Slip House, a new Manhattan gallery co-founded by Ingrid Lundgren and Marissa Dembkoski, has opened in a historic carriage house on East 5th Street. Its inaugural group exhibition, "As if a line" (9 May–14 June), features a cross-generational lineup of painters including Jack Whitten, Claude Viallat, and emerging talents like Lizzy Gabay and Alix Vernet. The show was organized with former Sprüth Magers director Jessica Draper, and the space also includes lamps by ceramicist Gordon Moore on consignment. The building, built in the 1880s, once belonged to fashion designer and artist Charles Kritsky, who allegedly had Jean-Michel Basquiat contribute to its penny mosaic facade.
The opening of Slip House matters because it represents a deliberate alternative to conventional gallery models, aiming to dismantle hierarchies by mixing established institutional artists with younger names. The founders, who previously ran Winter Street Gallery on Martha’s Vineyard, are introducing a residency program and fostering collaborations with other galleries and creative industries. Their decision to launch during a shaky market signals confidence in a slower, more intuitive approach to art dealing, potentially influencing how new galleries position themselves in uncertain economic times.