Founded in the early 1990s, the Riverfront Artist Club had its start in the basement of one of the iconic brownstone factories at 701 River Street in Troy, New York. Inspired by the names of the crossing streets at the building’s entrance, River Street and Front Street, the name of The Riverfront Artist Club soon emerged. As the story goes, there was no heat in the basement studio, the masonry was falling off the building’s sides and there were leaks in the old roof dripping down all six floors and onto the floor of the studio. Despite these crumbling amenities, the artists and models of the club had established a solid foundation and were soon meeting on a weekly basis. They quickly grew to host three regular sessions, including a nude sketch session, a portrait session and a long-pose session, some held in the morning and others in the evening. There were two rotating stages and during their sessions the artists and models experimented with approaches to lighting, costuming, posing, and visual concepts. Offered to adults of all backgrounds and skillsets, the artists had the opportunity to develop their portfolios, unique visual voices and their media skillsets, while in tandem the models had the opportunity to develop their portfolios, gestural posing and meditative practices.

The club continued to meet at this location through the early 2000’s, before moving the studio to Delmar.