The Empty Circle Moves from Gowanus to Tribeca
The gallery’s new home will open on November 14th at 6 St. Johns Lane with a solo exhibition by Brooklyn-based Benjamin Staker.
The Empty Circle is pleased to announce the opening of its new permanent space in Tribeca on November 14th, located at 6 St. Johns Lane, 7th Floor. The Empty Circle’s new Tribeca space will inaugurate with a solo exhibition of new works by Brooklyn-based artist Benjamin Staker. For over 7 years, the gallery has been a staple of the ever-growing arts community in Gowanus, Brooklyn, and has garnered a reputation for giving emerging artists their first solo exhibitions, including Catherine Webb, Daniel Kukla, Olya Dubatova, and Olivia Gossett Cooper.
The Empty Circle will continue to function as a dynamic multi-purpose space, offering artists and independent curators an opportunity to realize site-specific installations, stage solo exhibitions, and host performances and activations. This innovative model breaks free from the traditional white cube brick and mortar space, and allows creatives to explore their full potential. In addition, the gallery will host a regular series of public programs to keep audiences engaged in the current practices and concerns of its artists.
Matt Nasser, director, shares: “Relocating to Tribeca gives us the chance to connect more deeply with the global art community and further elevate the artists we champion. This move marks a new chapter in the gallery’s evolution, with a dedicated space that allows for greater interaction with both emerging and established collectors, curators, and the broader public.”
The Empty Circle’s new Tribeca space will inaugurate with “The Moon is a Mirror,” a solo exhibition of new paintings by Brooklyn-based artist Benjamin Staker. A 2025 Chubb New York Academy of Art Fellow, Staker translates the rhythms of walking, seeing, and feeling into painterly gestures that oscillate between raw vulnerability and luminous transcendence. His canvases echo the intensity of his manifesto—where the act of painting becomes a confrontation with silence, desire, pain, and the search for connection. In this debut presentation with The Empty Circle, Staker unveils a body of work that transforms deeply personal states of longing and healing into vibrant visual form, offering viewers an immersive encounter with art as both confession and salvation.
The gallery will be located in the landmarked 6 St. Johns Lane, known as the American Thread Building, originally constructed in 1896 as a wool exchange and converted into a live-work cooperative in 1980. The space is within walking distance of the Academy of Fine Arts, and a vibrant cluster of contemporary art galleries, including Marian Goodman Gallery, Almine Rech, Jane Lombard, and GRIMM, among others.
Over the past 7 years, The Empty Circle has become a known space for artists across generations and media to stage their debut exhibitions. Some highlights from over the years include shows with The Big Art Group, Bryson Rand, Ernesto Renda, Janie Korn, Mur, Leonard Sussman and dance collective Welcome to Campfire, as well as the late artist Ingo Swann’s solo presentation at Miami Beach Art Week in 2018.
About The Empty Circle
The Empty Circle is a place for creation. Our programs encourage experimentation in both process and presentation, moving beyond traditional exhibition formats to spark meaningful exchanges between artists and audiences. We present work across diverse mediums, fostering connections between disciplines, cultures, and generations. Based in New York City, we provide vital platforms and public exhibition opportunities for artists from around the world.
About Matt Nasser
Director of La MaMa Galleria from 2009 to 2018, Matt Nasser has worked with hundreds of artists and curators from all over the world. He has created exhibitions in partnership with institutions such as The New Museum, The New York Public Library, NYU, Yale, The Cooper Union and Visual Aids. Although Matt has worked with artists at all stages of their careers, his focus is curating exhibitions that showcase underrepresented emerging artists. Matt is also an accomplished performer and stage director. He has worked in the downtown theatre and performance art community since graduating from Boston University's College of Fine Arts. Matt is a member of the Great Jones Repertory at La MaMa as well as the Big Art Group. He has collaborated with artists such as John Kelly, Justin Vivian Bond, Alan Cumming and The Bruce High Quality Foundation, always striving to bridge the gap between visual art and performance.
For more information about The Empty Circle please visit their site here.
