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CollectionDowntown NYC
Alternatives
The nonprofits that the neighborhood built for itself, where the mission is the business model.
Last updated Jul 13, 2026
These are the original “alternatives.”
The ones that underpin the neighborhood’s creative soul. Many were started by the neighborhood, for the neighborhood, and you can tell that by who turns up: first-timers, regulars who’ve been coming since the 80s, artists-in-the-making, somebody’s art professor. Come when you want art with its sleeves rolled up.
Alternative SpaceEast Village
PS122
The city abandoned this 19th Century elementary school in 1976. Artists moved into the classrooms and it still runs on that make-something-from-nothing energy today.
Alternative SpaceNoHo
Atelier Jolie
As in Angelina. Basquiat’s former studio has been reanimated by the superstar actress into an impeccably designed living room/café concept and gallery.
Alternative SpaceLower East Side
Howl! Arts Howl! Archive!
The spirit of the bohemian East Village screams in this living shrine to its artist icons, past and present.
GalleryEast Village
Wilmer Jennings Gallery
A living archive of Black art and memory, part of the Kenkeleba House project since 1974. This sunlit, intimate space has been shaped by generations of artists into one of Losaida's most important cultural anchors.
Alternative SpaceLittle Italy
PARTICIPANT INC
One of downtown's most beloved alternative art spaces. Politics, performance, community, and experimentation collide here. Black walls and raw, deeply human shows that cling to your mind long after you leave.
Alternative SpaceLower East Side
601Artspace
Young curators get free rein at this Eldridge Street nonprofit to make shows about social justice, memory, and whose stories get told.
