Alanna Heiss (May 13, 1943 – ) is a pioneering figure in the Alternative Space movement, which reimagined abandoned and underused buildings as sites for art, music, and performance. After training in music and spending several years observing the art scene in London, she moved to New York in the early 1970s with a determination to create venues for the most progressive artists of her generation, many of whom were neglected by established cultural institutions and the commercial gallery system.
With Brendan Gill, Heiss founded the Institute for Art and Urban Resources, Inc., transforming unlikely sites into vital centers for contemporary culture. These included the area beneath the Brooklyn Bridge, a sixth-floor walk-up on Reade Street known as the Idea Warehouse, and The Clocktower in Lower Manhattan. Through these projects, she helped establish a new model for exhibiting experimental work beyond the confines of the traditional museum and gallery world.
With the support of Queens Borough President Donald Manes, Heiss then began renovating Public School No. 1 in Queens into a vast exhibition and performance space. P.S.1 opened in 1976 with the landmark exhibition Rooms and quickly became one of the most influential institutions for contemporary art in New York. In 2000, P.S.1 affiliated with the Museum of Modern Art, and Heiss remained its director until her retirement in 2008.
