e-flux reading room

Last weekend I trekked all the way out to Essex St.
because I was bored,and nostalgic for a New York
that my parents were too strict to let their
teenage daughter experience in the late 80's (actually
I would have been 8) rightly so, and that I was
too busy trying to graduate college in the late
90s early aughts to see gentrify,
and I found this reading room by e-flux. They have a
reading room with books from
different collectives. A couple of years ago they also had
show which showcased the Lee Rosler archive.

I guess they are meant to be an old school type
of open space.Maybe? Or something new. The fact
that you have to read all these books which
often have essays related to site specific art
in an old store front which is in a formerly
bad area of New York is interesting. I am very used
to reading books in bookstores, and also in libraries
but the fact that you can't take the books home or buy
the books is interesting.

Also interesting is the fact that you have to trek
out so far to get there... the nearest coffee shop
is two blocks away!! It's really desolate. In order
to read these books you have really want do so.Which
given the pleasant surroundings you probably really do.

The reading room came from Berlin and from people all
over the world donating their libraries.