Chelsea has been a burgeoning art scene for many years, more specifically after SoHo became too expensive and retail-oriented for art galleries to remain in the area. All along 11th avenue, from 20th street to 26th, there are art galleries. Many of them appear, at first, to be the traditional white cube but after walking around and taking in the art space itself they reveal themselves to be subversions of the white cube art gallery. These take cues from the original white cube galleries and somehow manage to avoid the emotionless feeling they tend to evoke.

One such art gallery was Gallery Henoch. When first walking in it appears to be the traditional white cube, but as you explore further you realize that it is, in reality, quite different. The gallery displayed its paintings on white walls, but still kept much of the preexisting interior design of the space. It had an exposed brick ceiling with viewable pipes and warm yellow lighting. The normal makeup of the white cube lends itself to the feeling of sterility, a cold detachment from the art. But the structure of Gallery Henoch allowed for a warmer and homier aura; the gallery felt smaller and more intimate, almost as if I were in someone’s home looking at pictures they had painted. The paintings themselves are so detailed that they look photographs, further adding to the hominess of the art gallery and the warm yellow light helps to enhance the colors in the paintings.  There was a cityscape painting that emphasized the bright lights of the city and the warm light of the gallery made the painted lights look LEDs. The art pieces and the gallery space work with one another to create a homey, more comfortable soothing viewing experience.

Another gallery that subverts the white cube is the Malborough. The Malborough replicates the white cube formula, almost, exactly. The sterile white walls, the bright white lights, the wide-open expansiveness, the Malborough has it all. Despite this, the Malborough makes great use of the space and helps to enhance the art it is displaying. Each artist and piece has its room and space and as you move through each room it feels as though you are walking into a new gallery. You can take in each piece of art on its own without any distractions from other paintings or from the space in and of itself. The first art piece that you see when you walk into the Malborough, is a 100 ft long installation along the wall. It’s one long painting, or rather, a series of vertical paintings placed together along the wall. Some of these sections have a 3D aspect, some have weaving, and some of them are bright and colorful. The white cube aspect of the gallery serves to enhance the piece because there is nothing else to look at besides it. Your eyes are immediately drawn to it because there is nothing else to look at.

The art galleries of Chelsea take cues from and mimic the traditional white cube art galleries, but still manage to subvert expectations. But when you think about it, it’s fitting that Chelsea’s art galleries aren’t what you first expect, much like Chelsea itself. An old factory district that’s, in reality, a burgeoning art scene and home to galleries that appear to be traditional but turn out to be anything but.