LOFT 910

Lin Laurin's Loft 910
Late at night, after the heavy metal doors roll down over the many factories and processing companies in New York's outer-borough industrial parks, the desolate neighborhoods only appear abandoned. In the raw spaces of loft buildings along these treeless streets, artists have found room and inspiration for their greatest creations.
Last year, I found myself just off the elusive G train, wandering along these empty streets, asking a glowing gas station to clarify directions to an art space. When I arrived at Loft 910, an independent design collective in Brooklyn's Clinton Hill neighborhood, I was greeted by Lin Laurin, one of the live/work loft's artists. The tiny, Swedish actress, one of the eight residents who produce a wide-range of multi-media events like last year's Manifest Destenisia, has created such a successful following that guests of their shows often spill onto the broken sidewalk below. The project, named after an imagined condition in which one moves across the country in search of something they entirely forget upon arrival, was a study in the work and experience of New York artists transplanted from San Francisco.
As the director of Loft 910's film and theater department, Lin Laurin, who is currently working on a March production, is no stranger to making and sharing compelling art. Originally from Malmo, Sweden, the actress has trained extensively in Denmark, and under Terry Knickerbocker at the William Esper Studio here in New York. Laurin, who has appeared on Swedish television and in New York theater showcases, is currently focusing on the directing independent films in which she stars, something her clear vision seems perfect for. In the past year Laurin has shot ten of the 15 indie films she's acted in, many of which were screened in New York.
Perhaps living in such a creative environment, one where work and life are constantly merging, is what makes once-industrial lofts a logical home for emerging artists like Laurin. If anything, Loft 910 is pushing lines of the industrial park frontier and is a site for truly unique and valuable artist expression. As the loft continues to gain exposure, I expect Laurin's next great production Suspend – which opens March 15 and features live performances and film screenings on the theme – will surely draw a crowd.
- Rachel Gray