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The geographical center of the New York art world is always moving. In the 1980s and early 1990s, the hub of the gallery scene was in Soho. In the late 1990s, as Soho was taken over by Banana Republics and Armani Exchanges, the scene shifted uptown to Chelsea.
Today, with real estate values in Chelsea rising sharply, more galleries are staking out a place on the Lower East Side. The new New Museum of Contemporary Art, which will open December 1 on Houston and the Bowery, provides an anchor for the burgeoning scene, and a growing number of trendy hotels, bars, and restaurants make what was once a gritty neighborhood freshly chic.
