Alison Nguyen to Screen New Film Exploring the Hidden History of Westbeth on the High Line Next Month
The High Line and the Chanel Culture Fund have commissioned artist Alison Nguyen to make a new film, “Prior Occupants,” examining the overlooked history of Westbeth Artist Housing near the High Line in Manhattan. The film will premiere on September 8 and screen daily through early November on the High Line Channel at 14th Street as the fifth installment of the High Line Originals series and the second produced with Chanel’s arts initiative. Nguyen’s film focuses on Westbeth’s earlier life as a Bell Laboratories complex associated with technological breakthroughs and research connected to the Manhattan Project, before its conversion in 1970 into affordable artist housing; notable former tenants include Robert De Niro Sr. and Diane Arbus. Drawing on archival materials, resident interviews, and choreographed performances, the project will later travel to London for Chanel Culture Fund’s “The Window” program.
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This story was covered in Digital Biennales and Restitution Wars Escalate