Galleries typically show finished work made out of sight in artists’ studios, but a Manhattan gallery is celebrating its one year anniversary by inviting the public in to see more than 60 artists creating in front of them.
Time To Be Happy Gallery, at 219 Bowery, between Prince and Spring, is celebrating its one-year anniversary with a four-day art festival featuring over 60 artists creating live art. The idea is to invite the public in, not only to the space, but to the process.
This free creation convention kicks off on Thursday June 5 from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. and continues June 6 to 8 from noon to 9 p.m. daily.
“The mission from day one has been to rethink the gallery experience,” Benzi, the gallery owner and an artist, said as he prepared for the birthday bash where the public can brush shoulders with artists. “We aim to create a space where art is not just viewed but experienced, where artists and audiences connect in real, meaningful ways.”
The 4,500-square-foot, two-level gallery’s main display space is upstairs, but it also has provided free studio space on a second level to more than 75 artists to work.
“We give artists resources, visibility, and a platform without fees or commissions,” Benzi said of the gallery’s residency program.
Time to be Happy, which has provided more than 20 solo shows, for the anniversary is bringing back over 40 artists who have worked there. The event is part of the gallery’s non profit artists in residency program – all free for the artists in residency with no commission taken.
“They will transform the main gallery level into a live, open studio environment, creating new work in real time,” Benzi said. “Visitors will have the rare opportunity to engage directly with artists during their creative process.”
Meanwhile, another 25 artists-in-residence will be working on the residency level as part of the gallery’s June residency cycle.
“I want to take full advantage of this opportunity. I’m coming here from the moment it opens to the moment it closes,” said Camille Ashkenazi, an artist in residence using embroidery to create artwork. “I want to meet other artists and I want to experiment with my current techniques.”
Benzi sees creating art in front of an audience as a mix of painting and performance art, where the public doesn’t just see the product, but gets to peer in and watch artwork created in front of them.
“People come in and can see all types of art and meet artists while they’re creating art,” Benzi continued. “When you come down here, you realize what a true community is. Everybody’s helping each other.”
The gallery gives residencies, typically lasting one month, starting on the first Monday of the month, ending on the last Thursday of the month, when the artists showcase art they created downstairs.
“I’m an artist. I was lonely as an artist,” Benzi said. “As an artist, you create art on your own and sell it on your own. It’s a lonely life. For me it was a way to do what I love to do and have other people creating together.”
Benzi said the gallery has exhibited “both established and emerging artists from across traditional and digital disciplines,” including names from the NFT and Web3 communities.
Artists-in-residence aren’t charged to participate. “The gallery takes no commission on sales from residency artists,” Benzi said. “This model reinforces the gallery’s role as a space for creation, conversation, and community.”
