Established in 2016, Blank Forms is a nonprofit organization supporting emerging and historically significant artists who produce work across disciplines, often rooted in traditions of experimental and creative music. Through collaborative commissions, exhibitions, publications as well as archival and estate projects, Blank Forms establishes new frameworks to preserve, nurture, and present art, while building platforms for practices underrepresented in art’s commercial, institutional, and historical fields. With the opening of a gallery space in 2020, followed by an auxiliary venue for performances and talks in 2021, Blank Forms’ platform has continued to grow steadily, encompassing exhibitions, performances, publishing, and archival initiatives.

As part of a planned move into a new space in Brooklyn, Blank Forms will align its collaborative artistic approach with a commitment to energy efficiency and climate action. A Catalyst Grant will fund early steps toward the implementation of energy efficient systems in a new space intended for exhibitions and performances, which will offer an increased audience capacity as well as enhanced visibility for Blank Forms’s programs. Over six months, Blank Forms will engage Bench Architecture, who will provide consultation and assessment as part of an adaptive re-use plan for a ground floor space, adjacent to mass transit, located in Brooklyn. The assessment and plan will include recommendations for energy-efficient LED lighting systems and an HVAC system that will replace fossil-fuel based boiler heat; estimates for key implementation milestones; and plans for fundraising purposes and any required filings. The work will build on dialogue with the Blank Forms team regarding programmatic and operational requirements of the systems and space.