It was established in 1984 by owner and director Lisa Spellman, described by art critic Jerry Saltz as "one of the greatest New York gallerists of our time".[1] The gallery hosts contemporary works by contemporary American artists, including film, video, and painting.[1][2]
History
The 303 in the gallery's name references its original address, a fifth-floor, 2,500 sq ft (230 m2) loft at 303 Park Avenue South,[3] as well as Room 303 of the Anderson Galleries, the site of Alfred Stieglitz's "Intimate Gallery" artist collective.[4]
In 1989, 303 Gallery moved to 89 Greene Street in Soho.[5] By 1996, it relocated to West 22nd Street,[6] making it one of the first galleries to do so.[7] From 2008 until 2013, her the gallery was located at a former garage at 547 West 21st Street.[8][9] In 2013, it temporarily occupied a space designed by StudioMDA on 24th Street.[10]
In 2015, 303 Gallery moved again, this time into a high-rise building designed by Foster and Partners on a lot Spellman purchased[9] at 555 W 21st Street, where it has since been occupying the first and second floor with a total of 12,000 sq ft (1,100 m2) of exhibition space.[11][3]
Also in 2015, 303 in Print was established by Fabiola Alondra as a publishing arm of the gallery.[12] It publishes limited edition artist's books, ephemera and other printed matter in collaboration with 303 gallery artists.[13]
Major exhibitions
Robert Gober and Christopher Wool, April 15–May 8, 1988. A collaboration between the two artists, this exhibition displayed Christopher Wool's Apocalypse Now painting opposite Bob Gober's sculpture Three Urinals, the first time either work was exhibited.[14]
Karen Kilimnik, April 4–April 25, 1991. Kilimnik's first solo show featured several separate installations in the space, with one leading into the next. They covered a variety of themes, ranging from suicide and drugs, to schoolyard massacres, to Napoleonic clashes.[14][15]
Sue Williams, May 2–May 30, 1992. Williams' first solo show at the gallery addressed female representation and domestic violence.[14]
Rodney Graham: Vexation Island, November 1–December 20, 1997. First exhibited at the Venice Biennale in the Canadian Pavilion, this piece was shown at 303 Gallery later the same year. The exhibit consists of a looping film where Graham, in character as a shipwrecked 18th-century sailor, is trapped in a cycle of getting knocked out by a fallen coconut, only to reawaken and begin shaking the tree all over again.[14]
Doug Aitken: “100 YRS", February 1–March 30, 2013. The show centered on a "Sonic Fountain" where water dripped from 5 rods suspended from the ceiling, falling into a giant crater dug out of the gallery floor, with underwater microphones amplifying the sound of the droplets. The show had a second installment where performers staged a demolition of the space using saws and drills to cut apart the walls and pile up debris, altering the architecture even further.[14]
Other notable exhibitions throughout 303 Gallery's history include: