My Visit to the Amant Foundation

On a recent cold Sunday in early April, i visited the Amant Foundation. While only one of the smaller gallery space were open, featuring the show First Person, Third Person, Same Person, I nonetheless enjoyed how captiviating the space is. Designed by the Brooklyn firm SO-IL, one comes upon Amant, nestled within rows of two flats, machinery and industrial storage warehouses in Williamsburg, as if in a dream. It almost seems as if you are transplated to a world elsewhere.

In hindsight, this is what I liked most about the foundation. Set back from the street, one enters through a concrete and metal grated tunnel that opens into an interior courtyward. But first, glimpses of the foundations class and faculty space, with a long conference table and flitting glances of the second level from below, keep you interested in seeing more. Keep going and you’ve entered the smaller of the exhibition spaces (the main campus across the street was clsoed) with two large viewing rooms and a simple, white tiled accessible bathroom.

Because my visit was on a Sunday, and in between exhibitions, I was captured by the use of simple materials, done exceptionally well. I also appreciated how quite and reserved the space was - I’ve often felt that foudations like these, while well meaning, can take away from the neighborhoods essense. In many articles, the surrounding area is decribed as completely industrial - while true to some point, Maujer Street is not that. You’ll find homes and families, and I couldn’t help but wonder just how they feel about the foundation. I wish I had a chance to speak to someone further, and even the staff onhand wasn’t particularly helpful, but regardless, the foundation is worth a visit.