ArtSpace :: Elgin
February 20th, 2008The most exciting news of late has been the scheduled visit of ArtSpace representatives on March 6th.
Writers living or working — or both — next door to fashion designers next door to oil painters next door to musicians. Rehearsal space available 24 hours a day, and a photography lab in the basement. Gallery space on the first floor, and — zoning classification permitting — a glass-blowing kiln out back…
[Sylvia] Grady, Elgin Art Showcase coordinator, is spearheading efforts, backed also by Cherie Murphy, Lindsay Stanton and Mayor Ed Schock, to bring a similar rental space for artists to downtown Elgin. On March 6 and 7, she and other city leaders will host employees of Artspace, a Minneapolis-based nonprofit real estate developer that builds and manages properties designed to cater to working artists…
Grady will host a public meeting at 8 p.m. Thursday, March 6, at The Centre of Elgin, with Artspace employees available to answer questions. She encourages any Fox Valley resident to attend…(Source: Elgin Courier News 2/14/08)
I think this is the best thing that’s happened in a long time. I applaud the people involved with this, and commend the mayor for his support. I think such an arts center would be a huge asset for downtown Elgin, and make it even more desirable as a place to live and work. It would go a long way towards attracting the creative class of people that will help to revitalize downtown Elgin, and cement the city’s reputation as a center of contemporary art and culture.
The story mentioned that they will be touring the downtown and looking at buildings. Of course, I have to make my pitch again for the Kresmery warehouse/Waverley Stables. I think it would be perfect. It’s huge, it’s beautiful, it’s gritty, it can use a makeover. And on top of that it would provide a landmark and focal point for the west downtown area, which has been neglected in the general scheme of redeveloping downtown. Of course State Street is also a major entrance corridor, and having a refurbished building there, dedicated to the arts would send a clear message to visitors that Elgin is a great place to live and a center of art and culture.
I can definitely see the Kresmery warehouse fitting in in this portfolio of ArtSpace properties.
Related posts:
Kresmery Art Center anyone?
Tear it down or fix it up?
More about an arts center
ArtSpace projects in other cities:
ArtSpace/Cleveland
ArtSpace Maynard
ArtSpace Hartford
Details of the meeting:
A public meeting with Artspace is set for at 8 p.m. Thursday, March 6, in the Heritage Ballroom at The Centre of Elgin, 100 Symphony Way. For more information prior to the meeting, call Cherie Murphy at (847) 931-5667.
This would be a great place for a community like this. I drive by this building everyday on my way home and have noticed that someone has put some nice curtains in a second floor space. I think the concept of live-work areas is very interesting. If we could get artists to move into Elgin think of all the cool places that would move in. Take a look at Bucktown in Chicago. Nobody wanted to live there so the rent was cheap. Artists moved in and now Bucktown is a a hip place to live and work.
The arists could also use the old Lipton plant site as a place to start a public/community garden, or a place to hold weekly art fairs/farmers markets.
Posted February 20th, 2008 at 12:10 pmI love how they said 24 hours, because right across the street is El Faro. I don’t know if they’re actually open 24 hours, but it seems like it. So that means you can do your art and run across the street for a delicious burrito any hour of the day. Awesome!
I dig the community garden. It would sort of be like Naperville’s community garden, which is about as large as the Lipton site and also on a major thoroughfare. The parking that the city created across from the Kresmery, at the corner of State and Highland, can be used for both the art center and the community garden.
Posted February 20th, 2008 at 6:56 pmThe community garden is a project that’s long overdue. Even South Elgin has a community garden. Let’s see if this year is the year for Elgin. I don’t know if the Unilever site is the best site for it, but I’m willing to consider anything, and of course, there’s no reason we have to limit ourselves to one site. Though initially there will need to be one pilot site/project.
Posted February 26th, 2008 at 4:46 pm