It’s a sad day for indie film and art lovers and fashionistas across America today. Gen Art is done, closed, finito. A 16-year vision and legacy is officially laid to rest. Its Miami branch has shut down along with its locations in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and headquarters in New York. Gen Art just had its annual Fresh Faces in Fashion show March 10th. This year, the event featured the debut line of reality star-turned-designer, Whitney Port. I thought it was one of the most innovative shows to come to Miami.
Like so many other businesses across America, Gen Art has become another victim of the crippled economy. As a local fashion writer, this couldn’t have come at a worse time. Gen Art was essentially the primary platform that gave a forum to breakout designers. This is the organization that launched the careers of Zac Posen, Rebecca Taylor, Twinkle and Louis Verdad. Locally, it made us familiar with Miami designers Karelle Levy (Krelwear), Cardiac, Art of Shade, Julian Chang and so many others. Gen Art was a no nonsense way to discover emerging talent.
June 17th would’ve been the next ShopMiami–an event that allowed local designers to take over the Moore building in the the Design District and sell their clothing and accessories at a discounted price. This was a time of year when South Florida style lovers could shop at what I always I thought of as an indie couture flea market. It was an opportunity to get your paws on hand-painted clutches from Miami lines such as LaLucca and party dresses from Lorie Lester. It was a way to shop in a Banana Republic-less mall and actually feel like you were about to be part of something that might actually matter one day.
This will have an undeniably significant impact on Art Basel, local fashion and the pulse of Miami’s underground art scene in general.
“Gen Art has finally succumbed to the recession. We did everything in our power to adjust our business to these new business realities by cutting costs and seeking out alternative funding solutions,” Gen Art’s founders Ian and Stefan Gerard wrote in a statement on Genart.org. “During this challenging time we did everything in our power to adjust our business to these new business realities by cutting costs and seeking out alternative funding solutions. However when a major, new, corporate partnership unexpectedly collapsed a few weeks ago, we found ourselves without sufficient resources or time to overcome this sudden and substantial loss of revenue. Their decision had the unintended effect of pushing Gen Art over the edge. We have now halted all operations, have let go all of our amazing staff, and shuttered the business that we hope was in some small way was as close to your heart as it was ours.”
This is now the ideal moment for Madonna, Matt Damon, Adrian Grenier or any other Hollywood heavyweight to reach into their designer pockets and resuscitate an organization that was highlighting potential art and fashion stars the old fashioned way–by allowing the public to examine talent and make up their own minds. Farewell, Gen Art. You may be gone, but will never be forgotten.
-Joanie Cox
