Affordable and accessible space for art production is increasingly scarce in New York City. Powerhouse Arts, (“Powerhouse”) located in Gowanus, Brooklyn will be a 180,000-square-foot contemporary industrial fabrication center offering fully equipped and staffed fabrication shops in wood, metal, ceramics, textiles, and printmaking. In addition, space will be created for artistic experimentation, collaboration, and investigation across media and disciplines. In 2015, Hamlin Ventures was retained to advise on the design and development of Powerhouse. After organizing a design competition, in 2016, the Pritzker-prize winning architecture practice of Herzog & de Meuron was commissioned to re-imagine the 113-year-old power plant that once operated on the site. The scope of their design work entails the renovation of the still-existing Turbine Hall shell, and the design and construction of a new building on the adjacent footprint where the Boiler House once stood. The project, which is enrolled in the NY State Brownfield program, opened in Spring 2023.

Location:         Gowanus, Brooklyn, N.Y.

Completion:    2023

Client:              Powerhouse Environmental Arts Foundation

Architect:        Herzog & de Meuron

Website:          http://www.powerhousearts.org/