Angelina Jolie renting Jean-Michel Basquiat’s former Noho studio

DIGITAL TIMESJuly 11, 20232 Mins read42 Views

Photo by Beyond My Ken on Wikimedia Commons

Angelina Jolie is opening a new collaborative space for artisans and fashion designers at Jean-Michel Basquiat’s former Noho studio. Opening this fall at 57 Great Jones Street, Atelier Jolie will serve as “a creative collection for self-expression,” giving underrepresented tailors and designers the ability to showcase their work, as first reported by EV Grieve. The two-floor building was once owned by Andy Warhol, who rented it out to Basquiat until the artist’s untimely death in 1988 at the age of 27.

The building first hit the rental market last November, with Meridian Capital Group marketing it as a “historic full building restaurant opportunity” spanning roughly 6,600 square feet. The ground floor has been home to Bohemian for the last decade, an invite-only Japanese restaurant.

According to Hyperallergic, Jolie signed an eight-year lease on the building that was listed for $60,000/month.

Over the past few decades, the building’s facade has served as an “ad-hoc memorial to the late artist,” with a collage of street art and graffiti painted across the front, according to Artnet. Jolie reportedly plans to keep the facade as it is in honor of Basquiat, according to ARTnews.

“A privilege to be in this space. We will do our best to respect and honor its artist legacy with community and creativity,” Jolie wrote in a post on Instagram.

Photo courtesy of Village Preservation on Flickr

Constructed in the 1860s, the structure was bought by famous gangster Paul Kelly who opened up the Brighton Athletic Club in 1904, according to ARTnews. The building was also used as a metal works business and kitchen supply company until 1970 when Warhol purchased the property. Warhol rented it out to Basquiat shortly after the duo met and became close friends.

In 2016, the Village Preservation installed a plaque on the building’s facade to mark its historical significance.

In February 2022, workers painted over the art on the building’s facade, but since then, a new array of graffiti tags and street art have returned, as EV Grieve noted.