ISSUE Project Room
Encyclopedia
The ISSUE Project Room is a music venue
in Brooklyn, New York founded in 2003 by Suzanne Fiol
. Located in The Old American Can Factory in the Gowanus
section of Brooklyn, the venue supports a wide variety of contemporary performance, specializing in presenting experimental
and avant-garde music
. The current director of ISSUE is Ed Patuto.
in a garage space in the East Village
(East 6th Street) in 2003, as a "project room" to feature experimental performances presented by Fiol's photography agency, Issue Management. In 2005, the venue moved to a silo on the Gowanus Canal, featuring a custom-designed 15-channel sound system developed by sound artist Stephan Moore. In 2007, ISSUE moved to its current location at the Old American Can Factory on 3rd Avenue and 3rd Street in Brooklyn. In 2009 ISSUE was awarded a 20-year rent-free lease on the theater in 110 Livingston Street
, a Beaux-Arts building in downtown Brooklyn
, to create a "Carnegie Hall for the avant-garde". ISSUE was awarded a $1.3M grant from Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz
to subsidize renovation and outfitting of the space. In 2009, Fiol died of cancer. A memorial fund was set up in her name to guarantee the successful transition of ISSUE to its new home.
ISSUE Project room presents well over 200 events a year, ranging from established experimental music acts to new productions by relatively unknown composers, artists, and performers. It is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, and has an active board of directors
that includes actor Steve Buscemi
, artist Robert Longo
, and composers Tony Conrad
and R. Luke DuBois
.
Music venue
A music venue is any location used for a concert or musical performance. Music venues range in size and location, from an outdoor bandshell or bandstand or a concert hall to an indoor sports stadium. Typically, different types of venues host different genres of music...
in Brooklyn, New York founded in 2003 by Suzanne Fiol
Suzanne Fiol
Suzanne Fiol ,"an impresario of avant-garde culture in New York" founded the performance space ISSUE Project Room in 2003 and oversaw its growth from the fringes of the New York new music scene into what The Village Voice, The Brooklyn Borough President, and Fiol herself predicted will become the...
. Located in The Old American Can Factory in the Gowanus
Gowanus Canal
The Gowanus Canal, also known as the Gowanus Creek Canal, is a canal in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, geographically on the westernmost portion of Long Island...
section of Brooklyn, the venue supports a wide variety of contemporary performance, specializing in presenting experimental
Experimental music
Experimental music refers, in the English-language literature, to a compositional tradition which arose in the mid-20th century, applied particularly in North America to music composed in such a way that its outcome is unforeseeable. Its most famous and influential exponent was John Cage...
and avant-garde music
Avant-garde music
Avant-garde music is a term used to characterize music which is thought to be ahead of its time, i.e. containing innovative elements or fusing different genres....
. The current director of ISSUE is Ed Patuto.
History
ISSUE was founded by Suzanne FiolSuzanne Fiol
Suzanne Fiol ,"an impresario of avant-garde culture in New York" founded the performance space ISSUE Project Room in 2003 and oversaw its growth from the fringes of the New York new music scene into what The Village Voice, The Brooklyn Borough President, and Fiol herself predicted will become the...
in a garage space in the East Village
East Village, Manhattan
The East Village is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, lying east of Greenwich Village, south of Gramercy and Stuyvesant Town, and north of the Lower East Side...
(East 6th Street) in 2003, as a "project room" to feature experimental performances presented by Fiol's photography agency, Issue Management. In 2005, the venue moved to a silo on the Gowanus Canal, featuring a custom-designed 15-channel sound system developed by sound artist Stephan Moore. In 2007, ISSUE moved to its current location at the Old American Can Factory on 3rd Avenue and 3rd Street in Brooklyn. In 2009 ISSUE was awarded a 20-year rent-free lease on the theater in 110 Livingston Street
110 Livingston Street
110 Livingston Street is a Beaux Arts-style building located in Downtown Brooklyn, New York City, New York, United States.The building was designed by the architectural firm McKim, Mead & White, and was built in 1926 to serve as the headquarters for the Elks organization, including amenities such...
, a Beaux-Arts building in downtown Brooklyn
Downtown Brooklyn
Downtown Brooklyn is the third largest central business district in New York City , and is located in the northwestern section of the borough of Brooklyn...
, to create a "Carnegie Hall for the avant-garde". ISSUE was awarded a $1.3M grant from Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz
Marty Markowitz
Marty Markowitz is the Borough President of Brooklyn, New York City, the most populous borough in New York City with nearly 2.6 million residents. Markowitz was first elected borough president in 2001 after serving 23 years as a New York State Senator...
to subsidize renovation and outfitting of the space. In 2009, Fiol died of cancer. A memorial fund was set up in her name to guarantee the successful transition of ISSUE to its new home.
ISSUE Project room presents well over 200 events a year, ranging from established experimental music acts to new productions by relatively unknown composers, artists, and performers. It is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, and has an active board of directors
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
that includes actor Steve Buscemi
Steve Buscemi
Steven Vincent "Steve" Buscemi is an American actor, writer and film director. An associate member of the renowned experimental theater company The Wooster Group, Buscemi has starred and supported in successful Hollywood and indie films including New York Stories, Mystery Train, Reservoir Dogs,...
, artist Robert Longo
Robert Longo
Robert Longo is an American painter and sculptor. Longo became famous in the 1980s for his "Men in the Cities" series, which depicted sharply dressed businessmen writhing in contorted emotion.-Early life and education:...
, and composers Tony Conrad
Tony Conrad
Tony Conrad is an American avant-garde video artist, experimental filmmaker, musician/composer, sound artist, teacher and writer...
and R. Luke DuBois
R. Luke DuBois
Roger Luke DuBois is an American composer, performer, conceptual new media artist, programmer, record producer and pedagogue based in New York City.-Biography:...
.