I have to be honest that prior to doing research, I knew nothing about Vanity Projects. I was just drawn to the neon (who isn’t, right?) and the typography on the address sign. They both stood out in stark contrast to the loud and poorly designed restaurant signs and awnings that line the rest of Chrystie Street. When I came home and did my research, I was really surprised by what I found. Vanity Projects is a “high-end nail art atelier” (so like a nail salon but so much more) that merges manicures with video art. In that sense, it is also an immersive gallery space where patrons are exposed to work by museum quality video artists while getting their manicures. They also have an artist-in-residence program that mimics the fine art world whereby leading nail artists are invited to join the core team of artists to exchange ideas and offer their craft to the clients for a limited period of time. To me, this is such an interesting concept and, judging from their website, really well executed. I’m not usually a manicure kinda gal, but I just might have to give them a try on a special occasion.