Gallerina is a long-form interdisciplinary project by Lauren Cohen that blurs the boundaries between autobiography, performance, and satire. The project consists of a graphic novel, a 14-minute short film shot on iPhone 16, ceramic sculptures, paintings, and photographs, the work examines power, identity, and self-perception within the contemporary art world.

​

At the heart of the project is a fictionalized version of the artist, a Gallerina, who takes a job at a prestigious Chelsea gallery she calls "Someone’s Name Gallery." Through this character, Cohen explores the contradictions of ambition and vulnerability, revealing the masks artists wear to survive in a world obsessed with visibility and success. What begins as an attempt to observe and understand the inner workings of the gallery system becomes a deeper psychological excavation: an artist trying to become everyone and everything around her, only to realize she is no different from the roles she performs.

​

While in residence at the Ace Hotel New York, Cohen developed several of the project’s core characters and produced key works that brought Gallerina to completion. The residency provided a framework for experimentation, serving as both stage and subject, as Cohen performed her invented personas throughout the hotel. The resulting works included an excerpt of the short film Gallerina, new paintings, photographs, ceramics, and documentation of her one-person “art fair” staged in her room.

​

Balancing humor with introspection, Gallerina reflects on the fragility of self-image and the paradox of connection in a culture built on performance. Rather than succumb to cynicism or self-doubt, Cohen embraces empathy and absurdity, transforming her own insecurities into a mirror of the art world’s collective anxieties.

​

Excerpts of Gallerina were first shown at the Ace Hotel New York (September 26–November 21, 2024) and later included in Body Grounds: The Intimacy of Memory, Myth, and Loss at Powerhouse Arts (September 11–October 9, 2025).

​​

Gallerina (Short Film)

Crew Credits

Written, Directed, and Performed by Lauren Cohen
Director of Camera: Kait Harrington
Audio and Musical Score: Michael Sachs
Dog Mask Fabrication: Taylor Lee Nicholson

All works below were produced at Powerhouse Arts in Brooklyn, New York.