85 East 10th Street; 81-89 East 10th Street | Block : 556-1 | Lot #15

Description & Building Alterations

This six-story apartment house fronting East 10th Street sits on what was formerly six separate lots (see 1940s tax photos). From 1957 through the mid-1960s, 89 East 10th Street housed the Brata Gallery, which played a significant role in the growth of American art, including the development of Abstract Expressionism. This space, along with several other 10th Street galleries, was artist-run and provided an avant-garde alternative to uptown galleries for emerging artists in the 1950s and 1960s. Brata Gallery specifically was founded by artists who had left the Camino Gallery. However, this site then became the second home of the Camino Gallery from 1960 to 1963. Artist Yayoi Kusama made her New York solo debut at this address, and Jack Kerouac’s first poetry readings were hosted here as well. According to several sources, punk rock musician Johnny Ramone lived at 85 East 10th Street in 1983 when he got into a fight with musician Seth Macklin and fractured his skull.