At the Brooklyn Experimental Media Center’s (BxmC) first rendition of its “pop-up” media garage in downtown Brooklyn Tuesday, June 15, the future was present.

Described as a kitchen, laboratory, and studio by Assistant Professor Carl Skelton, director of the BxmC, an arm of NYU-Poly’s art and technology programs, the space allows young and seasoned researchers and inventors to “kibitz with the door open, part of what a garage does.”

The pop-up Garages, of which more are planned, are precursors to a permanent space slated to open in the next few years. Until then, temporary locations around Brooklyn allow the center to explore questions like what happens when a studio is also used as a storefront or even what works best when dealing with daylight and technology: a north or south facing storefront. It’s an opportunity to road test approaches before moving into the permanent space.