RARE was founded in 1998 to help shape, nurture, and promote the careers of emerging visual artists who have not yet had their first one-person exhibition.  After 13 years, our mission remains constant.  While many of our artists have benefited from extensive international exposure and have been included in prestigious museum shows and collections, we continue to make room in our schedule every season to showcase artists new to the marketplace.  We were the first gallery to open in the heart of Manhattan’s historic meatpacking district, where we remained for five years before relocating to Chelsea in 2003.  RARE moved to its present space at 547 West 27th Street in 2009. 

We seek out artists whose work meets the following criteria: (1) The work must be directly connected to the artists’ life experiences, particularly in terms of their most formative years; (2) the processes and materials used to create work must be atypical, unusual, or unique, and not for the sake of mere virtuosity, but rather for the purpose of amplifying content; (3) the artists’ craftsmanship must be evident in the work and part of its visual appeal – in other words, the artists’ hand must be present.  Slick or sleek work will not pass our litmus test; and (4) the work must be sincere in its intentions – sincerity takes precedence over irony and art about art, at least at RARE.