Proteus Gowanus is an interdisciplinary gallery and reading room. Named for the Greek sea god of change and the adjacent Gowanus Canal, Proteus Gowanus acts as an interpreter of culture and place, deepening the community’s sense of context and connection.
Current Exhibition
Battle Ground
April 13-June 30
Battle Ground, the third and last exhibit of our yearlong Battle theme, will explore the pathos of the Battle of Brooklyn, stimulating our collective memory, evoking parallels between past and present, while focusing on the complexity, moral ambiguity, and devastation of this important Revolutionary confrontation. Historical imagery, rendered meaningless by over-use and political manipulation, will be revived in new forms. [more]
Battle Pass - Revolution IV
April 25-June 25
Location: The Old Stone House, 3rd Street and 5th Avenue, Brooklyn
This, the fourth revolution of the Proteus Gowanus project, Battle Pass, is a mixed-media installation opening at The Old Stone House, a 17th century Dutch house, now a museum, that was the site of the culminating moments of the Battle of Brooklyn. Admission is free.
ARCHIVAL EXHIBITS
Our exhibition spaces include several archival installations that accrue and slowly evolve: Hall of the Gowanus, Reanimation Library, Morbid Anatomy Library and the Museum of Matches. Come and spend a quiet hour or two browsing the books, studying old maps, examining curious artifacts.
Projects-in-Residence
Since its inception, Proteus has created or hosted eight Projects-in-Residence, located in spaces adjacent to the central gallery. Some of these projects grew directly from our yearlong exhibitions, while other initiatives were invited to join based on their shared love of books, their wide-ranging intellectual curiosity, and their desire to engage the community in inclusive interdisciplinary explorations.
Fixers’ Collective
Hall of the Gowanus
Morbid Anatomy
Observatory
Proteotypes
Reanimation Library
Writhing Society
.
Study Hall
Proteus Gowanus invites you to join Study Hall, a place for contemplation, study and work. Members use the Proteus galleries and reading rooms to work in quiet community with others in a setting filled with art, artifacts and books. [more]
Ongoing Events
Writhing Society
Wednesdays at 7pm
The Writhing Society, open to writers and non-writers alike, practices methods of constrained writing invented by the French group Oulipo and others. [more]
Fixers Collective
Third Thursday of every month
The Fixers Collective is a social experiment in improvisational fixing. Bring your broken thing and together we will see what can be done. [more]
.
Space Rental
Proteus Gowanus rents out all or some of its galleries for events, readings, photo shoots, product launches and parties. Our book- and art-filled rooms offer intimate spaces for gathering, as well as a larger area for presentations. [more]
Upcoming Events
Retreat to Victory:
A Performance by Paul Benney & Robert Sullivan
Saturday, May 11, 7:30 pm
$5 admission
In conjunction with our Battle Ground exhibit, performance artist Paul Benney and author Robert Sullivan (My American Revolution) will join forces in this interdisciplinary meditation on the Continental Army's not-well-remembered retreat from Brooklyn to Manhattan, from loss to not-loss. In addition to Paul Benney's ethereal choreography and Robert Sullivan's words and song, the performance will include quilts by Suzanne Sullivan and music by Louise Sullivan. Time past and present will merge as guests are transported down our alleyway to the performance in a wooden boat. [more]
