"His large-scale photos are an ode to nearby manufacturers, zooming in on the tools they use to make rockets, crackers, uniforms, guitars, ice-cream cones, and more," Adriane Quinlan wrote in New York Magazine in a September 21 preview of the show.
The exhibition is at the Brooklyn Army Terminal, and it has two open days left, Saturday, November 14, and Sunday, November 15, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. For the same two days, Industry City's event calendar lists a Krampus market, a holiday makers' market, a South Asian bazaar and a sake brewery tasting . For one weekend, a walk along the Sunset Park waterfront takes you past the tools at BAT and the finished goods that makers are selling at Industry City.
What's inside Building A, Dock 1
THWACK fills a 36,000-square-foot warehouse in Building A of the Brooklyn Army Terminal, at 140 58th Street. The subtitle is "26 Glorious Gadgets and Gizmos of Production," and the show has 26 towering photographic portraits. The portraits are of tools, not people. According to Open House New York, they show "the humble and hard-worn tools used by the diverse range of craftspeople at BAT who manufacture everything from springs to ice cream cones to rocket ship parts."
Visitors ride tricycles through the show, and there are trikes for both adults and kids. The Brooklyn Army Terminal's own listing says the photographs celebrate "the tools, craftspeople, and production processes of BAT."
The exhibition was created by Alex Kalman, the artist and curator who founded Mmuseumm, as the Brooklyn Eagle reported. Mmuseumm got its start in a downtown Manhattan freight elevator. New York Magazine called it "teensy, tightly curated," which makes the jump to a warehouse-sized gallery on the Brooklyn waterfront a big one. Open House New York lists Mmuseumm and the NYC Economic Development Corporation as the partners behind the show.
Why this campus rarely opens up this way
The Army Terminal is a working manufacturing campus. Open House New York describes it as a historic military and manufacturing campus that "can feel vast, impenetrable, and enigmatic, concealing from public view the people, stories, and craftsmanship that flourish inside its walls." THWACK puts the tools out where the public can see them, using a vacant warehouse to show what the companies around it do every day.
The show isn't permanent. After November 15, Building A, Dock 1 has nothing on BAT's events calendar, and THWACK is the only upcoming event listed for the campus. BAT's site also explains that the terminal and NYCEDC don't manage individual events, so the exhibit runs only as long as its organizers have scheduled it.
The practical details are simple:
- Cost: Free
- Tickets: None needed. Open House New York's listing says to "just show up during open hours"
- Ages: All ages
- Access: Listed as wheelchair accessible
- Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, November 14, and Sunday, November 15
Getting to Dock 1 from the neighborhood
The exhibit is across from the ferry landing, so the route you pick mostly depends on where you're starting.
- By subway: Take the N or R to 59th Street, leave by the 58th Street exit and walk west toward the water. That's how the Brooklyn Army Terminal's visitor page suggests getting there.
- By NYC Ferry: The Sunset Park/Brooklyn Army Terminal landing is at Pier 4, 140 58th Street, on the South Brooklyn route, with the exhibit right across from it.
- If you're bringing guests from Manhattan: Mmuseumm suggests the ferry and puts the trip at about 20 minutes from Wall Street to the front door.
Saturday at Industry City, the selling side of the weekend
Industry City sits on the same waterfront, and its own listings describe it as "set against the iconic backdrop of Sunset Park's historic waterfront." Its Saturday is full of the kinds of goods a manufacturing campus doesn't sell to the public, handmade and sold by the people who made them.
- 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Morbid Anatomy's Krampus Market. A holiday market built around Krampus, "the cloven-hoofed sidekick of St Nicholas." It has more than 20 vendors selling antiques, taxidermy, artisanal fashion, handmade jewelry, original art, gothic home decor, and new and vintage books.
- 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Faces in Color, an oil portrait workshop. Artist Kristina Dubrovskaia teaches a limited-palette introduction to portrait painting, giving each participant feedback.
- Noon to 6 p.m., Fall Holiday Market at Barrow's Intense. In Courtyard 5/6, with independent artists, designers, makers and specialty food producers. Barrow's Intense serves craft cocktails and @better_than_porridge handles the food.
- 4:30 to 7:30 p.m., Industry City Gourmet Food and Drinks Tour. A food and cocktail tour of the campus.
The schedule overlaps in a useful way. THWACK and the Krampus Market both open at 10 a.m. THWACK closes at 5 p.m., and the Barrow's Intense market runs until 6 p.m. If you ride the tricycles in the morning, you'll still have the whole afternoon to shop.
If you'd like to start Friday night, Industry City also lists Tiny Distillery Concerts on November 13 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., with a jazz trio and cocktails or mocktails.
Sunday, THWACK's last day
THWACK's final day is a little different, because it closes at 5 p.m. and won't reopen. Industry City's Sunday events mostly start late morning and go into the evening, so plan your THWACK visit around the 5 p.m. close.
- 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Milna Market. A curated South Asian pop-up that fills 11,000 square feet with more than 60 South Asian brands and makers in food, fashion, jewelry, beauty, home and lifestyle. Industry City's listing calls it a return: "Milna Market is back at Industry City on November 15."
- 4 to 5:30 p.m., Sake and Cheese Pairing Class and Brewery Tour. Held at Brooklyn Kura, which the listing describes as a place to "learn about sake where sake is made."
- 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., Sunday Sessions: Live Jazz & Blues. At Fort Hamilton, with cocktails, mocktails, beer and wine at the bar.
The sake class fits the theme of the weekend. Like THWACK, it brings visitors into the room where a product is made, here a working brewery on the same waterfront. The tool portraits at BAT close at 5 p.m., and the jazz at Fort Hamilton starts half an hour later.
What carries on after November 15
Once THWACK closes, Industry City's calendar keeps going. The Gourmet Food and Drinks Tour runs again on Saturday, November 21, and Saturday, November 28, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. More Saturday dates are listed through December 26. Sunday Sessions jazz is back at Fort Hamilton on November 22.
The Army Terminal's tricycles and tool portraits aren't on the calendar after Sunday. BAT's calendar lists November 15 as THWACK's end date, and the Brooklyn Eagle gave the same closing date in its September 30, 2026, report. Event calendars can change, so check the Mmuseumm page and Industry City's listings the morning you head out.
GAMA. Team works from 9726 3rd Ave in Bay Ridge, and we keep an eye on what's happening along the Sunset Park waterfront all year. If this weekend's markets and the closing of THWACK have you curious about Sunset Park, the buildings around it or the neighborhood beyond the water, we're glad to talk. Get Started Today.
