ABC No Rio 45 Years
April 5th - April 26th, 2025
Emily Harvey Foundation, 537 Broadway, 2nd Floor, NYC 10012
Gallery Hours: Tuesday - Saturday, 12:00 - 6:00 PM or by appointment ▪️ Closed Sunday and Monday
Opening Reception: April 10th from 6:00 - 8:00 PM
▪️Instagram ▪️Bluesky ▪️Inquiries ▪️Open History Database ▪️Event Schedule
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¶ About
Artists who have worked and made ABC No Rio the iconic Lower East Side cultural center over these many decades will reassemble to exhibit work in this historical survey exhibition.
ABC No Rio 45 is an exhibition of the artists and activists who have contributed to ABC No Rio over the decades and built it into an iconic Lower East Side cultural center. They will reassemble to exhibit work in this historical survey presenting artworks old and new, and documents that explore the many facets of ABC from the founding Colab years, during which artists of that group and others mounted politically charged theme exhibitions, to the movement in the mid-1980s towards experimental performance, film, and queer subjectivity. Ephemera from No Rio’s archives will represent the collectivist and political projects of the 1990s including the Printshop, Zine Library, Community Darkroom, Hardcore Matinees, and co-sponsored projects such as Blackout Books, Books Through Bars and Food Not Bombs. The Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space will contribute materials documenting ABC No Rio's relationships to the squatters’ movement which battled Giuliani’s police in the 1990s, and the movement to preserve community gardens.
As a collectively-run nonprofit arts organization on the Lower East Side, ABC No Rio's approach to political and aesthetic concerns continues to resonate today. As a plaque on its now-demolished building proclaimed, "The Culture of Opposition Since 1980," ABC No Rio has been a precious hub for DIY arts and activism and a sanctuary for activists, artists, and musicians, fostering a rich sense of community and collaboration. This exhibition honors the generations of collective struggle that built and sustained ABC No Rio, it will function as a workspace and gathering place for past, present, and future members of the ABC No Rio community. The sub-theme "GayBC No Rio" will offer insight into the undercurrent of queer culture that has existed as a foundational and binding element in the history of radical art and activism. These histories will be explored through panels, readings, workshops, performances, and film screenings at the Emily Harvey Foundation, The Clemente, Anthology Film Archives, and beyond.Check the Event Schedule for a full run of exhibition programming.
This exhibition also celebrates the contributions of Steven Englander, who worked for over 30 years to secure a place for ABC No Rio in an increasingly unaffordable city. Through his leadership, ABC No Rio navigated numerous eviction threats, acquired title to the building, and broke ground on the new building at 156 Rivington Street in the summer of 2024. While his passing this past December is a great loss to the ABC No Rio and Lower East Side communities, construction on the new building continues and Steven's work can be honored by contributing to the Steven Englander Memorial Fundraiser, with funds going directly towards the building’s completion. Learn more about donating or supporting ABC No Rio at www.abcnorio.org/.
From April 5th through 26th, 2025 “ABC NO RIO 45 YEARS” will be hosted at the Emily Harvey Foundation at 537 Broadway in SoHo. The building was organized by George Maciunas as a Fluxhouse Cooperative in 1967, and stands as a representation of the social and esthetic objectives of the Fluxus movement towards a pragmatic and non-elitist conception of art.
From April 6th through May 31st, 2025 "Historietas: Latinx Comics as Alternative Histories” will be hosted in partnership with ABC No Rio 45 Years at The Clemente at 107 Suffolk St, NYC 10002 as part of HISTORIAS, a citywide initiative that celebrates the transformative impact of Latinx communities in New York City. ABC No Rio and The Clemente have intersected over the decades, currently with Clemente’s hosting of No Rio’s offices, zine collection, and archives during No Rio’s period in exile.
From May 11th through 13th, 2025 “ABC No Rio: A Culture of Opposition" will be held at Anthology Film Archives. The film program presents film and video output spanning several eras of the alternative art space ABC No Rio, offering a window into the creative and political practice that has sustained the space for 45 years. As the new building at 156 Rivington Street approaches completion, ABC No Rio’s legacy as a catalyst for oppositional culture provides a vital source of inspiration for expanding the political imaginary of the hyper-gentrified city we find ourselves in today.
Artists who have worked and made ABC No Rio the iconic Lower East Side cultural center over these many decades will reassemble to exhibit work in this historical survey exhibition.
ABC No Rio 45 is an exhibition of the artists and activists who have contributed to ABC No Rio over the decades and built it into an iconic Lower East Side cultural center. They will reassemble to exhibit work in this historical survey presenting artworks old and new, and documents that explore the many facets of ABC from the founding Colab years, during which artists of that group and others mounted politically charged theme exhibitions, to the movement in the mid-1980s towards experimental performance, film, and queer subjectivity. Ephemera from No Rio’s archives will represent the collectivist and political projects of the 1990s including the Printshop, Zine Library, Community Darkroom, Hardcore Matinees, and co-sponsored projects such as Blackout Books, Books Through Bars and Food Not Bombs. The Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space will contribute materials documenting ABC No Rio's relationships to the squatters’ movement which battled Giuliani’s police in the 1990s, and the movement to preserve community gardens.
As a collectively-run nonprofit arts organization on the Lower East Side, ABC No Rio's approach to political and aesthetic concerns continues to resonate today. As a plaque on its now-demolished building proclaimed, "The Culture of Opposition Since 1980," ABC No Rio has been a precious hub for DIY arts and activism and a sanctuary for activists, artists, and musicians, fostering a rich sense of community and collaboration. This exhibition honors the generations of collective struggle that built and sustained ABC No Rio, it will function as a workspace and gathering place for past, present, and future members of the ABC No Rio community. The sub-theme "GayBC No Rio" will offer insight into the undercurrent of queer culture that has existed as a foundational and binding element in the history of radical art and activism. These histories will be explored through panels, readings, workshops, performances, and film screenings at the Emily Harvey Foundation, The Clemente, Anthology Film Archives, and beyond.Check the Event Schedule for a full run of exhibition programming.
This exhibition also celebrates the contributions of Steven Englander, who worked for over 30 years to secure a place for ABC No Rio in an increasingly unaffordable city. Through his leadership, ABC No Rio navigated numerous eviction threats, acquired title to the building, and broke ground on the new building at 156 Rivington Street in the summer of 2024. While his passing this past December is a great loss to the ABC No Rio and Lower East Side communities, construction on the new building continues and Steven's work can be honored by contributing to the Steven Englander Memorial Fundraiser, with funds going directly towards the building’s completion. Learn more about donating or supporting ABC No Rio at www.abcnorio.org/.
From April 5th through 26th, 2025 “ABC NO RIO 45 YEARS” will be hosted at the Emily Harvey Foundation at 537 Broadway in SoHo. The building was organized by George Maciunas as a Fluxhouse Cooperative in 1967, and stands as a representation of the social and esthetic objectives of the Fluxus movement towards a pragmatic and non-elitist conception of art.
From April 6th through May 31st, 2025 "Historietas: Latinx Comics as Alternative Histories” will be hosted in partnership with ABC No Rio 45 Years at The Clemente at 107 Suffolk St, NYC 10002 as part of HISTORIAS, a citywide initiative that celebrates the transformative impact of Latinx communities in New York City. ABC No Rio and The Clemente have intersected over the decades, currently with Clemente’s hosting of No Rio’s offices, zine collection, and archives during No Rio’s period in exile.
From May 11th through 13th, 2025 “ABC No Rio: A Culture of Opposition" will be held at Anthology Film Archives. The film program presents film and video output spanning several eras of the alternative art space ABC No Rio, offering a window into the creative and political practice that has sustained the space for 45 years. As the new building at 156 Rivington Street approaches completion, ABC No Rio’s legacy as a catalyst for oppositional culture provides a vital source of inspiration for expanding the political imaginary of the hyper-gentrified city we find ourselves in today.
¶ Public Programming
In tandem with the exhibition, ABC No Rio 45 Years presents a variety of panels, readings, performances, workshops, and film screenings at the Emily Harvey Foundation, The Clemente, Anthology Film Archives, and beyond. Check the Event Schedule below for the most up-to-date information regarding exhibition programming. All events are held at the Emily Harvey Foundation unless otherwise noted. The Emily Harvey Foundation is not optimized for ADA accessibility, but elevator access is available with prior notification. If you have questions or access requests, please contact ehf.newyork@gmail.com in advance of your visit and we will make every effort to accommodate you.
In tandem with the exhibition, ABC No Rio 45 Years presents a variety of panels, readings, performances, workshops, and film screenings at the Emily Harvey Foundation, The Clemente, Anthology Film Archives, and beyond. Check the Event Schedule below for the most up-to-date information regarding exhibition programming. All events are held at the Emily Harvey Foundation unless otherwise noted. The Emily Harvey Foundation is not optimized for ADA accessibility, but elevator access is available with prior notification. If you have questions or access requests, please contact ehf.newyork@gmail.com in advance of your visit and we will make every effort to accommodate you.
↘Event Schedule↘
¶ Open History Database
A public-participation open database, aiming to reconstruct a full chronology of ABC No Rio (1979→). This living timeline will continue to grow throughout the run of the exhibition.
To submit entries or corrections to the timeline, please use this form. Read more about the timeline on the Art Gangs blog.
A public-participation open database, aiming to reconstruct a full chronology of ABC No Rio (1979→). This living timeline will continue to grow throughout the run of the exhibition.
↘Open Database↘
To submit entries or corrections to the timeline, please use this form. Read more about the timeline on the Art Gangs blog.
¶ Partners
ABC NO RIO 45 YEARS is a project of the Solo Foundation in collaboration with the ABC No Rio, Allied Productions, Anthology Film Archives, Emily Harvey Foundation, the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS), Totalism, and XFR Collective.
ABC No Rio ▪️ Allied Productions, Inc. ▪️ Anthology Film Archives ▪️CHT/Totalism▪️ The Clemente,“Historias” ▪️Emily Harvey Foundation▪️ Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS)▪️The Solo Foundation ▪️XFR Collective
This website was created using E2H, a collaborative hypermedia platform built using Etherpad. E2H is developed by CHT/Totalism, a hackbase and ongoing infrastructure project researching, developing & practicing the transitional technologies, theory, tactics and arts to end capitalism.
ABC NO RIO 45 YEARS is a project of the Solo Foundation in collaboration with the ABC No Rio, Allied Productions, Anthology Film Archives, Emily Harvey Foundation, the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS), Totalism, and XFR Collective.
ABC No Rio ▪️ Allied Productions, Inc. ▪️ Anthology Film Archives ▪️CHT/Totalism▪️ The Clemente,“Historias” ▪️Emily Harvey Foundation▪️ Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space (MoRUS)▪️The Solo Foundation ▪️XFR Collective
This website was created using E2H, a collaborative hypermedia platform built using Etherpad. E2H is developed by CHT/Totalism, a hackbase and ongoing infrastructure project researching, developing & practicing the transitional technologies, theory, tactics and arts to end capitalism.