San Francisco’s two-year-old Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) will move to the city’s financial district in late October, taking up residence in a building known as “the Cube,” located in a complex co-owned by Donald Trump and placed on lenders’ watch lists.
according to San Francisco Chroniclethe museum reached an agreement with Vornado Realty Trust, the property’s majority owner, to use the 78,000-square-foot space for two years, rent-free.
Ali Gass, founding director of the San Francisco ICA, told Allergic That The museum did not comment on the “specifics of its exclusive partnership” with Vornado Realty Trust but said it was “grateful for their belief that art is a vital force and catalyst for cultural change in cities.”
“MoMA money does not go to the Trump Organization,” Gass clarified. SFMOMA offers free admission and is funded largely by Silicon Valley tech money. Gass recently called the museum a “startup” that has no permanent collection.
In the first two years of the center’s existence, the organization held 10 exhibitions at its former location in San Francisco’s Dogpatch district, culminating in Suchitra Mattai’s solo show She walked backwards and found their songs, Opened in June.
According to a statement provided by the museum, the center’s relocation Allergicis a strategic choice that will help the agency remain financially healthy — and continue to pay its employees “above-living” wages.
“In order to remain financially sustainable and achieve these fundamental goals, ICA began exploring potential new locations earlier this summer,” Gass told Allergic.
San Francisco Center for Contemporary Art’s search for a new building coincides with a broader effort by local authorities to revive the city’s hallowed post-pandemic financial district.
Mayor London Breed introduced legislation in May that would create the city’s first “entertainment district” near San Francisco’s ICA complex. Storefront vacancies in the financial district have grown to an estimated 35% since the pandemic began, according to one estimate. But this year, venture capitalists have shown new interest in the city’s financial artery, with tech and cryptocurrency companies signing major leases in the area. Tech companies are moving in as the homelessness crisis remains a chronic problem in the city.
The nonprofit’s new neighbors will be several Fortune 500 companies, according to Vornado Realty Trust. The Cube building was originally built in 1971 as a flagship store for Bank of America and was recently renovated.
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art will open its doors to the public on Friday, October 25 Dimensional Poeticsan exhibition that transforms “non-art” objects into “poetic landscapes,” and Maryam Yousif: Riverbendthe artist’s first solo museum exhibition.
