TSL Hudson Celebrates 50th Anniversary

Long before the larger renaissance that saw Hudson blow up as a cultural destination, there was innovative arts center TSL (Time and Space Limited), which pioneered so much of what the Columbia County town is now known for. This year the institution celebrates its fifth decade with “Spaces in Places,” a new exhibit of designs by TSL cofounder Linda Mussman that opens on January 29.

Founded in New York in 1973 by Mussman and her partner, Claudia Bruce, TSL has presented experimental and enlightening art, media, and performance in keeping with its original stated mission of offering content to “mold narrative and language, visual spectacle, technology, sound design, and movement to challenge typical avenues of expression.” In 1991 TSL relocated to its current home in a former bread factory on Columbia Street, which became ground zero for Hudson’s reinvention as a vital arts and entertainment destination. In 2020 the founders began the process of digitizing TSL’s catalog and making the archives available for public viewing, and in 2121 its “remixing” initiative was launched to give local youngsters the opportunity to use the material to create short films using the archived material.

“Spaces in Places” is an exhibit of photographs from the TSL archives that documents past TSL events like New York’s Universalist Church, TSL’s West 22nd Street storefront, the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of Art, Merce Cunningham’s Westbeth Studio, and the TSL Hudson facility. The exhibit will open in January 29 and be on view through March 5.