Long Island City in New York: where to go for offbeat art

On the same block as 5 Pointz, you’ll find this quirky little gallery, whose amoeba-like pink-and-black facade literally spills out onto the sidewalk (and, weirdly, gives us a craving for a strawberry milkshake). Founded in 2009, the space is designed to be small and cozy (not a total surprise, given its namesake body part). Curator Minjie Yoo oversees exhibitions by emerging artists from Queens and beyond. Multimedia group exhibitions are based around themes such as “Capturing Time” and “Nostalgia for the Future”; solo exhibitors have included Korean painter Jongwang Lee and Japanese paper artist Tetsu Yamashita. 917-444-2667, spacewomb.com. Free.

A former manufacturing hub, LIC is full of ex-industrial spaces refurbished to stunning effect. A prime example is this arts institution, housed inside a monumental building that was erected as a trolley-repair warehouse in 1907, then used to build industrial equipment in the ’40s. SculptureCenter set up shop in 2001, relocating from the Upper East Side, and the space got a revamp from renowned architectural designer Maya Lin, who created the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The two-story, 6,000-square-foot venue hosts temporary exhibitions by on-the-cusp artists working in a variety of mediums and styles. Exhibitors make artful use of the space, incorporating the catacomb-like lower levels into immersive works and building larger pieces on the wide-open main floor. Suggested donation $5.

If the weather’s on your side, you can walk the 0.6 miles from SculptureCenter to your next destination. If it’s sucky out, take the N or Q train one stop from Queensboro Plaza to 39th Ave. Either way, you’ll arrive at Flux Factory, a space that, as the name suggests, is in a constant state of change. An artists collective originally founded in Williamsburg in 1994, FF set up shop in this onetime greeting-card factory in 2002. In addition to exhibition room, the three-story locale provides studio space for artists and hosts a kaleidoscopic array of events. Depending on when you go, you could encounter anything from participatory performance art and film screenings to a miniature city built for kittens (yes, seriously). FF doesn’t keep regular hours, so check the website before you go for happening-specific times. Free.