When You Cut into the Present the Future Leaks Out

Between April and July 2015 No Longer Empty presented When You Cut into the Present the Future Leaks Out at the Old Bronx Borough Courthouse. Built 1905 – 1914 and attributed to architects Michael John Garvin and Oscar Florianus Bluemner, the Courthouse, once boasting granite floors, lavish stairways, and bronze doors, remains adorned by a statue of Lady Justice. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Bronx County, the Beaux Arts-style building had been shuttered for 37 years at the time of the exhibition.

The Old Bronx Borough Courthouse was taken as both site and theme: a time capsule, witness, and symbol existing within a plurality of narratives about its future role in the neighborhood. Referencing a quote by Beat Generation poet William S. Burroughs, When You Cut into the Present the Future Leaks Out echoes approaches attributed to cut-up poetry, early hip hop, spoken word, and the sculptural practice of artist Gordon Matta-Clark, who sliced into urban spaces as social commentary. The exhibition occupied three floors and included the works of 26 artists and site-specific works commissioned by No Longer Empty.

Curated by Regine Basha for No Longer Empty