The Party is Over: Gen Art Out of Business

In an email sent to members as well as a note posted on genart.org, founders Ian and Stefan Gerard announced today that Gen Art would be closing its doors, effective immediately. Facing recession-driven challenges, the hybrid nonprofit/for-profit organization cited the breakdown of a potential partnership as the ultimate cause of its demise:

During this challenging time we did everything in our power to adjust our business to these new business realities by cutting costs and seeking out alternative funding solutions. However when a major, new, corporate partnership unexpectedly collapsed a few weeks ago, we found ourselves without sufficient resources or time to overcome this sudden and substantial loss of revenue. The reality is that we had fiscally planned and relied upon the representations of this partner. Their decision had the unintended effect of pushing Gen Art over the edge. As of today we have halted all operations and had to lay off all staff.

Beyond throwing celeb-attended parties nationwide, Gen Art’s Fresh Faces in Fashion boosted the careers of then-emerging designers like Zac Posen, Philip Lim, Vena Cava, Sari Gueon, Chaiken and Rami Kashou.

Where does this leave up-and-coming designers and artists? The Gerards are somewhere between uncertain and cautiously optimistic:

We hope that where we have left off, others will step up to help fill the void.