{"id":261276,"date":"2026-06-10T00:21:06","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T00:21:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/261276\/"},"modified":"2026-06-10T00:21:06","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T00:21:06","slug":"artists-scramble-to-rescue-works-after-queens-building-fire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/261276\/","title":{"rendered":"Artists Scramble to Rescue Works After Queens Building Fire"},"content":{"rendered":"

News<\/a><\/p>\n

Linda Ganjian worked to salvage pieces from water damage after a blaze erupted in the Long Island City building where she and Ilan Averbach had studios.<\/p>\n


\n \"Aaron
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"Outside the 10-15 48th Avenue building, where a fire erupted on the morning of June 8 (all screenshots via Linda Ganjian on Instagram<\/a>)<\/p>\n

A fire that broke out in Long Island City on Monday left two Queens artists scrambling to rescue decades of work and look for new studios.<\/p>\n

Linda Ganjian spent much of the day inspecting and salvaging 20 years of sculptures and mixed-media works from water damage after a fire erupted in the two-story loft at 10-15 48th Avenue where she and sculptor Ilan Averbach had studios, she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Known for making intricate table-top sculptures<\/a> that play with West African and American craft traditions and for her murals<\/a> in JFK Terminals 4 and 8, Ganjian stored many of her works in cardboard crates in her first-floor workspace. She did not notice any smoke damage but worried about mold that could form, since she could not retrieve the works once the city cleared out the building.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of them got wet, but so far the work is mainly ok,\u201d Ganjian told Hyperallergic. \u201cI lost a collage, and there was some fixable water damage on a couple others.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Firefighters received a call at 8:46 am on June 8 about the three-alarm blaze<\/a> that started on the top floor of the artist-in-residence loft building in the Hunters Point section of LIC.<\/p>\n

Three firefighters were sent to local hospitals after battling the flames, which they contained in just over two hours, according to FDNY officials. There were no other injuries. The cause remains under investigation, they said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"The cause of the blaze remains under investigation, according to the NYC Fire Department.<\/p>\n

Building inspectors found multiple rooms with opened and exposed ceilings, multiple windows missing, and extensive charring throughout the second floor, and issued a full vacate order for the property, a Department of Buildings spokesman said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Officials also required the owner to install a sidewalk shed after finding a section of corning hanging loose and said they would coordinate with tenants to allow them to retrieve their belongings once another inspection determines the building is safe, but did not offer a timeline.<\/p>\n

For now, Ganjian has been packing and following up on leads for a new studio and storage space after posting the request on her Instagram page<\/a>. (Averbach did not respond to a request by press time.)<\/p>\n

\u201cThe stressful part is having to vacate the studio ASAP and find another space to put everything,\u201d she said. \u201cThey will probably have to do a gut renovation because of mold, so it\u2019s uncertain when or if we\u2019ll be back in.\u201d<\/p>\n

The incident comes less than a year after a massive blaze tore through<\/a> one of Brooklyn\u2019s most iconic artist studio buildings in Red Hook, leaving tenants<\/a> with persistent water and fire damage to their work.<\/p>\n