Gallery owner Lio Malca will relocate to new exhibition space in Tribeca this spring, making him the latest dealer to relocate from the Chelsea gallery district to the hip Lower Manhattan neighborhood that is fast becoming the world’s premier art destination in New York.
Lio Malca, a Colombian hotelier and art dealer now based in New York, says he had been looking for a space in Tribeca “for a while” before he came across 60 White Street, a late 19th-century apartment building with luxury apartments on the upper floors. Malca was first introduced to the property by Jonathan Travisa Redwood Property Group real estate broker who negotiated deals for numerous art galleries moving to Tribeca.
“Tribeca is very special because it’s not intimidating,” says Malca. “The buildings on the streets have this romantic feeling and incredible facades, but they’re no more than five or six stories high each. Each building is different and has its own personality, which is not the case with the city center or Chelsea.
Malca says he was immediately drawn to the view of the “spectacular” three-height open space, 35-foot walls, exposed brickwork, and natural light from the rear skylights. While initially looking to rent space in Tribeca, he eventually bought at 60 White Street because the landlord only wanted to sell.
“It has the beauty and the warmth of the neighborhood,” says Malca. “I like the idea of being able to transform spaces, but first they have to have such an energy that you feel you can do something very special.”
At approximately 5,000 square feet, the new space will give Malca room to exhibit a “wider scope” of art. The new exhibition space will open in May with an exhibition by Spanish painter Rafa Macarrón, but Malca is also planning installations and musical performances in a larger space. The new location is being renovated by studioMDA, an architecture and design firm that has worked with a number of other art galleries moving to Tribeca, including Alexander Gray and Marian Goodman.
Malca’s space doesn’t operate like a traditional gallery – although he places some pieces in private collections and museums, he says his main goal is to put pieces from his own collection on public display. Her the spacesincluding his current Chelsea Gallery on West 26th Street, are part of a larger network that includes an artist residency program in Sian Ka’an, Mexico, where artists can create work for display in galleries and hotels of Malca (including one in Tulum, Mexico, which was once a mansion owned by Pablo Escobar).
At 60 White Street in Tribeca, Malca will have neighbors in the Jane Lombard Gallery, located next door, and will be on the same block as R&Company, Grimm, 1969 Gallery, Deli Gallery and others.
Malca joined dozens of other galleries decamping or expanding to Tribeca, often from Chelsea. Timothy Taylor announced he would move to Tribeca in 2023 and last year Pace opened an outpost in the neighborhood. Other galleries that have relocated or opened satellite locations in Tribeca in recent years include David Zwirner, The Hole, and James Cohan. Postmasters, among the first galleries to move to Tribeca from Chelsea in 2013, closed his space last year after losing a legal battle with its owners.
