From the Founder: soiree henzo 100 & What’s Next In Chelsea Arts District
Written by Founder and Chief Soiree Lover, jake henzo
Photo cred: Jaime Marrero (@jaimemarrero)
It’s been three weeks since soiree henzo 100, and yet still my head is spinning from the stunning display of creativity that to many attendees seemingly came from nowhere and landed on w25th in Chelsea Arts District.
We curated and produced the 100-person group art exhibition in record-speed and I couldn't be prouder of our efforts as a scrappy team to get it done.The one-night exhibition took place on Thursday July 13th at Lavan Chelsea bringing out over 500 attendees who experienced a selection of over 200 artworks from street artists, fine artists, and New York City legends in the scene like Michael Alan Alien. The soiree henzo exhibition also proudly displayed works from 14 students in the Soetheby’s Summer Art Academy, who all showed black-framed 8x6” original artworks. (Something I was very excited to curate into the show as an easter-egg of sorts!)
Overall, the story of the night was clear but unusual to many: The exhibition was unlike anything the area has ever seen, at least recently. One attendee I spoke with remarked “It feels like Chelsea in the 80s”
The comparison to this avant-garde period of expression in Chelsea feels appropriate, but what soiree henzo is doing is intentional in a more meaningful way.
Beyond producing what we describe as “neogallery art exhibitions”, (a new category we coined) we are also demanding much more. soiree henzo’s mission is to help artists and creators as they embark on the journey of declaring “I love this” and making “this” how they support their ideal lifestyle. And we feel one of the best ways we can help is by providing direct income opportunities to our community.
For soiree henzo 100, each participating artist received $10 upon delivery of their selected artworks, not the other way around [you can read more about this decision in a previous B Scene Zine report on soiree henzo].
This is a salient detail we really want to highlight, and we think about it in matters of risk. We firmly believe emerging artists should not be forced to take a financial risk to show their work in gallery settings; despite the level of formality or prestige of the space. And this risk can often be substantial with artists being required to spend $300+ to simply get their art on a wall. Our team further challenges this idea and asks why certain walls are more valuable than others… a guiding thought for us since Summer 2022 when the community first gathered in my previous apartment in East Village.
Based on the success of the last exhibition, soiree henzo is keeping the $10 upfront payment to artists initiative going. For future exhibitions, participating artists will continue to be compensated upon delivery of selected works, perhaps even more down the line.
We support artists with direct income in this unique fashion, and moving forward we will source similar direct income opportunities to our roster of artists. Another example is in the form of live creation, such as live painting, a common creative service provided to performance spaces, venues, and bars.
One thing I can state confidently is that, for artists there is a lot going on, almost always. It can be a bit chaotic at times… especially when it comes to money. And it’s not easy. soiree henzo is really just trying to get artists paid in every way. In very few scenarios is an artist or creator only monetizing off one source or thing. We are providing trusted guidance and reliable deals to our community because we know those opportunities exist.
The other major key to the equation for soiree henzo and our continued success is art sales, an area with high potential if we can crack the code in Chelsea. Our artists and the organization itself both stand to benefit a ton given the quality and price points of works on display, with originals listed at prices ranging from $50 to over $50k. Something we want to make clear is the availability of art accessible to people in a wide range of scenarios, regardless of their collecting experience or budget. We are seeing many individuals start their art collection investment journey via soiree henzo and we absolutely love this reality.
I’m confident we can sell art consistently and feel the 100 artist group exhibition formula on Thursdays in Chelsea has us set up to accomplish our goal of substantially increasing art sales. The fact of the matter is, we’re displaying some of the best visual art in the world literally next door to esteemed galleries like Pace, Marlborough, and Agora. Collectors are already taking notice and we expect awareness to grow like crazy in the coming months.
soiree henzo 100 was undeniably different and spectacular. And if you don’t believe it from my heavily-biased view, simply pop over to soiree henzo official website and view hundreds of works from the exhibition. Better yet, purchase a piece to support living artists (many pieces are still available for sale online).
What’s next? We aim to prove ourselves again in Chelsea on Thursday. August 31st with our upcoming group exhibition, “soiree henzo: RENAISSANCE of RECONNECTING”
Excitingly, it is the only opening that night in Chelsea (I called ~15 galleries in the area to confirm this) and the curation will shine light on the idea that we are currently living in an artistic renaissance period exploding with abundant creativity and fascinating energy.
The neogallery, salon-esque group exhibition will again have 100 participating artists. However, this time we challenge artists to present works related to the action of reconnecting. Submissions opened ~48 hours ago and anyone can submit for free. The quality of work coming through already is insane, so competition is high.
Thank you for taking the time to learn about the exciting happenings with soiree henzo.We can’t wait to show you the stunning display of what’s next. I truly feel soiree henzo is a community of the best creative people.
Submission takes one minute and is completely free. Submit now for an opportunity to get paid to show your art in Chelsea :)
