Artists: Brendan Carroll, Margarida Correia, Takashi Horisaki, Gisela Insuaste, Darren Jones, Sarah Julig, SECRET SCHOOL AND THE K.I.D.S., Bryan Zanisnik

No river, no money, so what else is new? This is Loisaida, home of high spirits, heavy drugs, low income, heavy art. ABC No Rio has, for better and sometimes for worse, maintained its pre-Eastside Boom scruffiness. In some ways it is an anachronism today, when even the real deep guts of the Lower East Side are up for East Villification. Still, Rivington Street hangs in, hangs out, and so far, a walk east to No Rio includes no wood-chrome-plants-and-glass luncheries.

--Lucy Lippard
Foreword from Alan Moore and Marc Miller, eds., ABC No Rio Dinero: The Story of a Lower East Side Art Gallery
, New York: ABC No Rio with Collaborative Projects, 1985

Taking place from May-October 2009, Hanging Out at No Rio is a project that invites nine visual artists to explore ABC No Rio, its history, and the changing face of the Lower East Side. Here, "hanging out" refers at once to the open-ended nature of the exhibition and to No Rio’s history in the squatting movement of the 80’s and early 90’s. Now more than ever, as No Rio moves into a new phase, the project serves as a kind of oral and visual history--an opportunity to create a dialogue between old and new.

ABC No Rio began with The Real Estate Show, an illegal art exhibition about land use and gentrification mounted in an abandoned building at 123 Delancey Street in 1979. After the exhibition was shut down by NYPD, the arts community rallied in protest. The city was forced to relent, offering a nearby property to the artists—156 Rivington St. Today, No Rio supports activities from art exhibits to punk shows and provides space for other progressive organizations like Food Not Bombs and Time’s Up. A community center that has maintained its allegiance to both art and activism, No Rio is representative of a New York that is fast disappearing. Soon, the existing structure will be torn down to make way for a new No Rio building.

From August 8-September 12, 2009, Cuchifritos Gallery in the Essex Market will serve as a platform to engage the public in thinking about No Rio and its ongoing legacy. Rather than taking a top down view, the project encourages investigation through a series of informal events and conversations. Out of these interactions, related activities will continue to emerge and new work by participating artists will be presented in an exhibition at ABC No Rio from September 24-October 15, 2009.

***FAQ’s***(aka: The BBQ Manifesto)

Is Hanging Out at No Rio a show about barbecues?

This is not relational aesthetics and Hanging Out at No Rio is not a show about barbecues. However, one of the few things we all envy the suburbanite is the backyard, home to great inventions such as the pool, the lawn, the patio, the swing set, the garden, and perhaps best of all, the barbecue. I don’t have a backyard, and most likely neither do you, so think of this as the chance to pretend. Wanna have people over but don’t have the space? Invite them to one these good ol’ bbqs at No Rio and we can all hang out together (Convincing your friends that No Rio is your house and its backyard belongs to you—optional).

On a more serious note, BBQs at No Rio stem from the following philosophical treatise: Food brings people together.

One of the most regrettable consequences of the professionalization of artists, the move from informal “schools” to career-focused educational tracks, is the loss of exchange between different generations of artists. There was a time when young artists and more established ones lived in close proximity, commingling in a kind of informal mentor-apprentice relationship. This has largely been replaced with the formality of graduate schools and art residency programs where these relationships become institutional. Think of this change as akin to the loss of species diversity in a given ecosystem. How do we address this unfortunate situation, you ask? Have a BBQ.

Furthermore, ABC No Rio is a collective of collectives. This means that each program at ABC No Rio (Hardcore/Punk Collective, Visual Arts Committee, Food Not Bombs, PrintShop, etc.) is run by its own set of volunteers with little crossover between the groups. Say, for example, I silk-screen in the PrintShop, I may never encounter a Zine Librarian. Aside from the general administrative meetings, there would be little chance for us to get to know each other. The Solution: BBQS.

ABC No Rio is approaching its 30th birthday. Throughout this history, thousands of people—artists, activists, poets, punks and performers—have walked through its doors. No Rio has been the initial meeting place for dozens of political and artistic organizations that later moved on to form organizations of their own. Within the next couple of years, the existing building at 156 Rivington will be torn down and a new No Rio building will be erected in its place. How do we get everybody back together again to commemorate No Rio’s past and usher it into the future? You guessed it! BBQs.

Will there be more serious events related to Hanging Out at No Rio?

Yes, friends, comrades, sympathizers, it’s all in the works. Watch out for announcements or follow our exploits via our website: hangingout.abcnorio.org where future events will be posted as dates become available. Part of the great thing about bbq’s is that by bringing people together, things happen, alliances are formed, events are planned, and all of the sudden, WHAMMO, you’ve got activities up the wazoo.

Will going to a BBQ at No Rio turn me into a vegan anarchist?

Hopefully, but if that’s not what you are into, no one will force you.

So, to recap, is Hanging Out at No Rio a show about BBQ’s?

Yes, and you are invited. Join us!

--Erin Sickler, Curator
Hanging Out at No Rio

Erin Sickler is an independent curator and writer based in New York City. Previously, she has held positions at institutions including the Queens Museum of Art and P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center. Recent and forthcoming exhibitions include: Jane South: Deceptive Volume (Queens Museum of Art, 2008), Queens International 4 (Queens Museum of Art, 2009), and Apologies and Further Concessions (BRIC Rotunda Gallery, Brooklyn, NY, 2010). She is the New York correspondent for the Swiss art magazine Kunst Bulletin.

This exhibition would not be possible without the generous support of the New York City Economic Development Corporation, the New York State Council on the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, AAI members and volunteers and ABC No Rio and its amazing collectives who have opened their doors (both front and back) to this project. Special thanks go to the nine artists willing to embark on this crazy adventure; Steven Englander, ABC No Rio Director; Felicity Hogan, Executive Director and Gallery Director for Cuchifritos and Zeina Assaf, Programs Associate and Intern Coordinator, Artists Alliance Inc.; Kate Dewitt, print design; Daniel Kahn Gillmor, web design.