From a Canal Street Workshop to a New York Institution
For more than 60 years, Canal Plastics Center has been part of the fabric of New York City’s creative community, serving artists, students, and professionals across varied disciplines. Founded by a visionary craftsman and guided by a team of dedicated owners, our family-run business remains an icon in the NYC art world, where creativity and innovation thrive.
Canal Plastics Center was established in 1963 by Manuel, a war veteran whose journey into craftsmanship began while serving in the military, where he learned etching. After returning home, Manuel opened the shop to serve screen printers and etchers.
By the late 1960s, Manuel saw an opportunity to support the thriving art community in SoHo and began expanding his inventory to include acrylic sheets. The vibrant, versatile material quickly became a favorite among artists, and Canal Plastics Center became a hub for creative minds seeking high-quality supplies.
Manuel’s vision and dedication shaped the store into an essential resource for both the industrial and artistic communities of New York City. Manuel ran the store with great dedication until 1994, when he decided to retire. Instead of closing its doors, he passed the reins to a trusted friend, Jimmy, who ran a nearby lighting store on Canal Street.
The handoff was anything but conventional. When Manny approached Jimmy about taking over the business, Jimmy balked: “Are you crazy? I don’t know anything about plastics!” But Manny’s response was simple: “You’ll figure it out.” And so, Jimmy and his business partner Raymond stepped into the world of plastics.
Late at night, as they sorted through the shop’s inventory, Jimmy famously told Raymond, “You pick up a pencil, and I’ll pick up a hammer, and we’ll build up Canal Plastics together.” What followed was a journey of learning, transformation, and growth.
Canal Plastics Center storefront, mid-1990s
By 2024, after three decades of guiding Canal Plastics, Jimmy and Raymond were ready to pass the torch. They turned to someone they’d known and trusted for years: Eno. With two decades of experience in the plastics world and a lifelong passion for art and design, Eno now carries the Canal Plastics legacy forward, honoring its history while embracing new ideas and possibilities.
Canal Plastics has long been a sanctuary for creativity, inspiring countless New York artists. In the 1960s and 70s, Canal Street was a haven of industrial supply stores that offered unique and offbeat materials that became treasures for painters, sculptors, and designers. Manuel, Jimmy, Raymond, and now Eno have each played a role in supporting generations of artists.
As SoHo evolved over the years and its landscape changed, many of Canal Street’s iconic supply stores shuttered their doors, but Canal Plastics Center stood strong, continuing to serve as a cornerstone of the art community.
Canal Plastics, Ron Crawford
@rondraw
Canal Mondrian
Opaque acrylic, laser cut and solvent cemented. Built by Eno. Hangs in the showroom.
Crawford drew the storefront from the outside. Eno built it from the inside. Sixty years of the same place and still making things.
None of these were commissioned by us. Local artists drew Canal Plastics because they wanted to.
Joel Holland
@joelholland_studio
Frank Okay
Commissioned by Michelle Longo, a longtime Canal Plastics customer.
@frankokay
Gabrielle Lamontagne Bluteau
@gabi_lamontagne
The store you walk into today is the same one Manuel opened in 1963 and a completely different one.
The shelves are deeper. The materials more varied. The machines more precise. But something essential hasn’t changed: you walk in with an idea, you leave with something real.
The Canal Monet piece hanging in our showroom says something we couldn’t quite put into words. It’s built from the same opaque acrylic we carry every day, cut on our laser, assembled by hand. It started as a thought and became an object. That’s what this place has always been for.
We’re here when you’re ready.
