Exit Art is a non-profit cultural center established in 1982. Located in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York City, United States, the two-story gallery exhibits contemporary visual art, installation, video, theater, and performance.
Jeanette Ingberman and Papo Colo founded Exit Art as an alternative exhibition space. Beginning with “Illegal America,” the very first show at Exit Art, and continuing through to today, the gallery has focused on representing the underdog, dedicating shows to the exploration of ideas and people outside the political, social, sexual, and aesthetic mainstreams.[1] Exit Art co-founder Jeanette Ingberman died August 24, 2011 from complications of leukemia. [2]
Throughout its history, Exit Art has taken on many homes. It was one of the first galleries to move to SoHo, setting up a space in 1982. In 2002, the gallery moved to its current location in Hell’s Kitchen.
The gallery has been lauded for its diverse and daring programming. The 1992 show “Fever” was declared to be one of the ten most important shows of the decade by Peter Plagens from Newsweek,[3] and the gallery’s 18-year retrospective, The End, won the Association of International Art Critics Award for Best Show in an Alternative Space in 2000.[4]
Artists who have exhibited at Exit Art include Willie Birch, Chakaia Booker, Patty Chang, Sue DeBeer, Jimmie Durham, Nicole Eisenman, Inka Essenhigh, Jane Hammond, David Hammons, Tehching Hsieh, Jerry Kearns, Julie Mehretu, Shirin Neshat, Roxy Paine, Adrian Piper, Ursula von Rydingsvard, Juan Sanchez, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Fred Tomaselli, Cecilia Vicuña, Krzysztof Wodiczko, David Wojnarowicz, and Martin Wong.
Jeanette Ingberman died from complications of leukemia on August 23, 2011.