Reimagining the Gallery: 13 Hybrid Spaces on the Rise
A new crop of small, hybrid spaces has emerged in recent years—part gallery, part shop, often run by artists themselves. They are neither the traditional white cube nor the concept store, but something in between: art shown alongside furniture and design objects.
As galleries and institutions contend with shifting markets, these spaces propose an alternative. Their scale is modest but resilient—folding art, design, and craft into settings that are tactile, accessible, and personal. Together they suggest a future for galleries less about expansion than refinement, where showing and encountering art is reimagined as a practice of exchange and experimentation.
BCMT in Kingston
Above: Works from Kat Howard, Sue Kirk, and Joshua Vogel, among others in the collective at BCMT Gallery in Kingston, New York.
BCMT Gallery is an artist-forward gallery championing craft and the processes and people behind it. Based out of Kingston, New York, the gallery was founded by artist and furniture maker Joshua Vogel and Blackcreek Mercantile & Trading Co. co-founder Kelly Zaneto. BCMT Gallery has sought out a growing collective of artists who share in the investigation of the elemental—offering both functional and collectible works.
Blue Mountain School in London
Above: Works from legendary George Nakashima and Josef Albers at Blue Mountain School in London.
Spanning six floors in East London, Blue Mountain School is a multidisciplinary platform conceptualized as more than a store or gallery but a place for cultural exchange. Exhibitions, a listening room, a restaurant, and curated shop unfold across all floors—a conversation between art, design, and daily life.
Blunk Space in Marin County
Above: Martino Gamper & Adam Pogue on view in 2023 at Blunk Space in Marin County, California.
Established by the Estate of pioneering Northern California artist JB Blunk, Blunk Space was founded in 2021 by Blunk’s daughter, curator and design historian Mariah Nielson. The Point Reyes Station space champions artists and designers working in a spirit of experimentation and tactility. Exhibiting contemporary and historical art and design, Blunk Space is made up of a gallery, studio space, and shop with a collection of homeware, jewelry, publications, and artwork.
Francis Gallery in Los Angeles
Above: A look at Casa Francis, a new exhibition space in a Spanish Colonial home near the LA gallery.
Founded by Rosa Park, co-founder of Cereal, Francis Gallery brings a contemplative, editorial eye to art presentation. With its latest Los Angeles outpost, Casa Francis, Park reimagines the gallery as a domestic setting, pairing a no-social-media-policy with an emphasis on lived, in-person experience.
Jacqueline Sullivan Gallery in New York
Above: A Shared Scaffolding currently on view at Jacqueline Sullivan Gallery in New York.
Based in New York, Jacqueline Sullivan Gallery is a decorative arts and design gallery commissioning editions from contemporary designers around a concept. The space maintains a balance between commerce and curation, presenting work in a way that feels approachable yet considered.
Landdd in Portland
Above: Rugs, throws, and ceramics are both for sale and presented in a gallery-like context at Landdd in Portland, Oregon.
From Javier Reyes and Lillian Hardy, Landdd operates at the intersection of studio, gallery, and community. Their Portland showroom features curated collections of objects, textiles, and interior elements while hosting workshops, installations, and site-specific gatherings.
Marta in Los Angeles
Above: A collaborative exhibition called MOS and Friends at Marta in Los Angeles.
Founded by Benjamin Critton and Heidi Korsavong, Marta in Los Angeles redefines the gallery as a testing ground for functional objects at the edge of art and design. Exhibitions unfold as installations—chairs, vessels, and sculptural works placed in dialogue—making the everyday feel speculative and charged. Located in Los Feliz, the gallery includes a small studio apartment for visiting artists and is built around the intersection of home, art, design, and community.
Pallas in San Francisco
Above: Litanies, an exhibition from Rafi Ajl, on view at Pallas in San Francisco earlier this year.
Writer and curator Elizabeth Snowden established Pallas in San Francisco as a studio, project space, and gallery. Pallas hosts and collaborates on exhibitions and events, spatial installations, and social gatherings—welcoming work that opens the lines between art, design, and the possibilities of beauty in everyday process. Rare books and ephemera form a quieter counterpart, extending the space’s commitment to ideas as well as objects.
Shooster in Sag Harbor
Above: The Shooster collection on view, in part, with the traditional 1840s shingle-style Whaler’s cottage in Sag Harbor.
Shooster Arts & Literature is a living gallery of fine art, antiques, and rare books, housing works by over 300 artists, writers, and designers. Founded by former Image Director Lauren Shooster, the gallery spans a location in a historic ship chandlery building and a nearby 1840s whaler’s cottage which houses works in an intimate, domestic setting.
Studio Ahead in San Francisco
Above: Same Blue as the Sky exhibition at at Studio Ahead in San Francisco.
Founded by curators Homan Rajai and Elena Dendiberia, Studio Ahead is a design studio with a focus on both contemporary and historical work from the Bay Area and beyond. Their occasional exhibitions bring together artists and designers, dissolving the distinctions between object, furniture, and fine art. What emerges is a hybrid studio that moves easily between formats.
Tiwa in New York
Above: Faye Toogood’s Lucid Dream on view at Tiwa in New York earlier this year.
Founded in 2021 by curator-maker Alex Tieghi-Walker, Tiwa operates as a hybrid live/work gallery in Tribeca. The space is inviting—objects are meant to be handled, rearranged, furniture moved—and the line between display and domestic is intentionally blurred. Tiwa maintains an interest in the threshold between function and presence, bridging commerce, craft, and experimentation.
Tooth and Nail in Milwaukee
Above: A view of the pottery studio, part of Tooth and Nail.
Tooth and Nail in Milwaukee is an artist-run studio gallery founded by Janelle Gramling. Exhibitions, workshops, shows, installations, and events here encourage experimentation. Equal parts project space and community hub, it extends the gallery format into something more agile and immediate.
Working Loose in Maine
Above: An exhibition in 2024 at Working Loose in Blue Hill, Maine.
Founded by Em Gift, a retail-and-arts veteran, Working Loose is a concept shop and multidisciplinary gallery in Blue Hill, Maine. The space pairs an eclectic edit with immersive exhibitions and community events.
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