In the heart of Times Square, amid the Disney Store and Sephora, a striking collaborative performance unfolded. Noise artists Dis Fig and SOUR VISION filled the air with their abrasive sounds, complementing the edgy, chaotic, central New York surroundings. This was the highlight of PUNK SHOW, a one-day festival co-organised by Times Square Arts and NEW INC, the innovative incubator founded by the New Museum in 2014.
Salome Asega, director of NEW INC, found the pairing to be a natural fit. She says Times Square is "a little taste of home" due to its sensory overload and describes it as "a dynamic part of the city where worlds collide." NEW INC's mission, at its core, is to support creative practitioners spanning diverse disciplines, from art and design to technology, science, and architecture. Celebrating its tenth year, NEW INC was a pioneer in its field when it was founded, offering a haven for those who defy conventional categorisation.
Members accepted into NEW INC contribute $150 monthly, gaining access to workspaces, professional development, and mentorship programs tailored to various disciplines. Events like PUNK SHOW and the annual DEMO allow members to showcase their projects alongside established peers in similar fields. NEW INC also offers subsidised memberships for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ applicants, as well as individuals with disabilities, at $60 per month, making it accessible to a broader community.
Asega emphasises NEW INC's role as a strategic partner, particularly for artists and creators navigating unconventional career trajectories. The incubator provides guidance on project placement and fosters valuable connections. As Asega puts it, "We're definitely a strategic partner. Thinking about where their individual projects and work would land best, and where we can, we definitely make introductions, for sure."
For instance, while The Black School, a New Orleans-based experimental art school, was a NEW INC fellow, the organisation supported their successful crowdfunding campaign to build a physical schoolhouse, offering expertise in pitch development and networking. Joseph Cuillier III, one of the founders, notes, "We were in the process of making the transition from The Black School being an art project to it being more of a formal organisation."
Another NEW INC alumnus is Andreas Laszlo Konrath, a photographer, educator, and publisher who developed SHRIMP ZINE, a web app for designing zines on mobile devices. Konrath shares, "[NEW INC] helped me a lot in terms of professional development and trying to get a better understanding of what it was that I was trying to create."
Victor Peterson II, an assistant professor of humanities at the Cooper Union, wrote an essay for the PUNK SHOW zine, observing, "The piece was trying to centre how Times Square, even though you see it as it is now, was central to not only punk music but also hip hop,” adding that Times Square has a rich history as a "conduit for how people move uptown and downtown."
PUNK SHOW's programming, curated by NEW INC, reflected a broad interpretation of punk—a spirit of exploration rather than limitation and more forward-thinking rather than dogmatic. Each of the four acts offered a unique blend of genres, with only one using traditional stringed instruments or drums.
In addition to Dis Fig and SOUR VISION, opener Euro Trill played a fusion of pop, punk, and rap; Yatta did a cover of "Theme from New York, New York," which felt both earnest and tongue-in-cheek; LustSickPuppy ended the show with a confrontational blend of rap and hard rave music.
Jean Cooney, the vice president of arts and culture for the Times Square Alliance and director of Times Square Arts, praised NEW INC for its ability to connect artists across disciplines and envision events like PUNK SHOW. She notes, "They're also very intersectional, for lack of a better term—they're drawing connections, not just between their artists and a place, but their artists across disciplines, and where those overlap lie, where even the artists themselves might not see."
Scott Everheart, visiting from Pagosa Springs, Colorado, admitted he didn't know what to expect but was captivated nonetheless. The chaos of the performance held his attention, leaving him intrigued and engaged. Everheart mused, "I mean, I didn't know what to expect when they got on stage, but here we are."
Main Image: The artist LustSickPuppy performs at PUNK SHOW, Photo by Michael Hull/courtesy of Times Square Arts and NEW INC