The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation

02/14/2025

Happy Valentine’s Day from the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation!
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Today, we’re celebrating the art, family, and friendship that brighten our days - and our walls - at LaGuardia Place. Swipe to see custom cards created at last week’s printmaking event, Block Prints: Valentine’s Day Edition.
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Images:
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1. Benno Friedman
Photograph, c 1985
Archives of
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2-6. Cards made by participants ❤️
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01/28/2025

Get crafty this Valentine’s Day! Learn to create custom cards for your loved ones at the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation.
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Wednesday, February 5
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Thursday, February 6
6 to 7:30 pm
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526 LaGuardia Place, New York, NY
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Reserve your spot for $5 (RSVP link in bio)
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“Block Prints: Valentine’s Day Edition” is the second in a series of printmaking events organized in connection with our current exhibition, “Art for All: Innovations in 20th-century Printmaking”. Participants will be taught the process of block printing, a form of relief printing where artists carve and then ink multimedia blocks.
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Image:
Chaim Gross, “Dancers”
Lithograph
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12/03/2024

Join us for:
Prints for the Holidays
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Wednesday, December 4
6–8 pm EST
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Tickets: $5 (+ Eventbrite fee)
Art supplies included
 Link in bio to book
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Drop in to create custom holiday cards for your flock! Join us for an evening of printmaking in honor of the Gross family’s tradition of exchanging original holiday prints.
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Image:
Chaim Gross, Untitled, 1969
Lithograph
Archives of the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation
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An avid printmaker, Chaim Gross often exchanged handmade cards with friends and family. During this event, participants will carve their own rubber blocks to create printed cards. No experience necessary.
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This event is organized in connection with our current exhibition, “Art for All: Innovations in 20th-century Printmaking”, which features prints by artists including Chaim Gross, Jacob Lawrence, Louise Nevelson, and David Alfaro Siqueiros.
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11/27/2024

Join us for:
Prints for the Holidays
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Wednesday, December 4
6–8 pm EST
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Tickets: $5 (+ Eventbrite fee)
Art supplies included
 Link in bio
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Learn to make an impression this holiday season by creating your own custom cards at the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation.
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An avid printmaker, Chaim Gross often exchanged handmade cards with friends and family. During this event, participants will carve their own rubber blocks to create printed cards. No experience necessary.
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This event is organized in connection with our current exhibition, “Art for All: Innovations in 20th-century Printmaking”, which features prints by artists including Chaim Gross, Jacob Lawrence, Louise Nevelson, and David Alfaro Siqueiros.
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Admission to this event is $5 per person to cover art supplies. When reserving your spot, there are two ticket options. Please select your desired hour to make cards when purchasing your ticket - either 6 to 7 pm or 7 to 8 pm.
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Card making will take place in the exhibition “Art for All: Innovations in 20th-century Printmaking” on the second floor. The first and third floors will be open for you to explore during the entirety of the event.
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Image: Mimi Gross, Season’s Greetings Card, 1955, silkscreen on paper. From the archives of the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation.
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10/11/2024

.arts and present
Julian Kytasty, Master of the Bandura
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Wednesday, Oct. 16 and Thursday, Oct. 17
7 pm EDT
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526 LaGuardia Place, New York, NY
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Tickets: $20
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Purchase tickets on our events page, link in bio
 
Join us at the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation for evening of music with Julian Kytasty, master of the bandura. Julian’s performance, presented by Yara Arts Group, will feature traditional and new music on the bandura including music from Yara’s The Magic of Light.
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Doors open at 6:45 pm.
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Julian Kytasty is a third generation bandurist following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. The bandura is a traditional Ukrainian plucked string instrument with sounds similar to the zither and lute. Julian was associated with the New York School of Bandura (NY Bandura) from 1980 and curated the Bandura Downtown series since its inception. He worked frequently with Yara creating and performing music for theatre pieces, poetry performances, and festivals. His work on Yara’s 1917-2017 Tychyna, Zhadan, and the Dogs earned him a NY Innovative Theater award for best original score.
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Yara Arts Group is a resident company of La MaMa Experimental Theatre.
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Ticket sales benefit Yara Arts Group and the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation.
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This program is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
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This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
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10/09/2024

Join us for the 22nd Annual Open House New York Weekend

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It’s Time for Culture

Saturday, Oct. 19 and Sunday, Oct. 20

10 am–6 pm

Free; no reservations required
 
The Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation is participating in the 22nd Annual Open House New York Weekend. Our doors will be open from 10 am to 6 pm on Saturday, October 19 and Sunday, October 20 for free self-guided tours. Come and explore the first floor gallery and historic studio of Chaim Gross, the second floor temporary exhibition Art for All: The Social and Commercial of Prints and Multiples, and the third floor living spaces, which include a salon-style installation of the Grosses’ historic collection.

Learn more about OHNY and the 200+ sites participating in all five boroughs

Learn more about

09/19/2024

Join us for
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Yara’s SLAP! with Bob Holman, Susan Hwang and Julian Kytasty
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Thursday, September 26
7–8:30 pm EDT
526 LaGuardia Place, New York, NY
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Tickets: $30
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Purchase tickets on our website (link in bio)
 
SLAP! – David Burliuk is slapped by a Scythian Viper Goddess. The obvious result: Futurism in Siberia, Japan and New York.
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The Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation is thrilled to host this special performance of SLAP! on Thursday, September 26. Audience members will be surrounded by the historic collection of sculptor Chaim Gross and his wife Renee. Among their many artist friends was David Burliuk. This close friendship led the Grosses to collect multiple paintings by Burliuk, many of which are still on view today.
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Yara Arts Group’s SLAP! is created and performed by Bob Holman, Susan Hwang and Julian Kytasty, and directed by Virlana Tkacz. SLAP! is an hour-long theatre musical-cabaret, interrogating the totally true but outrageous life and journey of David Burliuk, the father of Futurism.
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SLAP! - David Burliuk is performed by Bob Holman, founder of the Bowery Poetry Club and the poet most often connected with the oral tradition, spoken word, hip hop and poetry slams. Singer-songwriter Susan Hwang portrays the accordion-playing the Scythian Ice Princess, while Julian Kytasty, traditional epic singer and bandura player, sings their story. The three, together with director Virlana Tkacz, created Capt. John Smith Goes to Ukraine, which NY Theatre Wire called “an extremely delightful musical-experimental work of theater gives its history lessons a much-needed makeover with fun, liveliness, and an accordion.”
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Ticket sales benefit Yara Arts Group and the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation.
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Yara Arts Group is a resident company of La MaMa Experimental Theatre. For more on SLAP! and Yara visit: www.yaraartsgroup.net
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05/01/2024

Visit us this Saturday for
SoHo Arts Network’s
Downtown Culture Walk
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Saturday, May 4
Open house: 12–4 pm
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Free; no reservations required
 
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The Downtown Culture Walk is a self-guided walking tour presented by the SoHo Arts Network (SAN), highlighting non-profit art spaces in and around SoHo. SAN celebrates the rich history of our unique creative community and collectively shares our distinct cultural contributions with neighborhood residents and visitors. On Saturday, May 4, members of SAN will open their doors for the Downtown Culture Walk. Organizations will offer free or suggested admissions as well as special hours and public programs.
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A map of participating organizations, hours, and programming information is available on SAN’s website: sohoarts.org
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The Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation will host a free open house from 12–4 pm for self-guided tours. The first floor gallery and studio space, second floor gallery, and third floor living spaces will be open to the public.
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For more information during your visit, you can find our guide on the Bloomberg Connects app.
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Organizations include apexart; Canal Projects; Center for Architecture; CIMA - Center for Italian Modern Art; Dia Art Foundation; Grey Art Museum, New York University; Judd Foundation; Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art; Milton Resnick and Pat Passlof Foundation; Museum of Chinese in America; Soho Photo Gallery; Swiss Institute; The Drawing Center; and the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation.
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About the SoHo Arts Network

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The SoHo Arts Network (SAN) is a working network of non-profit art spaces in and around SoHo. Founded in 2014 by a small group of non-profit arts organizations, the network celebrates the rich history of our unique creative community and collectively shares our distinct cultural contributions with neighborhood residents and visitors.
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04/23/2024

Join us next Tuesday for a virtual lecture:
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“Harlem’s Boundaries: A Movable History” with Davida Siwisa James
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Part of the series “Memories of Manhattan: History and Preservation in the LES, Harlem, Greenwich Village, and SoHo”
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Tuesday, April 30
6–7 pm EDT on Zoom
Free; Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/harlems-boundaries-a-movable-history-with-davida-siwisa-james-tickets-886414428417

Organized by the Foundation’s NYU Public Humanities Initiative Pre-Doctoral Fellow Yana Lysenko, this series features both virtual and in-person events.
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Celebrating the release of Davida Siwisa James’ new book “Hamilton Heights and Sugar Hill”, this lecture will explore how Harlem’s boundaries shifted over the centuries. In 1658 it encompassed almost two thirds of Manhattan above 86th Street, but that area would slowly begin to dwindle in the mid-nineteenth century. Advancing into the early twentieth century, the development of new neighborhoods began to shrink Harlem’s original landmass. Now, nearly a century after the period when the Gross family lived there, complex societal factors have further impacted its historic boundaries. The Manhattan neighborhood named for the bravery and beauty of the original Haarlem in the Netherlands is disappearing, compounded by demographic changes and four decades of gentrification. The City of New York makes no official designation of neighborhood parameters, allowing residents, the media, and developers to restate where Harlem begins and ends.
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Davida Siwisa James is CEO of L.A. based Fortuna Business Collective, LLC. As a freelance journalist, she worked for the Pulitzer Prize-winning “Virgin Islands Daily News”. Her recently released book “Hamilton Heights and Sugar Hill: Alexander Hamilton’s Old Harlem Neighborhood Through the Centuries” was published by . Her other books include “The South Africa of His Heart” and “Life in Brief”.
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Memories of Manhattan is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
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This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

04/16/2024

Join us this evening for a virtual lecture:
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“Lower East Side Memories” with Hasia Diner, PhD
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Part of our new series “Memories of Manhattan: History and Preservation in the LES, Harlem, Greenwich Village, and SoHo”
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Tuesday, April 16
6–7 pm EDT on Zoom
Free; Registration required through the link in bio
 
Organized by the Foundation’s NYU Public Humanities Initiative Pre-Doctoral Fellow Yana Lysenko, this series features both virtual and in-person events that explore four neighborhoods inhabited by Renee and Chaim Gross throughout the 20th century.
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About the lecture:
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The Lower East Side, the neighborhood where Chaim Gross settled upon his arrival in America, was awash with artistic fervor. The creativity of its residents included the graphic arts, theater, music, dance, and more. The origins of this outburst of energy lay in a variety of circumstances—the political fervor which gripped the neighborhood, the liberation felt by so many immigrants upon coming to America, the generational divide between immigrant parents and their American-born children, and even the great poverty of the neighborhood. As other New Yorkers, Jews and non-Jews alike, defined the neighborhood as a slum, they provided resources for new forms of self-expression, largely to help the process of Americanization. This creativity spread to other places where immigrant Jews had settled, making the Lower East Side the epicenter of American Jewish culture.
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Hasia Diner is Professor Emerita, New York University, where she served as the Paul and Sylvia Steinberg Professor of American Jewish History and Director of the Goldstein-Goren Center for American Jewish History. She is the author of over 10 books.
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Save the date for upcoming programs in this series:
Tues., April 30 at 6 pm: Virtual
Wed., May 15 at 6 pm: In-person
Tues., May 28 at 6 pm: In-person
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Memories of Manhattan is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
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This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

03/06/2024

Lecture TONIGHT :
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Sasha Davis
Chaim Gross: The Idea and the Block
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Wednesday, March 6 at 6:30pm ET
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Join us for tonight’s lecture either in person at NYSS (8 West 8th Street) or virtually by registering via the link in ‘s bio.
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Sasha Davis is Executive Director of the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation , the historic home and studio of American sculptor Chaim Gross (1902-91) and his wife Renee (1909-2005).
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11/21/2023

Join our waitlist for
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𝗔 𝗙𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴-𝗢𝗳𝗳 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲: 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝗠𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗰𝗵 𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗽 𝗟𝗼𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗮𝗻 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆
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Tuesday, November 28
6–8 pm EST
526 LaGuardia Place
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Free; RSVP required via events link in bio
 
Please join us for a book talk with artist photographer Barbara Mensch in conversation with writer Phillip Lopate and journalist Dan Barry. This event celebrates Mensch’s newest photography book 𝘈 𝘍𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨-𝘖𝘧𝘧 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘓𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘔𝘢𝘯𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘢𝘯 (Empire State Editions). The collection of images, which Mensch refers to as her “personal visual timeline”, spans four decades and explores the forces that changed the face of Lower Manhattan. With the backdrop of the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation’s art-filled salon where great creative minds convened, the blending of visual artists and writers will generate a thought-provoking discussion about the transformation of neighborhoods in the Village and beyond. The book will be available for purchase during the event.
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Barbara Mensch is a photographer and artist. She has written multiple books including 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘞𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵: 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘚𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵 (1985), 𝘚𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵 (2009), and 𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘩𝘢𝘥𝘰𝘸 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘶𝘴: 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘭𝘺𝘯 𝘉𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘊𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴 (2018).
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Phillip Lopate is an essayist, poet, and American film critic. Lopate has written twenty books including 𝘉𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘯 (1975) and 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘌𝘴𝘴𝘢𝘺 (1994).
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Dan Barry is National Senior Writer for The New York Times. He is known for his NYT columns “This Land” and “About New York.”
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Image: Barbara Mensch, 𝘞𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵 𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘴 𝘉𝘢𝘳, 1981. Photo courtesy of Barbara Mensch.
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10/20/2023

2023 Awards for Excellence Spotlight: The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation - Artists and Immigrants: A Centennial Celebration at Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation

This Project Award recognizes a multi-part project created by the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation to generate discourse on the significant contributions of immigrant artists like Gross and his circle of friends and fellow artists in New York. The series incorporated the stories of individual artists within the Foundation’s collection and related histories of migration by artists during the 20th century.

The awards will be presented at the GHHN Annual Conference Taking Care: Well-being and the Museum Worker on Tuesday, October 24 at Boscobel House and Gardens, Garrison, New York.

Interested in learning more about the awarded projects? Join us at the Annual Conference and check out the poster sessions. But act fast as today is your last chance to register!

Get your tickets here: tinyurl.com/ghhnconference23.

10/20/2023

We are thrilled to be honored by GHHN for our Artists and Immigrants project!

2023 Awards for Excellence Spotlight: The Renee and Chaim Gross Foundation - Artists and Immigrants: A Centennial Celebration at Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation

This Project Award recognizes a multi-part project created by the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation to generate discourse on the significant contributions of immigrant artists like Gross and his circle of friends and fellow artists in New York. The series incorporated the stories of individual artists within the Foundation’s collection and related histories of migration by artists during the 20th century.

The awards will be presented at the GHHN Annual Conference Taking Care: Well-being and the Museum Worker on Tuesday, October 24 at Boscobel House and Gardens, Garrison, New York.

Interested in learning more about the awarded projects? Join us at the Annual Conference and check out the poster sessions. But act fast as today is your last chance to register!

Get your tickets here: tinyurl.com/ghhnconference23.

10/20/2023

Join us for the 21st Annual Open House New York Weekend!
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Saturday, Oct. 21 and Sunday, Oct. 22
11 am–5 pm
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Free; no reservations required
 
The Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation is participating in the 21st Annual Open House New York Weekend. The Foundation will be open for self-guided tours of the first floor gallery and historic studio of Chaim Gross, the second floor temporary exhibition Artists and Immigrants, and the third floor living spaces, which include a salon-style installation of the Grosses' historic collection.
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Learn more about OHNY and the 300+ locations participating in all five boroughs
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Photo by Elizabeth Felicella
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foundation

09/19/2023

Join us tomorrow for a free Open House for The Village Trip! We are open Wednesday, September 20 from 4–7 pm.
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The Village Trip is an annual festival celebrating arts and activism across Greenwich and the East Village. The festival begins September 8 and ends September 24. For more information on The Village Trip, please check out
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We will have all three floors open for a self-guided visit during the open house. The first floor showcases work by Chaim Gross in his former studio and the adjacent gallery. The second floor houses a temporary exhibition space. The third floor features a historic, salon-style installation of African, American, European, Pre-Columbian, and decorative arts collected by the Grosses. The second and third floors can be accessed by stairs or elevator.
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Admission is free, but donations are appreciated.
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Photo by Elizabeth Felicella. Gross’s tools and workbench in the studio.

06/14/2023

“Artists and Immigrants”
Open House
Wednesday, June 21, 2023
6–8 pm EDT
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Free; RSVP suggested via link in bio
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The exhibition “Artists and Immigrants” at the closes June 30. You can visit the exhibition by booking a House & Studio Tour or joining us for an open house from 6–8 pm on Wednesday, June 21. The first floor gallery and studio will also be open to the public during the open house.
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“Artists and Immigrants” celebrates the centennial of the immigration of Chaim and Renee Gross to the United States and the many immigrant artists who studied, worked, and interacted with them. Based on the shared experience of immigration, Chaim Gross formed lasting relationships with these artists and, in turn, collected their work—the origins of the Foundation’s collection.
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Including over 50 artists and 100 works from the Foundation's collection, the exhibition explores several themes: the personal histories of individual artists; thriving communities in neighborhoods such as Greenwich Village and the Lower East Side; arts education; leisure and travel, including art colonies outside of New York City; the economic hardships and turmoil of the 1930s and 1940s; and the destruction, displacement, and devastation of World War II and the Holocaust.
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You can see related virtual programs on the Centennial page, linked in bio.
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A catalogue, generously funded by the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation of New York, is available for purchase.
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The Foundation is grateful for the generous support of (NYSCA) in 2022 and 2023.
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Image: Installation view of the exhibition "Artists and Immigrants" at the Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation.
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