All good things must come to an end: Aliya Naumoff’s portrait of Kim and Thurston will be on display tomorrow.
Well, this bites.
Fuse Gallery, the little space behind Lit Lounge, is closing after more than a decade. Owner and curator Erik Foss just sent out the e-mail: the show that opens tomorrow — featuring Aliya Naumoff’s potraits of Iggy Pop, Marilyn Manson, and Karen O — will be Fuse’s last, and the East Village gallery will pack up after “Perceptions” closes on Sept. 11, of all days.
“We can’t afford to give the space to artists any longer, this city and economy has caught up with us,” Foss writes. “We have served the creative community in NYC for over 11 years and are pleased with what we have accomplished, please come out and celebrate an end of an era an thank you for all your support over the years.”
Foss, who’s an artist himself (his new drawings and paintings are currently on display at the Paul Loya Gallery in LA) says he’ll “continue to curate and we’re moving shows to other locations.”
Still, this is going to bum out anyone who’s been to Fuse’s wild openings over the years. Among the musicians, street artists, downtown personalities and more traditional artists who’ve shown in the space are David Yow of The Jesus Lizard, Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Skullphone, actor/DJ Leo Fitzpatrick, and legendary rock-n-roll photographer Mick Rock.
Of course, this comes right on the heels of losing Max Fish. Foss was at that bar’s closing party and shared some thoughts about the Lower East Side’s gentrification in the video we shot. Give it a watch.