The YoHo Artist Community is a community of artists out of the two

Alexander Smith Carpet Mills Historic District The Alexander Smith Carpet Mills Historic District is a national Historic district (United States), historic district located at Yonkers, New York, Yonkers, Westchester County, New York. It includes 85 contributing buildings. It encompasses 19 ...

buildings, located at 540 and 578 Nepperhan Avenue in

Yonkers, New York Yonkers () is the List of municipalities in New York, third-most populous city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and the most-populous City (New York), city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County. A centrally locate ...

. Its membership has grown to more than 80 working artists since 2005.

History

The

buildings originally housed the Alexander Smith and Sons Carpet Company.Leitner, Joel (April 2005). “Nepperhan Business Center and Nepperhan Plaza, An Industrial, Office, and Retail Complex, Yonkers, New York.” ''Appraisal File 6038.'' p. 3. The entire complex consisted of 38 acres with more than 40 buildings. Alexander Smith and Sons was in operation in

Yonkers Yonkers () is the List of municipalities in New York, third-most populous city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and the most-populous City (New York), city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County. A centrally locate ...

. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, it was agreed that employees' hours would be cut, but jobs were not.Beard, Rick and Peter Zopes. ''In the Mill.'' Yonkers, New York. The Hudson River Museum. 1983. pp. 1-8. In the mid-1950s, the Yonkers plant shut down entirely; an estimated 5,000 workers were without jobs. The stronghold along Nepperhan Avenue and the

Saw Mill River The Saw Mill River is a tributary of the Hudson River in Westchester County, New York, United States. It flows from an unnamed pond north of Chappaqua, New York, Chappaqua to Getty Square in Yonkers, where it empties into the Hudson as that r ...

, and within the Yonkers community, was suddenly empty. With the

deindustrialization Deindustrialization is a process of social and economic change caused by the removal or reduction of industrial capacity or activity in a country or region, especially of heavy industry or manufacturing industry. There are different interpr ...

of cities came the abandonment of buildings. In this case, most of the 40-building complex stood empty for nearly 20 years. The two loft buildings that house the YoHo community were purchased in 1978 by Allan Eisenkraft of Yonkers Industrial Development Corporation, who spent a total of about $4.5 million in

renovation Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, o ...

s. The buildings were then rented out to small businesses. The lower floors still operate in this manner. The buildings were listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

by the

United States Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation ...

in 1983. In 1986, Debra Sherwood was looking for an artist loft space. She was a sculptor relocating from Seattle to New York City. Industrial building floors for rent were advertised by Yonkers Industrial Development Corporation. After contacting the realtor, Sherwood agreed to lease the fifth floor of the building. She named the space YoHo Studios for "Yonkers above

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

". YoHo studios had four open studio events before 1991. In the early 1990s, artists began to occupy the Westchester artist studios located within the former Alexander Smith and Sons Carpet Company Mills.

Members and works

Among the artists that rent or have rented space at YoHo are producers of

mural A mural is any piece of Graphic arts, graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' ...

collage Collage (, from the , "to glue" or "to stick together") is a technique of art creation, primarily used in the visual arts, but in music too, by which art results from an assembly of different forms, thus creating a new whole. (Compare with pasti ...

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

mixed media In visual art, mixed media describes work of art, artwork in which more than one Art medium, medium or material has been employed. Assemblages, collages, and sculpture are three common examples of art using different List of art media, media. M ...

, and

portrait A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face is always predominant. In arts, a portrait may be represented as half body and even full body. If the subject in full body better r ...

s. While the population is made up of primarily visual artists, specifically painters, there has also been a sculptor, a

tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing processes ...

artist, and a former member of the Orange County Choppers, a creator of custom motorcycle graphics. During the scheduled "open studio" events, members allow the community access to their private studios. The Great Hall on the fifth floor is a gallery-like space where the artwork is displayed. Those areas, as well as the private studios, use the buildings' 14–16-foot ceilings. The community has earned recognition from New York State Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins. State Senator Stewart-Cousins deemed April 18, 2009, to be "YoHo Artist Studios Day". The mayor of the city of Yonkers, Phil Amicone, issued a dedicated day to the community as well.Amicone, Philip A. (August 16, 2009). “City of Yonkers Proclamation.” ''Office of the Mayor.'' In early 2011, the owners began the creation of 25 new spaces that would occupy a fourth-floor wing. By early 2014, all spaces were occupied, along with the original 50+

studio A studio is a space set aside for creative work of any kind, including art, dance, music and theater. The word ''studio'' is derived from the , from , from ''studere'', meaning to study or zeal. Types Art The studio of any artist, esp ...

s at 540 and 578 Nepperhan Avenue.Golden, John (April 4, 2001). “In Yonkers, More Room for the Creative.” ''Westchester County Business Journal'', p. 30. In early 2014, the owners and developers of YoHo began collaborating with proprietors of neighboring buildings of the historic carpet mills to create Yonkers's first official arts district.

References

{{reflist American artist groups and collectives Artists' studios in the United States Yonkers, New York