Artwashing is a term used to describe a process in which artists and arts organizations are strategically used in real estate development to disguise and mask gentrification. In artwashing, opportunities for showcasing artwork, free or subsidized studio space or ‘pop-up’ galleries and shops are offered to artists as part of real estate expansion projects, while simultaneously long-time residents – the overwhelming majority of which are marginalized, working class and people of color – are displaced from their homes due to rising rents and associated landlord harassment.

Amazon may not be moving to Long Island City (or are they?), but with or without a corporate behemoth moving into our midst, the question still remains for artists and arts communities in the neighborhood: How can artists work against the grain of Artwashing and ally themselves alongside neighborhood organizations fighting against displacement?