This is a reminder for you to attend the public input meeting for Artspace>Elgin, which would provide affordable rental space in Elgin in which artists could live and work. The meeting is tonight, Thursday, March 6th at the Centre’s Heritage Ballroom.

I have some questions myself. I’m a little confused as to whether this is is going to be more like Lillstreet Art Center or more like CAC|North Adams, for example. In short, I’d like to know whether the studios will be open to the public through a simple registration and fee process. I think that’s important. But by the way it’s described in the literature, “creating affordable rental space for artists to both live and work in Elgin’s Center City area,” it sort of sounds like it’s meant just for artists and not the community at large. And it sort of has an ominous emphasis on ‘rental space,’ which I don’t think is what the community is really going to rally around. I think what people want are open studios, where they can pay a registration fee and go in and throw some pots or whatever in their spare time.

The rental space is fine, but if it’s exclusively rental space, that will probably be an issue. I guess we’ll have to ask questions and find out exactly what they mean by Artspace. Is it a community arts center along the model of Lillstreet Art Center or something more akin to an artists colony?

Filed under: arts, downtown.
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