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The Garden of Artifacts, photographed by Jennifer Elster. Courtesy of The Development Gallery.
THE GARDEN OF ARTIFACTS:
"The Garden of Artifacts" is a curated collection of Jennifer Elster’s most personal and meaningful objects, centered around a pewter chalice from her childhood. Among the highlights are rare costumes mentioned above and more.
Nearby, carefully arranged assemblages sit on cinder blocks, broken wood, and stacks of old books. These include deeply personal items such as a few of the unreleased lyric sequence cards Elster wrote and Yoko Ono vocalized; a photo of Elster’s late father placed next to a cassette of Bob Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks, the last gift he gave her; and branches collected from the yard of her grandfather, a harpist for the Metropolitan Opera House, on the day he died. A musician herself, Elster’s recurring theme of music in the garden reflects her connection to memory, loss, and treasured moments from her life.
In the past, visitors have described the experience of Elster’s exhibitions as a “fantastical dream;” others as a haunting immersion into a reality that is both terrifying and achingly beautiful. Through layered narratives of reminiscence and foresight, Elster invites viewers to confront their inner landscapes—and, ultimately, the shared truth of our collective now.
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THE WALL OF PAINTINGS:
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The Wall of Paintings, photographed by Jennifer Elster. Courtesy of The Development Gallery.
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Located at the entrance of the 4,000-square-foot gallery is The Wall of Paintings—a striking collection of Elster’s works spread across a 16-foot wall, centered around a piece titled “Mad Face.” The wall bleeds into nearby collections of warnings and questions prompted by the artist to express her desperation to communicate. Further on, massive scans of the artist’s skull grin creepily from the walls as molds of the artist’s teeth leer atop a nearby wooden stool.
WARFARE:
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The Warfare series, photographed by Jennifer Elster. Courtesy of The Development Gallery.
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The Warfare series delivers a stark reminder of the fragility of life in today’s world. It features unsettling self-portraits of Elster wearing a gas mask and protective suit—visual expressions of fear and urgency. These works form a powerful pattern of alarm, urging viewers to confront the realities of global crisis. Amid the echoes of past warnings, Elster’s distinct blend of dark optimism and sly humor resonates throughout the space.
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The Warfare series, photographed by Jennifer Elster. Courtesy of The Development Gallery.
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THE WAKE THE F*CK UP SHOW:
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The Wake The F*ck Up Series, photographed by Jennifer Elster. Courtesy of The Development Gallery.
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The Wake The F*ck Up series presents a series of hand-lettered text paintings, all rendered in bold black lettering on white canvases that date back to 2016. The works confront collective anxieties with urgent phrases like “Beware of Reality,” “What’s Really Going On?” and “When Is It Enough? When We’re Dead?”—capturing a raw, unfiltered response to the state of the world.
The Development Gallery is a 19th-century structure in Tribeca currently featuring multiple stand-alone installations within one overarching exhibition made by artist Jennifer Elster. Located in NYC at 75 Leonard Street, between Church and Broadway, the gallery is open to the public from Monday - Saturday from 1pm to 6pm.
PRAISE FOR ARTIST JENNIFER ELSTER:
"Mysteries abound in the work of Jennifer Elster."
— The Observer
"...she feels the wider, macro pain and trauma of the world deeply."
— Whitehot Magazine
"Simply Magnificent."
— Huffington Post
"Touching Performances"
— Whitewall
“Part of a larger online puzzle”
— New York Magazine
ABOUT JENNIFER ELSTER
Jennifer Elster is a native New Yorker, critical thinker, artist, writer, director, filmmaker, photographer, musician, and performer who offers a deep and direct awareness of the human condition and our current world crises. Elster grew up in the art scene in NYC, performing in her early youth. Elster approaches her art with an untrained, raw, and aggressive style all her own, often using sharp diction, visual art, and performances to convey our times and our struggles. She applies her instinctual problem-solving skills and innovative thinking to shed new perspectives on pressing issues, evident in her notable solo exhibitions, including The Retrospective of an Extroverted Recluse, The Wake the F*ck Up Show, Take Heed, and QUITE A BITE. Each exhibition has interwoven various forms of media, such as photography, video, performance art, and painting. Beginning in childhood, her first obsessions were with writing and the workings of the mind, which led her to earn an honors degree in writing and psychology at NYU while styling cultural icons like David Bowie, Trent Reznor, and Chloe Sevigny. Elster then transitioned into filmmaking, where her written and directorial feature film work debuted at Village East, played on Sundance Channel and Netflix premiered at Tribeca Film Festival, and garnered recognition and awards. Her next filmmaking project...In the Woods (and Elsewhere), features compelling subjects such as Questlove, Alan Cumming, and the late Karen Black, with vocalizations performed by Yoko Ono. The production has spanned over two decades. The precursor, her online audio-visual excursion, ItW Pathway, featuring Will Shortz, Terrence Howard, Temple Grandin, and the late Glenn O’Brien, was considered an innovation to online experiences. Elster’s work has been featured in many publications including The Art Newspaper, Rolling Stone, and New York Magazine, as well as at venues such as The Development, the New Museum, and Grand Central Station. She has performed her original music at several NYC venues when compelled to emote. Elster is the founder of The Development, a gallery, film, and art studio in New York City.
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Photograph of Jennifer Elster taken by Ron Len in her The Classics exhibition at The Development Gallery.
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JENNIFER ELSTER ON THE WEB:
Website
Art Store
J. ELSTER Store
Instagram
YouTube
Spotify
Apple Music
ABOUT THE DEVELOPMENT GALLERY
The Development Gallery occupies the ground floor at 75 Leonard Street in an historic Cast-Iron building located in TriBeCa, with 4,300 square feet, 17 foot ceilings, & Corinthian columns. Curated by artist Jennifer Elster, the gallery brings back the old school art vibe with a ahead of its time vision & is lauded for its multi-media exhibitions; dynamic performance artwork, talented musicianship, & special guests which run the gamut from the underground to public icons. Contemporary art.
ABOUT J.ELSTER DESIGN SHOP
Continue your fashion exploration through J. Elster, her raw luxury clothing and accessory collections defined by unfinished edges, jagged lines, and unexpected cuts—hallmark elements of her original design philosophy. Each piece is meticulously handmade in New York City, reflecting the artist’s uncompromising creative vision. The store is in the gallery.
ADDRESS: 75 Leonard Street, between Church and Broadway,
HOURS: Monday - Saturday from 1 pm to 6 pm
THE DEVELOPMENT GALLERY ON THE WEB
https://www.channelelster.com/art-gallery
Instagram
Facebook
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT TheDevelopmentGalleryPR@shorefire.com
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