Mission
Ortega y Gasset Projects (OyG) is a non-profit artist-run curatorial collective and exhibition space in Gowanus, Brooklyn. Founded in May 2013 in Bushwick, Brooklyn, by Lauren Adams, Joshua Bienko, Clare Britt, Carrie Hott, Jessica Langley, Leeza Meksin, Sheilah Wilson and Karla Wozniak, OyG moved to Gowanus in February 2015. OyG gained non-profit status in 2016.
Ortega y Gasset Projects came together as an artist-run space in April 2013 when a group of artists realized how much their practices were dictated by their circumstances. José Ortega y Gasset’s famous maxim “yo soy yo y mi circunstancia” (I’m myself and my circumstance) deeply resonated with the group, so they named the space as a nod to the philosopher’s pragmatism and realist phenomenology, that came to be known as the “philosophy of life.” Ortega y Gasset Projects celebrates 10 years in May, 2023.
OyG is entirely run by working artists, who recognize that exploration is key to artistic vitality. We embrace an exploratory model where artists take the role of curator, critic and promoter. Working without concern for commercial profit or an explicit curatorial ideology, the goal of OyG is to mount exhibitions that support under-represented, marginalized artists and emerging artists, provoke dialogue and bolster artistic community . In doing so, we participate within a wider forum to disseminate aesthetic experience and expand our roles, priorities and scope of influence within art culture.
Half of the current co-directors of OyG live outside of New York City. Working collaboratively over geographical distances allows OyG to extend beyond local communities and forge larger networks of cultural dialogue.
See our Directors page for a list of current OyG Directors.