Gloria naftali biography

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“Gloria Naftali’s wish, as stated in her will, was to maintain the building’s character primarily for artist studios and galleries.”

(According to ArtNet, her will read: “It is my wish, but I impose no legal obligation, that the Foundation maintain the character and use (primarily for artist studios and galleries) of the building.”) 

They have requested a meeting with the foundation to “explore all possible avenues to safeguard this vital resource for the community,” and are asking that tenants voices be heard.

Bottcher, who represents Greenwich Village, Chelsea, and Hell’s Kitchen, tells us he first heard about the problem from tenants who fear they will be evicted.

“They are worried that the Naftali Foundation is going to sell this building to the highest bidder with no regard to them,” Bottcher tells us.

And the art world is going to suffer if that happens.”

Built in 1910, the Chelsea warehouse was home to a book manufacturing company before Naftali converted it into inexpensive artist studios in 1993. “Why do people want to live in Chelsea? “I am hopeful that through productive dialogue, we can work together to ensure that any future actions prioritize the best interests of the neighborhood and preserve its vibrant artistic community.”

For now, the building is bustling with Fashion Week shows and gallery openings while artists plan their schedules without any firm commitments that they will remain in their workspaces for the rest of the year.

“It’s a sad thing to keep pushing us out.

What would happen if we all moved out and they didn’t sell it right away. Two years after Naftali died in 2022 at the age of 96, the trustees of the Raymond and Gloria Foundation quietly put the 400,000-square-foot commercial building up for sale for $170 million and began soliciting bids for a new owner last December, as first reported by the Commercial Observer. 

Derek Wolman, a real estate attorney with Davidoff Hutcher & Citron and co-executor of Naftali’s estate, said the primary goal of the family foundation was to support the arts, Holocaust education, and causes that fought antisemitism.

“Unfortunately, the Raymond and Gloria Foundation cannot afford to maintain the building in its current form and also carry out its mission to support the numerous charitable purposes for which it was formed,” Wolman said in a statement to Hyperallergic.

“Gloria always wanted this building as a safe haven for the arts and people like me can’t have a gallery without this building,” Bradley told Hyperallergic. “It could mean wholesale displacement.”

Green Naftali Gallery, Berry Campbell, Galerie Lelong, and Fergus McCaffrey are also in the building.

“New York City has been an artist’s haven for 400 years and the affordability crisis is threatening our ability to maintain that status,” Bottcher tells Page Six.

Derek Wolman, an attorney for Naftali’s estate, told ArtNet that the Foundation does not have enough money to maintain the building and that proceeds of the sale will go to causes that were close to Naftali.

“This is a major piece of real estate; it’s not going to sell in one day,” he told the site.

“We are hopeful we can find a buyer who will keep the character of the building intact as a community for artists where they can create and showcase their work.” 

Tenants were aghast at the news. (Naftali’s co-founder Carol Greene did not return a call requesting comment.)

It has remained a vital stop during Chelsea’s Thursday night art crawls to nearby galleries including Thomas Erben, Morgan Lehman, Galerie Lelong, Alexander Gray Associates, and since-shuttered Mitchell-Innes & Nash.

For Mary Sabbatino, vice president and partner at Galerie Lelong, the gallery’s move to Chelsea in the second week of September 2001 “is inextricably tied up with the trauma and loss of those days in New York.” 

“Later, as New York healed and rebuilt, we witnessed the growth of our artists as each of them embraced and challenged the space.

A representative from Colliers Capital Markets, which is marketing the building, said they have received interest from several potential bidders, but the sale could take approximately six months.  

“The Foundation is focused on identifying a buyer that will continue to maintain it as a home for the art community,” said Zach Redding, managing director of Colliers Capital Markets.

Tenants are considering their legal options, which could include submitting a bid of their own, perhaps with another foundation or well-heeled patron of the arts. 

Meanwhile, Chelsea Councilman Erik Bottcher and four other elected officials requested a meeting with the Naftali Foundation in the coming weeks to discuss finding a financial option that keeps tenants in their studios.

“I strongly believe that the tenants should remain in place and that this building should continue to serve as an affordable hub for the arts,” Bottcher said.

One of the reasons we came to this building is because it was going to be an artist's building and not any other business beyond the arts,” Berry told Hyperallergic.

Now the building’s future is uncertain. We don’t need another luxury condo, we have plenty of them,” Harvest said. Now the 400,000-square-foot building at 508-534 West 26th Street has been put up for sale by her estate for $170 million, and residents fear that it will lead to higher rents or even artists getting the boot.

City Council member Erik Bottcher, US Representative Jerry Nadler, State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, and Assembly Member Tony Simone have sent a letter to the Raymond and Gloria Naftali Foundation asking them to reconsider selling the space, which they say contributes “significantly to the cultural fabric of New York City.” 

“The potential sale of this building poses a serious threat to the livelihoods of approximately 200 tenants, many of who have established deep roots in the community,” says the letter.

When you give, we can do everything. “I don’t think anyone is in danger of losing their leasehold in the near future or even in medium future. She opened Greene Naftali, one of Chelsea’s first contemporary art galleries, two years later, and the building soon attracted hundreds of artists including Glenn Ligon, Gary Simmons, Louise Fishman, and photographer Hiroshi Sugimoto.

You take away the interesting part, and they’re just looking at each other.”

Local leaders are stepping up to try and save a beloved Chelsea arts hub that’s going up for sale.

Philanthropist Gloria Naftali and her late husband Raymond opened the West Chelsea Arts Building in 1993 to provide cheap studio space to artists and galleries.

It’s been home to some of the art world’s biggest names like Ross Bleckner, Louise Fishman, Glen Ligon, Gary Simmons, and Hiroshi Sugimoto.

Gloria died in September 2022.