Integrating Life and Art: Chaim Gross, LaGuardia Place, and Sites of the Historic Artists' Homes and Studios Program

Join Valerie Balint, senior program manager for Historic Artists' Homes and Studios program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, in a discussion that places Chaim Gross and his LaGuardia Place home in the context of other preserved artist sites throughout the nation, which comprise the Historic Artists' Homes and Studios (HAHS) network of sites — from Georgia O'Keefe's southwestern adobe compound in New Mexico, to woodworking virtuoso, Wharton Esherick's artisan handmade home in Pennsylvania. Balint's lecture will draw from her recently published Guide to Historic Artists’ Homes & Studios, the first guidebook featuring sites in the Historic Artists' Homes and Studios program. Twenty years ago, the National Trust for Historic Preservation created this professional consortium, which today includes 48 preserved artists’ homes and studios throughout the country — across 22 states. In 2018, The Renee & Chaim Gross Foundation was accepted into membership of this prestigious coalition. A visit today to this uniquely intact preserved artist's home and studio provides a rare opportunity for immersion into the intersection of artistic process and personal biography. The event is free, but registration is required. Donations are greatly appreciated. Valerie Balint is the Senior Program Manager for Historic Artist’s Homes and Studios (HAHS), a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which is administered at Chesterwood (the former home and studio of sculptor Daniel Chester French) and the author of the newly released Guide to Historic Artists' Homes and Studios (Princeton Architectural Press, June 2020). HAHS is a nation-wide consortium of 44-member sites that were the home and working studios of American artists. Prior to heading HAHS in beginning in spring 2017, Balint served for seventeen years on the curatorial staff at Frederic Church’s Olana (also a HAHS site), most recently as Interim Director of Collections and Research. She was co-organizer and co-curator of Olana’s annual exhibitions and accompanying publications.