The late 1960s home of artist Robert Rauschenberg, newly renovated and staffed with a team of archivists, curators, and managers, is now open by appointment to researchers.
Rauschenberg purchased the five-story building at 381 Lafayette Street in 1965. Situated between Manhattan’s NoHo and SoHo neighborhoods, it was originally constructed as a town house; in the early 1800s it became the administrative offices for an adjacent orphanage, and later, a school. Though the school relocated to Staten Island in 1929, the convent and offices stayed.
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After Rauschenberg purchased the building, he spent a year renovating it, removing religious fixtures such as an altar from the chapel—though it still boasts three iconic Gothic lancet windows. At that time, SoHo was an up-and-coming neighborhood for New York artists and galleries, and Rauschenberg regularly exhibited art and held parties. Though he moved to Captiva, Florida, in 1970, he held the property until his death in 2008.
Over his six-decade-long career, Rauschenberg created thousands of works, though he is perhaps best known for his “Combines” series: paintings and collages into which he incorporated three-dimensional everyday objects. He won the Golden Lion for these silkscreen paintings at the 32nd Venice Biennale in 1964, and by then was a major figure on the New York creative scene, collaborating with such painters as Jasper Johns and Cy Twombly, as well as dancer Merce Cunningham, who used some of Rauschenberg’s work as stage backdrops.
Today, the building is home to the Rauschenberg Foundation, which includes renovated offices, exhibition galleries, and an archive. (Unfortunately, other than the kitchen, there are no living quarters on view.) Those visiting the exhibitions can find examples of Rauschenberg’s and others’ work on display. Researchers can request an appointment for possible research to be carried out at the Foundation’s archives.
The organization is also at work on a catalogue raisonné. Only one year into the project, they expect it to take roughly 15 to 20 years to complete, the first volume slated to be published in 2025.
Source: artnews.com