Centre of attraction

A cultural incubator’s new Brooklyn campus encourages community engagement

‘There are a range of art residencies in the world, in various forms, but very few build a full campus from the ground up,’ says Florian Idenburg, cofounder of New York architecture studio SO-IL. Its latest completion is for Amant, a young international private arts organisation positioned as a flexible research and artistic platform, with campuses in Brooklyn and Tuscany. The US outpost is about to complete the first phase in an extensive construction project that encompasses spaces for an international artist residency programme, including areas for producing and performing arts. Located in an industrial neighbourhood of East Williamsburg and connected to it via a visual palette that includes brick, concrete and steel, the new Amant campus was conceived as an ‘oasis in this industrial zone’. Providing enough space for artists to concentrate and develop work was crucial, but the complex will also operate a programme of open events. ‘Normally, the public is invited only into the area closest to the street, but here we flipped that,’ says Idenburg. ‘The performance space and bookshop/cafe can only be reached via an alleyway and courtyard, passing by the studios and offices.’ so-il.org; amant.org

PHOTOGRAPHY: IWAN BAAN WRITER: ELLIE STATHAKI Top and above, the Amant art campus, which is spread across three blocks in north Brooklyn, is built from cast-in-situ concrete, bricks and galvanised steel, materials that are intended to render the campus’ four buildings partly anonymous within its industrial landscape