History and Gentrification: Chelsea, Capital of Modernity?

This class has discussed many of the ways that art responds to contemporary urban life, and influences it in turn. New York City offers many rich examples of this relationship. For example, the old Meatpacking district in downtown Manhattan has undergone profound and rapid gentrification in the past decade, and art has played a central role in this transformation with the development of the Highline, its proximity to Chelsea art galleries, and the recent opening of the new Whitney Museum. The area is close to Chelsea, the densest and most “upscale” area of contemporary art galleries in NYC, and perhaps the world. This paper is an opportunity for you to research the topic of gentrification and to provide a history of the change in this neighborhood. Write a 5 page paper responding to the question: What is the history of gentrification in the Meatpacking district/Chelsea? Annotated Bibliography. Think about in what ways are the relationship between art and the city in this area “modern”? Think about how your own neighborhoods are changing, or not changing. Is gentrification going on where you live? How? Why? Why not? Requirements: • Paper must build upon a clear thesis statement • Paper must be 5 pages in length, in Times New Roman 12 point font • Paper must have a title (a good title will reflect your thesis) • Paper margins must be 1″ on left and right; top margin must be 1″ and bottom margin 1″ • Put titles of works of art in italics • **IMPORTANT** If you borrow someone else’s idea, you must footnote it. If you borrow text directly, you must put their words in quotation (” “) marks. (This applies to all information taken from lecture, books, wall plaques, etc.) • -Paper must conform to Chicago Manual of Style (CMS) standard. • INTERNET RESEARCH must be cited according to Chicago Manual of Style (CMS).