RIP Steven Englander

Updated: 12/19: ABC No Rio announced this memorial fundraiser in Englander's memory.

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Sad news to share from ABC No Rio, the collectively run arts organization on the Lower East Side. (Info and photo via Facebook): 

It is with tremendous sadness that we announce the passing of our visionary director, Steven Englander. 

As many of you knew, Steven was diagnosed with a rare form of lung disease over a decade ago. Despite a successful lung transplant 6 years ago, Steven passed away on Thursday, Dec. 12, comfortable, pain-free, and surrounded by the two things he lived for — his family and the ABC No Rio community. 

Those who knew Steven were touched by his commitment to the New York City DIY arts community. He helped mold ABC No Rio into a sanctuary for New York activists, artists, and musicians through the simple act of believing that what you had to say was relevant, powerful, and, if given a platform, transformative. Steven dedicated his life to inclusive, community-run art spaces that give voice to oppositional culture, and we will be forever grateful for his work. 

Not only did Steven's philosophy shape what ABC No Rio became, but he also shaped what it will become. A true visionary for what was possible, Steven began planning and fighting for the creation of a brand-new arts center over 20 years ago. And as a testament to his 'by hook or by crook' mentality and his belief in collective power, it's happening. His dream's realization is underway, with ongoing construction work following July's groundbreaking ceremony. 

When the new ABC No Rio building opens its doors, Steven's philosophy will once again have a home to flourish and inspire the next generation of DIY art culture. 

He was 63.

ABC No Rio's new building is under construction at the site of its previous home on Rivington Street between Suffolk and Clinton on the Lower East Side. There's an expected 2027 reopening date.

Among the tributes...

 

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Englander's passing comes two months after the death of another longtime resident who was intrumental in creating spaces for artists and performers — Cowboy Ray Kelly, sculptor, leader of the Rivington School, and co-founder of the performance space NoSeNo. He died Oct. 12 at age 79.

Check out 'ABC No Rio in Photos' at Umbrella House on Avenue C

As you likely know, ABC No Rio's new building is under construction at the site of its previous home on Rivington Street between Suffolk and Clinton on the Lower East Side. 

Meanwhile, the collectively run arts organization continues programming "in exile." 

Here's info about an exhibit, "156: ABC No Rio in Photos," on weekends at Umbrella House at 21 Avenue C between Second Street and Third Street...

 

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Construction watch: 156 Rivington St., home of ABC No Rio

Foundation work continues at 156 Rivington St., where the new ABC No Rio building is being built at the site of its previous home between Suffolk and Clinton on the Lower East Side. 

On July 16, several city and local elected officials, along with a handful of activists and other members of the collectively run arts organization, took part in a ceremonial ground-breaking ceremony on the lot. 

The environmentally friendly new structure, designed by architect Paul Castrucci, will include a computer lab, print shop, dark room and a zine library, among other amenities. (Find more details here.) The City is contributing $21 million to the project through the Department of Cultural Affairs. 

According to an August feature at ArchPaper, "ABC No Rio's board hopes to complete construction across two phases, and construction is slated for completion in 2027." (Hyperallergic has a new article on the ABC No Rio here.)

Before the July groundbreaking, we had heard very little about the project since the summer of 2020, when DOB signage arrived on the plywood, showing an anticipated completion date of spring 2022. ABC No Rio first unveiled plans for a new home in March 2008. 

Its four-story building, said to be in disrepair, was demolished starting in March 2017, putting ABC No Rio's programming into "exile" at other arts organizations around the city.

Director Steve Englander shared a Facebook post in December 2019 addressing the latest setback at the site: "After excavating additional test pits to confirm existing conditions at one of the adjacent properties, we determined a redesign of our foundation and support of excavation plans was required." (Demolition of the Streit's Matzo Factory next door and the subsequent construction of the new condoplex on the site complicated ABC No Rio's plans.)

He also stated then: "We know that progress with the new building has seemed slow, but please be assured, we are moving forward. It's been tough, and we're glad that you've had our back."

Previously on EV Grieve:
• At ABC No Rio's last HardCore/Punk Matinee on Rivington Street (for now) 

Groundbreaking ceremony held for new ABC No Rio building on Rivington Street

At long last, a new ABC No Rio building is ready to rise at the site of its previous home at 156 Rivington St. between Suffolk and Clinton. 

Yesterday, several city and local elected officials, along with a handful of activists and other members of the collectively run arts organization, broke ground on the lot.

The City is putting $21 million toward the project via the Department of Cultural Affairs. 

Said Cultural Affairs Commissioner Laurie Cumbo: "ABC No Rio embodies the DIY creative energy and legacy of the Lower East Side like few other places." 

The environmentally friendly new structure, designed by architect Paul Castrucci, will include a computer lab, print shop, dark room and a zine library, among other amenities. (Find more details here.)

Broke ground today on @abcnorio’s new arts facility designed by local architect Paul Castrucci. This will be one of the most energy efficient buildings ever built by the city! I have been involved in the fight to make this day possible for the past 30 years. pic.twitter.com/5GAENIwRbO

— Harvey Epstein (@HarveyforNY) July 16, 2024

You can read more about the groundbreaking and ABC No Rio history (founded in 1980) at The New York Times... The City ... and Hellgate (email registration required). 

Per officials, construction is set to start in three weeks... with a 2026 completion date. 

We hadn't heard much about the project since the summer of 2020, when DOB signage arrived on the plywood, showing an anticipated completion date of spring 2022 (see below photo from August 2020).

ABC No Rio first unveiled plans for a new home in March 2008. 

Its four-story building, said to be in disrepair, was demolished starting in March 2017 ... putting ABC No Rio's programming into "exile" at other arts organizations around the city.

Director Steve Englander shared a Facebook post in December 2019 addressing the latest setback at the site: "After excavating additional test pits to confirm existing conditions at one of the adjacent properties, we determined a redesign of our foundation and support of excavation plans was required." (Demolition of the Streit's Matzo Factory next door and the subsequent construction of the new condoplex on the site complicated ABC No Rio's plans.)

He also stated at the time: "We know that progress with the new building has seemed slow, but please be assured, we are moving forward. It's been tough, and we're glad that you’ve had our back."

Previously on EV Grieve:
• At ABC No Rio's last HardCore/Punk Matinee on Rivington Street (for now) 

Top two photos via @CommishCumbo on X ... last photo, from 1980, by Anton van Dalen

A 'Grave New World' at MoRUS

A new group show is now on view at the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS) as part of the ABC No Rio In Exile series.

Some info via the EVG inbox about the exhibit that opened yesterday:

"GRAVE NEW WORLD: Death. Destruction. Decay. Dystopia." 

With work by Kelly Boehmer, Anastasia Clarke, Alexis Karl + Adam Torkel, Kristen Leonard, Caitlin McCormack, Kit Mills, Tom Prinsell, and Kate Stone. 

You can check it out Saturdays and Sundays from 3-6 p.m. The closing-night reception is June 24 from 6-9. 

MoRUS is at 155 Avenue C between Ninth Street and 10th Street.

A hopeful sign at the future (and former) ABC No Rio on Rivington Street

An EVG reader shares this from Rivington Street, where there's now DOB signage on the plywood outside the future (and former) home of ABC No Rio here between Clinton and Suffolk...



There's now an anticipated completion date of spring 2022 for the new sustainable building to go up at the site of the collectively run arts organization that was founded here in 1980...



Work onsite has yet to begin...



This project has been a long time coming, to say the least. ABC No Rio first unveiled plans for a new building in March 2008. Demolition of the four-story building that was in disrepair started in March 2017 while their programming went into "exile" at other arts organizations around the city.

The last we heard about the project came via a Facebook post from Director Steve Englander in December 2019. He addressed the latest setback at the site: "After excavating additional test pits to confirm existing conditions at one of the adjacent properties, we determined a redesign of our foundation and support of excavation plans was required." (Demolition of the Streit's Matzo Factory next door and the subsequent construction of the new condoplex on the site complicated ABC No Rio's plans.)

He also stated: "We know that progress with the new building has seemed slow, but please be assured, we are moving forward. It's been tough and we're glad that you’ve had our back."

You can read more about the new building and check out the renderings for the environmentally friendly structure at the ABC No Rio website.

Previously on EV Grieve:
• At ABC No Rio's last HardCore/Punk Matinee on Rivington Street (for now)

Saturday night at Bullet Space: The Clothesline Benefit Art Sale

Via the EVG inbox...

The Clothesline Benefit Art Sale
SATURDAY MARCH 9
7-10 p.m.

Affordable works on paper: $25 + $50

Our Clothesline Benefit Art Sales are always lots of fun, with plenty of surprising things hanging on the line. Proceeds benefit ABC No Rio in Exile.

Bullet Space/292 Gallery
292 E. Third St. between Avenue C and Avenue D

ABC No Rio is currently in exile while waiting for their new HQ to be built on Rivington Street. (Previously)

Construction watch: 150 Rivington St.

Here's a Passover look at the former Streit’s Matzo Factory ... where an under-construction, 7-story condoplex housing 45 units now stands at Rivington and Suffolk...



And the final condo product, as you've likely seen previously...


[Volley Studios]

Streeteasy shows a handful of units still on the market, from a little more than $1 million to $2.7 million.

This corner space was home to Streit’s Matzo Factory from 1925 to 2015. The family-owned business sold its original factory to Cogswell Realty in January 2015 for a reported $30.5 million.

Streit's, who left the LES in 2015, now operates out of more modern facilities in Rockland County. Here's a story about how they're doing today.

...and here's the slot for the future new ABC No Rio next door...



Previously on EV Grieve:
The Times reveals the Streit's-replacing condos; Ben Shaoul wordsmiths gentrification

A celebration of Streit's Matzo Factory starts tonight on Avenue A

Matzo madness as Streit's documentary by East Village resident debuts at the Film Forum

At ABC No Rio's last HardCore/Punk Matinee on Rivington Street (for now)

At ABC No Rio's last HardCore/Punk Matinee on Rivington Street (for now)

ABC No Rio is winding down its programming this week as the 36-year-old cultural center on Rivington Street between Suffolk and Clinton will be demolished this fall to make way for a new "environmentally friendly" structure at the site.

On Saturday, ABC No Rio hosted its last HardCore/Punk Matinee in this space. Brooklyn-based photographer Walter Wlodarczyk shared some photos from the show...




[Agitätor]


[As$troland]




[Short Leash Snort Bleach]


[Short Leash Snort Bleach]







There are several "in exile" punk matinees coming up this summer, first at Silent Barn then Aviv, both in Brooklyn. Check the schedule here.

And you can discover more of Walter's photography work here. He has an active Instagram account too.



Click on the images to go big

The last exhibit at ABC No Rio before building demolition

As previously reported, ABC No Rio will be shutting down at the end of the month ... the cultural center on Rivington Street between Suffolk and Clinton will be demolished this fall to make way for a new "environmentally friendly" structure.

Before that, there's still one more exhibit, which starts tonight.

Via the EVG inbox...

"InFinite Futures" + "The Past Will Be Present"
June 10 — June 24

OPENING Friday June 10 at 7:00pm
VIEWING HOURS Sundays 1:00 - 5:00pm
Tues, Wed, Thurs 4:00 - 8:00pm

"InFinite Futures":
Kevin Caplicki with Alexander Drywall, Peter Cramer + Jack Waters, Barrie Cline with Paul Vance, Jody Culkin + Christy Rupp, Mike Estabrook, Fly,
Brian George + Kelly Savage, Julie Hair, Takashi Horisaki, Becky Howland, Vandana Jain, Mac McGill, Max Schumann, Noah Scalin, Amy Westpfahl, and Zero Boy.

"The Past Will Be Present"
Margarida Correia, Jade Doskow, Vikki Law and Chris Villafuerte

"InFinite Futures" and "The Past Will Be Present" are funded in part with support from the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs and the New York State Council on the Arts.

ABC No Rio's zine collection recently moved to the nearby Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural and Educational Center... while the Saturday matinee punk shows will move to various venues across the city.

You can read more about the new building and check out the renderings at the ABC No Rio website.

Previously

H/T EVG reader Bobby G.

Report: ABC No Rio set to close next month ahead of demoliton for new building

ABC No Rio first unveiled plans for a new building on Rivington Street back in March 2008. Now, after delays "by red tape and rising costs," The New York Times reports that the cultural center here between Suffolk and Clinton will likely be cleared out by the end of June, with a demolition to come this fall.

The decision to act now, the Times notes, came after developers paid $30 million for the former Streit's matzo factory next door that will become condos.

Per the Times: "Given No Rio’s age and condition, the structure seemed unlikely to survive the demolition next door."



Here's more from the article:

No Rio plans to replace its fragile four-story home with an environmentally friendly new structure where artists will continue to present the same type of boundary-pushing material that has become the center’s hallmark.

And from ABC No Rio’s director, Steven Englander:

On a recent evening Mr. Englander reflected on No Rio’s future, including the question of how to maintain its oppositional ethos in an ever-gentrifying environment.

That animating spirit, Mr. Englander said, comes from the people inside the building rather than its surroundings. If anything, he suggested, the changes in the neighborhood may make No Rio’s willingness to explore the margins more vital.

“Nobody knows what New York City will be like when this hypergentrification catches its breath,” he said, adding: “I’m pretty confident that people in line with the mission and purpose here will always be around.”

ABC No Rio's impressive zine collection recently moved to the nearby Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural and Educational Center... while the Saturday matinee punk shows will move to various venues across the city.

You can read more about the new building and check out the renderings at the ABC No Rio website.

Previously

Punk Rock Karaoke benefit tonight for ABC No Rio Zine Library

From the EV Grieve inbox...

We are super excited for our next (and possibly most punk ever) event. This time around, we will be raising money for the ABC No Rio Zine Library. For any of you who have gone to the HC/Punk matinee shows over the years and wished you were singing, now is your chance to live the dream!

Friday, Feb 8th
8pm-midnight
Sliding Scale: $5 — $20

Beverages will be sold. Along with zines!
Support your local zine library!

Trust us, this is going to be a blast.

Punk Rock Karaoke is a DIY, fund-raising event that benefits a different community group each time.

Featuring songs from:
Against Me!, Bikini Kill, Black Flag, Bratmobile, Buzzcocks, Choking Victim, The Clash, Circle Jerks, Crass, Dead Kennedys, Descendents, Devo, Flogging Molly, Fugazi, Gogol Bordello, Gorilla Biscuits, Jawbreaker, Joy Division, Minor Threat, The Misfits, NOFX, Operation Ivy, Pixies, The Pogues, Ramones, Rancid, Screeching Weasel, Sex Pistols, Sleater-Kinney, The Smiths, The Specials, Stiff Little Fingers, Wire, X, X-Ray Spex + More!!!

You can find the Facebook event page with more details here. ABC No Rio is at 156 Rivington St.

A hands-on event tonight at ABC No Rio

ABC No Rio celebrates the installation of a new mural by Brian George on the building's facade tonight ... Per the ABC No Rio website, the event starts at 7 over at 156 Rivington.

Meanwhile, in case you were wondering about the status of ABC's new HQ, Scoopy had an update on it at The Villager on Sept. 13. Scoopy talked to ABC No Rio director Steve Englander.

Basically, he said, instead of doing it in phases, as originally planned, they tried to bid out the project as one job. But all the bids came back too expensive — about 30 percent too high. So now it looks like they’ll be segmenting the project again and rebidding the work, hopefully soon.

ABC No Rio first unveiled the plans for the new building back in March 2008.

For further reading on EVG:
Looking at "ABC No Rio Dinero: The Story of a Lower East Side Art Gallery"

Checking in on ABC No Rio's new home; old home still standing

It has been some time since we saw any updates about ABC Rio's new $3.4 million home on Rivington Street...

In his column this week at The Villager, Scoopy hears from ABC No Rio director Steve Englander, who says that he's still booking events through March ... "so the building will be up at least till then." (He says there is a lot of misinformation about the new building — with some people thinking that the current structure has already been demolished...)

Englander told Scoopy that ABC No Rio recently received $275,000 from the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation for the project ... because of this, a federal environmental review is required, which is delaying the start of the new building.

Anyway, as you may know, architect Paul Castrucci designed the new building... he lives down the street and has shown his own work in the space... (He is also a co-founder of the Bullet Space gallery and squat and is the architect for several of the formerly squatted buildings on the Lower East Side...)

You can read more about the plans at ArchPaper.

ABC No Rio first unveiled the plans for the new building back in March 2008.

For further reading:
Looking at "ABC No Rio Dinero: The Story of a Lower East Side Art Gallery"

[Images Castrucci Architect via ArchPaper]

Introducing Gallery 98

Marc H. Miller passes along word about the latest edition to the 98 Bowery website ...

For collectors interested in New York’s downtown art scene circa 1980, the website 98 Bowery has debuted a unique online gallery featuring ephemera, multiples and one-of-a-kind artworks connected to the radical art group Collaborative Projects Inc. (aka “Colab”).

During its short but eventful history, Colab left its mark with exhibitions like the Times Square Show and the Real Estate Show, the affiliated alternative spaces Fashion Moda in the South Bronx and ABC No Rio in the Lower East Side, and a succession of pop-up “A More Stores” featuring low-priced artist multiples. Working collectively, the group was an incubator for ideas and a launching pad for member artists like Jenny Holzer, Tom Otterness, and Kiki Smith. Every item listed on Gallery 98 dates from Colab’s prime years, 1975 – 1985.

Among the items:

Find more here.

For further reading on EV Grieve:
Life at 98 Bowery: 1969-1989

Revisiting Punk Art

Q-and-A with Curt Hoppe: Living on the Bowery, finding inspiration and shooting Mr. Softee

Voices from 98 Bowery's past

Bingo-ween tonight at ABC No Rio

From the good people at ABC No Rio:

Books Through Bars Annual Bingo Fundraiser

[Bingo + Halloween = BINGO-WEEN]

WHEN: Tonight @ 7pm
WHERE: ABC No Rio. 156 Rivington St. Lower East Side

Featuring SISTER LOUD MELISSA and D.J. “No Flag” D. Powell

Join Books Through Bars for our annual Bingo Fundraiser!

Books Through Bars provides free reading materials to people incarcerated across America — we're an all-volunteer collective housed in borrowed space, meaning our only overhead costs are postage and packing materials.

Prizes include: $100 tattoo from NY Adorned, IFC year-long membership, magnificent meals at Pure Food & Wine and Caravan of Dreams, sex toys from Babeland!, accordion serenade, membership at Anthology Film Archives, massage, knitted goods, Film Aficionado membership at BAM, Film Forum membership, good eats from Foodswings, tickets to the Rubin Museum, graphic novel package, and more! Costumes encouraged.

Free entry; $1 per card to play. Beverages will be available.

ALL PROCEEDS used to buy postage to send free books to prisoners.
For more info , please visit Books Through Bars

Looking at "ABC No Rio Dinero: The Story of a Lower East Side Art Gallery"

[Exterior of ABC No Rio's Animals Living in Cities show with dog stencils by Anton Van Dalen, 1980. Photo by Anton Van Dalen]

Marc H. Miller sent along a note to tell me about a major addition to the 98 Bowery Web site ... Indeed.

The previously out-of-print book ABC No Rio Dinero: The Story of a Lower East Side Art Gallery from 1985 is now online. Miller and Alan Moore edited the book.

Here's more about what you'll find from the 200-page book that's now all online ...

With new layouts and color scans, the online version of ABC No Rio Dinero preserves the early history of a pioneer Lower East Side art space that was the unplanned progeny of the "Real Estate Show," an illegal exhibition in an abandoned, city-owned building squatted by artists on New Year’s Eve 1980.

[Outside the "Real Estate Show" at 125 Delancey. Photo by Anne Messner]

Compiling art and articles from the period, sections of the book spotlight Collaborative Projects Inc. (Colab), the Time Square Show, the South Bronx art space Fashion-Moda, Group Material, PADD, and East Village music and art in the 1980s. Amongst the featured artists and writers are young, up-and-comers of the 1980s like Kiki Smith, Tom Otterness, John Ahearn, Tim Rollins, Walter Robinson, Jeffrey Deitch, and Bob Holman; the No Rio stalwarts Becky Howland, Bobby G, Peter Cramer and Jack Waters; photographers Martha Cooper, Lisa Kahane, and Tom Warren; and established voices like Lucy Lippard, and -- in a poetry section edited by Josh Gosciak -- Amiri Baraka, Miguel Pinero

.


[ABC No Rio at night during the Tube World exhibition. Photo by Jody Culkin]


The photo below is from the Crime Show, from Jan. 15-Feb. 6, 1982. According to the book: "The Crime Show, organized by John Spencer, had the biggest crowd of any opening, perhaps an indication of the relevance of the theme. For years, the economy of the Lower East Side was to a great extent based upon organized crime -- the sale of drugs, and illicit industry involving entire families in its wide range of tasks. Crime of all kinds in the neighborhood remains high. One artist experienced this first-hand on her way home from an opening when she was mugged in the subway. It is probably safe to say that every artist on the Lower East Side knows someone who has been mugged or robbed. Household burglaries are endemic, as the heavy gates on neighborhood windows testify."


[Photo by Harvey Wang]

The book also includes the orignal ads... "The ABC No Rio book was a labor of love mostly pushed by volunteer labor. Along the way a few small grants paid for typesetting, veloxes and other preparatory material. However, as the book neared completion a daunting financial reality confronted us: we needed a substantial sum to get the 200-page book printed. The solution was advertisements placed in the back of the book. Bettie Ringma volunteered to be our ad representative and quickly discovered receptive clients among the galleries representing No Rio artists and the many fledgling businesses betting their fortunes on the emergence of the East Village as a trendy art center. Today these advertisements gathered in 1985 are a time capsule of the first moments in the careers of up-and-coming artists and of some of the early hot spots of the short-lived East Village art scene."

Here are a sampling of the ads:






As Marc says, the ABC No Rio art space is still going strong today, maintaining a commitment to an interactive aesthetic that mixes art, politics and community.

And as you know, ABC Rio will soon begin construction of a new facility.

Find the whole ABC Rio book here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Life at 98 Bowery: 1969-1989

Books Through Bars is out of money, so....

From the good people at ABC No Rio:

Books Through Bars Bingo

Books Through Bars is out of money, so we're playing cheap/fun/awesome Bingo to pay for postage and keep sending packages full of books to folks incarcerated in America's broken prison system.

It's free to get in, cheap ($1!) to play, and we'll have beer from the Brooklyn Brewery for sale. Plus you'll be playing for totally rad prizes from places like:

NY Adorned Tattoo Shop, Bluestockings Bookstore, Le Poisson Rouge, St. Marks Bookshop, NYC Hall of Science, the Angelika, IFC Film Center, the Beehive Collective and much more.

Dope beats from DJ No Flag, color commentary from the loudest nun you know — basically, you should be there:

Books Through Bars Bingo
ABC No Rio (156 Rivington St), Friday Nov. 6th at 8pm.

Read more about the program here.

Zine talk tonight at ABC No Rio

Zines and Beyond: Independent Publishing in the Real and the Virtual

7 — 9pm (free)

Panelists: Michael Carter, Jim Fleming, Fly, Billy Miller and Seth Tobocman

ABC No Rio invites speakers with a wide range of backgrounds in zines, comics, radical book publishing and independent social networking sites to share their experiences and explore the role of DIY publishing. The five panelists will present their own experiences with independent media as well as consider its role for the distribution of political content in both the digital and print form.

You can learn more about the speakers here.

[Image via]