Remembrance of Williamsburg's Past

WNYC has a story about the closing of Williamsburg’s Monster Island that’s something of a eulogy for the neighborhood’s artsy identity. The space at Kent and Metropolitan “has housed various scrappy artist communes” for 17 years, but the landlord hasn’t offered to renew the lease this year, which means the two galleries in the building—Secret Project Robot and Live With Animals—are moving out, as are other artists who rent studio space. Rachel Nelson, the director of Secret Project Robot, says “Monster Island is really the last of its kind in Williamsburg,” and that it reflected a “community idea in which we were sacrificing for something much bigger for ourselves.” The story also notes that though there are rumors that Whole Foods is considering opening a store at the location, a rep for the company says it’s not planning any Brooklyn outposts aside from the one in Gowanus.
Monster Island Moves Out of Williamsburg Art Space [WNYC]
Whole Foods Considering the Williamsburg Waterfront? [Brownstoner]
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Photo by Barry Yanowitz