42nd Street Studio Success

Design Narrative Atmosphere Article on display in 42nd Street Studio at Universal Studios Japan

November 14, 1984

42nd Street Studio Success

The crisp air of autumn in New York blew through the streets of Soho as eager fans of local artists lined up outside the familiar facade of what was once a Union City newsstand. Above their huddled heads, banners blew in the breeze, advertising the renovation of the habitual morning stop for coffee-sipping commuters on their way to work, minds anxious for the morning’s stories. As every day before, the newsstand had an audience, but on this day the stand was the story itself: the grand opening of the highly-anticipated 42nd Street Studio.

When Pierre Schulz first stood on the streets of New York in summer of 1964, he relished the feeling of opportunity that radiated from the skyscrapers and subway grates. “I didn’t know where I was going at that point, but I knew I’d be getting somewhere,” Schulz remembers of that first summer. That somewhere just so happened to be at the corner of 42nd and 5th. “A studio just seemed right to me, a promotion of community. In this day and age, art is the real news!”

At six on the dot of this newsworthy night, Schulz’s slim smile appeared in the window as he turned the sign to “Open,” and the lock clicked before the waiting crowd. The doors opened like flood gates and in rushed the city’s most passionate art fanatics, followers of local artists like as Gabey Kelly, Chip Sinatra and Ozzie Munshin, each of whom have pieces featured in the gallery.

Guests’ eyes drank in never-before-seen pieces as Schulz drank in their excitement, smoother than the proffered Lambrini but just as bubbly. As the evening wore on, more and more pleased patrons arrived to admire the works on display, in awe of the renovation and proud of the local talent exhibited from hometown heroes, artists that shared their roots and recollections.

Around 8 p.m. it became clear

 

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