Arts Gowanus is a not-for-profit organization working to support, promote, and advocate for local artists and a sustainable arts community in Brooklyn.
In 2025, our stewardship over the first of what will be over 100 subsidized studio spaces began, with 22 spaces occupied as of spring 2026. These studios were secured through a Community Benefits Agreement that Arts Gowanus secured ahead of the Gowanus Rezoning. We also launched the Arts Gowanus Fellowship Program , which now boasts 3 working Fellows, and will eventually consist of 11 concurrent Fellows. The Fellowship covers the entire cost of one year’s rent for low-income Gowanus-based artists, as well as material and production support and individually tailored career-development workshops. Another exciting part of our Community Benefits Agreement is an Arts Gowanus community center, which will open next year!
Launching the Fellowship Program and stewarding these subsidized artist studios hasn’t slowed down our community art programming–in fact, we have big ideas and some exciting new events happening later this year!
The Patterns Gala is Arts Gowanus’s biggest fundraising event of the year and the funds raised help us to continue our year-round programming and community advocacy. Without The Patterns Gala, we wouldn’t be able to host Gowanus Open Studios, exhibit Gowanus artists at art fairs, install murals around the neighborhood, do large-scale public art exhibitions, or continue to fight for a sustainable future for artists in our community.
Help us preserve and expand the arts community in Gowanus! We believe that the diverse creativity of local artists contributes to the singularly vibrant cultural life and energy of New York City, and that it is critical not only for the artists, but also our society in general, that the arts continue to thrive in Gowanus. We are committed to utilizing art as a catalyst to build deeper community relationships and a more equitable neighborhood.
THANK YOU TO OUR HOST COMMITTEE: Beverly Crilly & Lou Mintz Hannah & Ricky Robinett Jill & Tomer Inbar Nick Silvers & Katie Zorn Tracy Penn & Larry Sweet.
We’re thrilled to announce our honorees, who have been instrumental in our neighborhood advocacy: Council Member Shahana Hanif and the team at Gowanus by Design, a non-profit urban design advocacy organization founded by architects and designers.
