One of the many spaces at The Alchemical. The light and price point was perfect. Sad to see it go.

Back in August, one of my favorite studio spaces in NYC, the Alchemical, shuttered its doors for the second time. Second time.

For a brief description, the Alchemical was an affordable studio rental space in Manhattan with beautiful natural light and friendly staff. In 2021-22 they closed their original location since the building was sold. It was unfortunate since the only other studio that offered similar amenities and price point was in Brooklyn. Since I live in Manhattan, making the commute to Brooklyn with gear was the less desirable option. So I was pleasantly surprised when they announced the opening of a new location just a few blocks away from their original location.

From a portrait session with the wonderful Katya, taken at the Alchemical Studios in 2023.
I really loved the light the studio had.

In 2023, I started shooting there again whenever I needed bigger space for certain projects. To my dismay, in August of this year they were forced to close again. I got an email about the impending closure as well as an auction they were holding to sell off much of the studio’s furniture and miscellaneous items. I’m not their bookkeeper and can’t speak to the intricate financial details of the studio, but whenever I booked I always noticed I was practically the only booking for the day. Compared to previous years where the spaces they have were booked up consistently.

Perhaps there just wasn’t any demand? Maybe people didn’t know about their new location? Probably a combination of the two.

What this highlights for me, is a continued decline in demand for rental studios. A part of me laments this and a part of me is indifferent. For some context, I remember when rental studios used to be ridiculously priced. The demand was high back in say, 2010, so a photo studio would want to charge you $1000 for a 4-hour rental! Over the past decade, less and less people are signing up to be photographers, more people are renting out alternative spaces via apps such as Airbnb or Peerspace. Or people are just foregoing studios altogether and shooting on location. Who needs to pay exorbitant fees for a white box studio space with restrictive booking policies? It’s cost prohibitive for most individuals. Brands/companies don’t care because they have a much bigger budget than individuals usually.

Because of these changes, many rental studios have closed their doors in NYC. Especially the bigger ones. It costs a lot of money to keep staff and pay the lease on these places. And when artists don’t have the budgets to pay $1,000 for full-day rentals on a consistent basis or even brands are looking at more affordable options, it will be hard to keep the lights on.

But creatives do need spaces to create, so a loss of a studio like the Alchemical will do more harm than good. I wish they would have been able to thrive on their second go around, but the photo business is changing rapidly. Coming out of the Covid era, a lot of businesses are playing catchup or returning and finding the market dramatically different to the pre-Covid era. As in all business, you either make some adjustments or you will get left behind.

They mention on their website that they’re looking for a new location, so there’s hope. Maybe they’ll return better than ever! Third time’s a charm eh?!

Adieu for now Alchemical. You’ll be missed.