To begin with, Southfirst gallery is no longer located at South 1st. It moved near McCarren Park where Nassau and Bedford meet. “We kept the name because that’s where we’re from,” said Maika Pollack, co-director.
Where you’re from defines a lot about who you are, believes Pollack. She and her partner, Florin Altenburg, both have backgrounds that include stints in Europe, and it is reflected in Southfirst’s shows: many are by European artists. “We like to bring people over who haven’t had a show in New York; introduce them to the scene. But we also show Brooklyn artists because that’s where we’re from now. It has become a part of our background,” Pollack said.
Pollack (an art student), Altenburg (a graphic designer), and another friend (a DJ no longer with the gallery) started Southfirst with an amorphous goal in mind: to incorporate music, art, and design into the space. However, because of the Williamsburg location, art soon took over as the mainstay.
She looks for art with social commentary, whether subtle or overt. “If an artist can describe what context they’re coming from, how their work is challenging something, or how they are showing something happening right now, we’re interested.”
What’s happening right now in the Williamsburg scene excites Pollack. “The more that’s happening out here, the more people come. The attention being paid to the neighborhood gives exposure to the art. And I think what’s special about the art here is that there is no definition yet. People are still waiting to see what happens in Williamsburg.”
However, the future for Williamsburg is not something Pollack cares to speculate on. “What is the future for Williamsburg? I don’t know. Williamsburg doesn’t have a history yet. It’s the artists showing here that are defining it. When a collector sees art or buys art out here, it makes a difference. The artist will know about it and will feel it.”
Commenting on concerns about the perceived corrupting influence of all the attention on the neighborhood, Pollack said: “The integrity of the scene, the integrity of the art here [as the scene grows], is up to each individual artist. You can’t blame the scene for changing the art; artists must remain themselves.”
She does worry about artists’ plight as rents increase though. “The city has to see if they can help them stay. If not, then they’ll leave and New York will lose a very important part of itself.”
An artist’s life is something she hopes all artists remember. “If an artist from Williamsburg should get famous in 20 years, they should remember what they needed [when they were still starting out] and support young artists.”
As for her efforts as Southfirst, she thinks of her gallery as a work-in-progress. “My theory is do the best you can while you’re doing it. I have faith in the artists I show and am sure they’ll do great in the future.”
For each show Southfirst puts on, a special limited “edition” is made. It is a piece of work the artist conceives of that represents the work. This way, the gallery puts on a show and helps create something new at the same time. It is available by subscription on a yearly basis and is designed with the neighborhood’s young collectors in mind.
Southfirst’s next show is part of the Paris-Brooklyn exchange. It runs from April 26 through June 8. It features Isabelle Levenez from Galerie Anton Weller. Her work includes video, photography, drawing, and wall writings. This obsessive work, which has already generated a following in Paris, deals with the ambiguous frontier between childhood and womanhood.