A Union Square building that has sat empty since early 2020 will soon have a new tenant.
Maybaum Gallery (opens in new tab), opened by Christina Maybaum in 2018, is taking over 20,000 square feet across multiple floors of the former Barneys department store at 48 Stockton St. Maybaum’s expansion marks a grand return for the building at the corner of Stockton and O’Farrell streets, which dates to 1909 and has been the site of retail giants like FAO Schwarz and, originally, Joseph Magnin’s department store.
As Union Square struggled since the pandemic, the corner building has loomed empty. Maybaum’s move into its bright, airy space marks a big win for the shopping district, which seems to be on an upswing, with a smattering of high-profile leases from the likes of Uniqlo and PopMart and a cohort of small businesses (opens in new tab) moving in through the city’s “Vacant to Vibrant” pop-up initiative.
The entry is also a rare bit of good news for the local art scene, which has faced an onslaught of gallery closures and museum struggles. Among the recent gallery closures have been KADIST, Gallery 16, and Altman Siegel at the Minnesota Street Project in the Dogpatch.
Maybaum plans to continue operating her original gallery at 49 Geary St., just a five-minute walk away. She will host solo shows at the original space and group exhibitions at the much larger new location.
“We’re going to throw a lot of large-scale events in this space, for artists, art lovers, and collectors to gather,” she said. “That’s such an important part of a thriving city, and of revitalizing Union Square.”
Marisa Rodriguez, CEO of the Union Square Alliance, said the lease is a sign of the area’s “ongoing revitalization efforts.”
“Maybaum Gallery plays a vital role in this vibrant cultural landscape,” she said, “and we’re thrilled to see this esteemed local institution choose to expand and strengthen its presence in the heart of San Francisco’s Union Square.”
The gallery is currently open by appointment but will eventually accommodate walk-ins. Maybaum plans to host an invitation-only opening party after the holidays.
She says her 20-year career selling art (opens in new tab) has taught her how to diversify her business and pivot, even when it’s “painful.” She tries to appeal to both seasoned collectors and those who “are just starting to acquire art for the first time in their lives.”
“You have to really navigate both worlds to run a retail business in San Francisco,” she added. “If you’re just trying to play to the art-world snobs, you’re not going to win.”
As vacancies spread during the pandemic and its aftermath, Maybaum started dreaming of a second gallery space in one of the many empty buildings downtown. She knocked on doors downtown to no avail for several years. But then she discovered that someone she knew had a connection to the Barneys building and helped her broker a deal.
“It would never have been an opportunity for us if it had not been sitting vacant for so many years,” she said. She signed a one-year commitment for the gallery, at a rate possible only “because the market is so weak and because very large spaces like Barneys are harder to fill.”
While the city has provided grants to help businesses move into the area, Maybaum said she was not a recipient.
The leasing agent for the building, Cushman & Wakefield’s Kazuko Morgan, couldn’t be reached for comment.
The size of the new gallery creates both opportunities and challenges, like the need for increased staffing, including security personnel, Maybaum said. Still, while she’s apprehensive about “overextending” herself, she’s feeling optimistic.
“Initially, I felt like it was a little too much space, but then I thought, why not?” she said. “I love it, and I want to be part of the solution in downtown San Francisco. I don’t want to move out, as a lot of people are doing. I want to help revitalize Union Square, and help make it a destination for culture.”
And yes, the Barneys sign is staying on the facade.
