Press Release: Trust For Governors Island Announces Lower Eastside Girls Club Selected For 2023 Programming Season

The Trust for Governors Island today announced the 2023 Organizations in Residence, with nonprofit organizations from all five boroughs set to expand cultural offerings for Governors Island visitors starting this spring. More than two dozen organizations were selected for this annual seasonal program, and will present free visual art, environmental education, and cultural programming inside historic former military houses from May through October 2023. 

Presented through Governors Island Arts, the Trust’s signature arts and cultural program, the Organizations in Residence initiative invites nonprofits from across the city to present engaging public programs while providing workspace and artist residencies. Through this unique program, the Trust offers nonprofit groups the opportunity to reach a diverse and growing audience of engaged visitors, where collaboration is encouraged and workspace is provided free of charge. Each year, more than 200 artists and researchers receive flexible, free workspace through this program. Over the next decade, the City of New York and the Trust will invest in evolving this seasonal program into year-round permanent homes for cultural organizations on GovernorsIsland, creating a one-of-a-kind cultural campus in Nolan Park.

“Each year, a dynamic group of nonprofit organizations converge here on Governors Island to present some of the most exciting cultural experiences our city has to offer,” said Clare Newman, President and CEO of the Trust for Governors Island. “As the Island’s cultural community continues to grow, we look forward to welcoming more visitors than ever to directly engage with the artists, exhibitions, and other cultural interventions in Nolan Park and Colonels Row.” 

“Governors Island Arts’ Organizations in Residence program and its participants consistently present unique, timely works, representing a powerful intersection of perspectives and providing an invaluable cultural resource for Island visitors and all New Yorkers,” said Juan Pablo Siles, Associate Curator and Producer at the Trust for Governors Island. “With eight new nonprofits joining the Organizations in Residence community this year, visitors can look forward to enjoying a range of public program offerings from cross-disciplinary organizations from every single borough.” 

This year’s cohort will present programming in and around the historic houses of Nolan Park and Colonels Row on Governors Island, enlivening these historic districts during the Island’s highest visitation season and holding 200+ free public programs for Island visitors. The houses will be open to the public Friday through Sunday from 11am to 5pm beginning May 5, 2023. 

The 2023 Organizations in Residence are: 

• American Indian Community House Manhattan
  https://aich.org/
• ArtsConnection Manhattan*
  https://artsconnection.org/
• ArtCrawl Harlem Manhattan
  https://artcrawlharlem.org/
• BronxArtSpace The Bronx
  http://www.bronxartspace.com/
• Billion Oyster Project Manhattan
  https://www.billionoysterproject.org/
• Escaping Time: Art from U.S. Prisons Manhattan
  https://www.escapingtime.org/
• Flux Factory Queens
  https://www.fluxfactory.org/
• KODA Brooklyn
  https://www.kodalab.org/
• Fountain House Gallery Manhattan*
  https://www.fountainhousegallery.org/
• Harvestworks Manhattan
  https://www.harvestworks.org/
• The Lower Eastside Girls Club Manhattan*
  https://www.girlsclub.org/
• The Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) Brooklyn
  https://mocada.org/
• New Art Dealers Alliance (NADA) Manhattan
  https://www.newartdealers.org/
• New York Latin American Art Triennial Manhattan
  https://nylaat.org/
• NYC Audubon Manhattan
  https://www.nycaudubon.org/ 
• Oye Group Brooklyn*
  https://www.oyegroup.org/
• Pratt School of Architecture Brooklyn
  https://architecture.pratt.edu/gaud
• Project Bring It Home/The Stars of Tomorrow Project, Inc. Manhattan*
  https://starsoftomorrowproject.com/
• Residency Unlimited (RU) Brooklyn
  https://residencyunlimited.org/
• Staten Island Urban Center Staten Island*
  https://www.siurbancenter.org/
• Swale Brooklyn
  https://www.swalenyc.org/
• Syracuse University Studio Art M.F.A. Syracuse, NY
  https://vpa.syr.edu/academics/art/programs/studio-arts-mfa/
• Taiwanese American Arts Council Queens*
  http://www.taac-us.org/
• TransBorder Art Queens*
  https://transborderart.com/
• West Harlem Art Fund Manhattan
  https://westharlem.art/

* Denotes a first-time member of the Organizations in Residence program

In addition, NYU Gallatin WetLab (Manhattan) and Cumbe: Center for African and Diaspora Dance (Brooklyn) will present free outdoor programs, classes, workshops, and events at different locations around the Island during the programming season. 

Since opening to the public in 2005, Governors Island has become a beloved destination and cultural resource for New York City. Beginning in 2013, the Trust has commissioned significant permanent and temporary artworks by artists including Rachel Whiteread, Susan Philipsz, David Brooks, Jacob Hashimoto, Shantell Martin, Duke Riley, Richard Move, Sam Van Aken, Mark Dion, and Charles Gaines. 

Governors Island has undergone a tremendous transformation over the last decade, including the expansion of year-round public access and the creation of a resilient 43-acre park, a growing arts and cultural program, and remarkable growth in audience. The Island is home to a diverse 

number of year-round tenants, including the Urban Assembly New York Harbor School, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Billion Oyster Project, Shandaken: Projects, Beam Center, the Institute for Public Architecture, and QCNY, as well as Buttermilk Labs — a new multi-tenant hub for coastal climate solutions announced in Fall 2021. 

The Trust is currently in the process of selecting an anchor educational and research institution as part of the Center for Climate Solutions, a groundbreaking initiative designed to further New York City as a global leader in efforts to respond to the climate crisis. A key part of Mayor Adams’ “Rebuild, Renew, Reinvent: A Blueprint for NYC’s Economic Recovery,” the project will support the research, development and demonstration of equitable climate solutions for New York City— that can be scaled and applied globally. 

About Governors Island Arts

Governors Island Arts, the public arts and cultural program presented by the Trust for Governors Island, creates transformative encounters with art for all New Yorkers, inviting artists and  researchers to engage with the issues of our time in the context of the Island’s layered histories, environments, and architecture. Governors Island Arts achieves this mission through temporary  and long-term public art commissions, an annual Organization in Residence program in the Island’s historic houses, and free public programs and events in partnership with a wide range of  ross-disciplinary NYC cultural organizations. For more information, visit www.govisland.org/giarts

About the Trust for Governors Island

The Trust for Governors Island is the nonprofit corporation created by the City of New York that is responsible for the redevelopment and operation of 150 acres of Governors Island. The Trust’s mission is to realize the full potential of Governors Island for the inspiration and enjoyment of all New Yorkers, demonstrating a bold vision for public space. For more information, visit www.govisland.org