Loren Naji Studio Gallery: More Culture than a Bowl of Yogurt, More Fun than Mud Wrestling with a BDSM Queen Wearing Men’s Underwear

So, what is this Loren Naji Studio Gallery in Ohio City, and what is Loren trying to do? Affordable real estate in this sort of  rundown section of West 25th Street enabled me to realize my dream art space in this budding, urban West Side Market  neighborhood eleven years ago.

 
I purchased this double store-front building back in 2001 and intended for it to serve as my creative space. The second  store front would become a gallery down the road! After a total remodel, with gutting and removal of two layers of  ceilings, my 2-year old daughter, Brielle and I, started to use this tall-walled building to create art and wreak havoc.

 
After ten years, this space very much became home. It developed a charm as I accumulated all the urban flotsam an  artist could collect. This would consist of Brielle’s and my art, friend’s art, cool old comfortable no-worry furniture and a  myriad of intriguing junk to use for making art. This studio developed into a great hang out space: people loved it!

 
Well, in 2011, it was time to make use of the remaining empty, cavernous storefront and I added the word, “Gallery” to  Loren Naji Studio. I wanted to continue this playing with art, creating more havoc and inviting guests to my personal  lair. They would sit among my rumpled couches and chairs, celebrating art with live music, wine, beer and food! They would have the run of the whole expanse, including the gallery, my studio, workshop and the rear patio!

 
Because I am an artist, my guests would include artists, musicians and aficionados as well as the curious and party- minded, who want to experience the scene in a nonintimidating way. “As artists, let us not take ourselves too seriously,  for as humans, we are all artists” is my creed. Art should be fun; let’s celebrate all the arts and see the wonderful things  human beings can do!

 
Now guests enjoy all this, including my notorious “Beer Pit” in the workshop. By March or sooner, my exhibition space  will expand downward. I am opening the “Dungeon” in the basement, which will be a more intimate den, with an  “underground feel” in more ways than one! Here, I will display the edgy, avant-garde, erotic or less mainstream art in conjunction with upstairs shows.

 
My art tastes are more difficult to pin down than a sketch to a cement wall with a broken thumbtack. With that, the  diversity of shows will fluctuate from one extreme to the next. To hell with this sense of style thing; I want to experience  it all. With guest curators and my own picks, every show will  be a new surprise to viewers, friends and myself.  Smorgasbord, art party!