You know what? If we had a big mid-career show at the Whitney we’d probably celebrate with a co-op in Greenwich Village, too.
Yes, Wade Guyton has attained the true measure of a successful artist: being able to afford Manhattan real estate. At least it’s nice to know that some artists still live in the Village.
Mr. Guyton paid $1.27 million for a pad in the pre-war loft at 8 West 13th Street, according to city records. The apartment was sold by nonagenarian Ossinging resident Bernard Zipkin and his wife Florence, former owners of Mahopac Farm in upstate New York. Perhaps the Zipkins, who sold their farm to a commercial developer, were eager to find a buyer who would preserve the area’s natural habitat this time around?
It’s too bad that there are no photos of the apartment, which does not appear to have a public listing, so we’ll just have to content ourselves with images of Mr. Guyton’s printer-generated paintings. Will these hang on the walls? We hope so!
We do know that the apartment is on a high floor and that other units in the same line that recently sold for comparable prices are one or two bedrooms with south-facing windows and small balconies.
This appears to be the artist’s first apartment purchase. Mr. Guyton, who was traveling and could not be reached for comment, previously lived in an East Village rental.
It seems like a nice place, even if the Tennessee native could have bought a mansion for $1.27 million in his home state. Still, apparently he was surprised to discover that he could even sell his art in the first place. As he told Interview in 2009:
“I had no idea what to expect moving here. It’s embarrassing to say, but I didn’t even realize that people bought contemporary art . . . that people actually paid for it.”
Indeed, they do!
kvelsey@observer.com
