Below is a letter from Michael Dorf to the staff of the Knitting Factory, announcing his departure and telling us of his latest NY venture:

It is a bittersweet moment to announce that I am stepping aside from my role as Chairman and CEO of the Knitting Factory/KnitMedia, the company I founded 16 years ago. I will still remain an active board member and continue to work as a consultant to open the Knitting Factory in Paris, scheduled to launch in September. The Knitting Factory will always be a part of my life. I am really glad to see that it is in solid, competent hands with the current management team and investor lead board of directors and I wish them all the success they deserve.

I am very excited to announce that I am leaving to start a new art center in Lower Manhattan. The city needs a medium sized performing arts facility to help with the economic, spiritual, and intellectual renewal of downtown. As someone who lives in Tribeca, has kids going to public school here, I really would like to do my part to help foster a richer, vibrant, and more culturally open society. A place that might help push the world in a direction of cultural and artistic exchange, rather than the direction the globe seems to be spinning these days. I hope my new mission will accomplish this and help change NY©?s artistic skyline for the better. I also look forward to getting back to the creative programming which has been such a big part of my past. It will take the rest of the year to put this in place. I look forward to staying in touch. Peace.

[...] please stay tuned to: http://www.artx.info/ for details.