Imminent Environment

Stony Island Arts Bank

Theaster Gates’ newest project, the Stony Island Arts Bank, a 17,000-square-foot building he purchased from the city for $1, is described by Gates as a “laboratory,” a place where black artists and other individuals can experiment, research, and engage with the history of the south side.

Inside, some of the decayed ceiling and plaster has been kept for posterity (images 4 + 5 from the top show the before and after conditions of the structure), but the rest of the building has been transformed into a modern archival and arts facility. A massive double-height reading room hosts the archives and research library of the Johnson Publishing Company, including the full run of its magazines Jet, Ebony and Negro Digest. Another room holds a long library file of art and art history glass slides from the University of Chicago and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Another room holds the record collection of the late house music pioneer Frankie Knuckles.

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