Owned by a Galwegian for over a decade, he pays tribute to artist Jackson Pollock in New York West Village loft once owned by the painter, €1.79 million.
A leader of the American abstract expressionist movement Jackson Pollock’s one-time West Village loft is being sold by its Galwegian owner, who paid tribute to his drip and pour technique with a canvas that emulates the vaulted ceilings of the light-filled loft.
Perched atop an 1827 building, one of the oldest three on the block, the Federal-style red brick and brownstone townhouse has belonged to Galwegian Fergus Hurley for more than a decade.
Address: Unit 4, 46 Carmine Street, Manhattan, New York 10014, USA
Asking price: About €1.76 million (US$1.99 million)
Agent: Compass
When he purchased the one-bedroom, one-bathroom loft at the top of the building, he set about emulating the painter’s work.
The artist moved in in 1933 with his brother, Charles, and sister-in-law, Elizabeth, according to the 1989 biography Jackson Pollock: An American Saga by Steven W. Naifeh and Gregory White Smith.
The brothers also squeezed their studios into a 64-square-metre space, according to historian Tom Miller, who writes about the history of buildings and points of interest in the Big Apple on Daytonian in Manhattan.
The one-bedroom condo has painted brick walls and hardwood floors.
It features ceiling heights that soar to 4.2 metres.
Four skylights in the pitched roof flood the broken-plan space with light.
Above the recently renovated kitchen is a mezzanine level that was used by Fergus as a home office.
An AI entrepreneur and investor, he relocated from Ireland to New York to work as a founder in residence at Google Labs, Google’s startup incubator.
He was the founder of Focal Labs, acquired by RadiumOne, and co-founder of Checks, which exited to Google.
Before co-founding Checks, Fergus was a product manager at Google, where he focused on driving Google Play and Android’s ecosystem growth.
After renting the apartment for a year, Hurley bought it in an off-market deal in 2021.
He then undertook a sensitive renovation that included updating the open-plan kitchen and mezzanine.
His own work of art, inspired by Pollock’s style, is over three metres high, and hangs in pride of place in the lounge.
He painted it in the communal garden during lockdown.
“There’s something inspiring about creating something new in a 199-year-old building that Jackson Pollock once called home,” he says.
Once an Italian American neighbourhood, this storied street in the West Village is also home to Carmine Guitars, hand-made instruments used by The Allman Brothers, Lou Reed, Patti Smith and Bob Dylan.
Joe’s Pizza, one of the most famous pizza joints in the city, which serves up classic New York slices, is also located here.
The original corner branch appears in Spider-Man 2: Peter Parker, played by Tobey Maguire, as a delivery man for Joe’s Pizza. It has also had cameos in Sex and the City and Keeping Up with the Kardashians.
The loft has already featured on Elle Décor and the Robb Report. Killybegs-born Shane Boyle of Compass is seeking US$1.99 million (about €1.76 million) for the property.
