4 p.m. Saturday, June 19, 2010

The sound of light sanding whispers in the main gallery. Brooms and mops feel their way through the halls of the warehouse. New stairs rise up to the live/work spaces. Shouts ring out for Bob Leathers, Space 4 Art director, who is running this frenetic work party. Fifteen artists are polishing Space 4 Art’s 18,000 sq ft for the big grand opening just a week away.

Ruby Cougler, Space 4 Art assistant director, walks in with her arms overloaded with shrimp, sausage, and vegetables for a taste-off planned later in the evening.

“I’m not nervous. Or maybe, yeah, I’m nervous,” Ruby said. “It feels like we’ve taken care of everything. The grand opening committee has met five times so I think everything is all done, but then, I worry because it feels too ready.”

On Saturday, June 26, the artist studio and gallery space will open its doors to the public after years of planning and months of construction. Nearly 40 artists have studios in the facility, and most have pieces in the grand opening show. They  have worked together hanging paintings on the gallery walls and placing sculptures on pedestals. During the grand opening, visitors will be able to wander through the maze of artists studios from 6 to 8 pm and attend a lively party with music, food and live performances after that.

Before the opening can happen, though, there’s a lot of sprucing up to do. Branan Freeman, an artist who usually works in printmaking and sculpture is sanding the custom-made wine bar. Gail Moser, who usually creates mixed media paintings and sculpture, is off to buy for caulk at the hardware store, which she will then will use to repair holes in the gallery walls. Although the inaugural opening will feature artists who rent studios or live at Space 4 Art, the goal of the gallery is to display mainly Southern Californian and Mexican artists in different stages of their careers in future shows.

The Work Party is a four-hour affair followed by a “taste-off” to determine the menu for the opening. “We will be doing a trial run of all the food,” Bob explains. “We will try 10 different types of sausage to decide the two or three that will go for the party. We are trying five recipes for carne asada and determining the best one. The giant shrimp we are marinating with three different marinades.”

The main challenge Space 4 Art is facing as it approaches the grand opening is arranging for staffing, Bob said. Because artists will be staying in their spaces for the open studios portion of the grand opening, their friends are staffing party, but I’m worried that may not be enough,” Bob said. “If there’s anyone else that wants to help. Please let us know.

Space 4 Art invites you to parpticipate in our second Community Build!

Thursday February 25 – Sunday February 28
at 325 15th. Street between J & K in East Village.

We will be Painting, Sanding, Hammering, Drilling, Cutting boards, Cooking, Cleaning, Organizing, Photographing, Eating, and More. No experience in construction is necessary. Our builders will put you on a team to complete a task that you can easily handle.

In January, we all had a great time building out the warehouse space for four solid days. Over 80 people showed up to help – And we got a lot accomplished together.

We need your help to make this project possible. Come for one hour or for 4 days, 8 am – 5 pm. Bring food to share for lunch if you wish. There will be a community “celebration” on the Sunday evening.

By volunteering and helping to build Space 4 Art’s new home, we can strengthen the future of the arts in San Diego. 29 new studios and 5 live/work artist’s units will be created, plus a new gallery, teaching and meeting spaces for arts events.

Questions?? Call 619-269-7230

We need your help!

The sdspace4art “community build” is scheduled from Thursday, 28 January 8 AM until the Celebration Feast beginning at 6PM on Sunday 31 Jan (2010!) . We will be Painting, Sanding, Hammering, Drilling, Cutting boards, Cooking, Cleaning, Organizing, Photographing, Eating, and More.

By volunteering and helping to build Space 4 Art’s new home, we can strengthen the future of the arts in San Diego. 29 new studios and 5 live/work artist’s units will be created. plus a new gallery, teaching and meeting spaces for arts events.

Volunteer builders will be working at the space4art, 325 15th St.

We need your help to make this project possible. Whether you are a Master Builder or Master of Nothing. Please volunteer to help for whatever time you can even if its just one hour.

More Details to follow

Its official!! The lease has been signed and this thing is real.  SD Space 4 Art has its first home in downtowns east village! We will have another viewing of the building this Saturday:

December 12 from 1pm to 4pm
325 15th Ave.
San Diego, CA 92101

Due to lease negotiations there have been some modifications to the design and layout.  There will no longer be a mezzanine level in the main space and everything will be contained on one floor.  We did however maintain the same number of studios.  Unfortunately, to do so, we had to reduce the size of the gallery although it’s still a significant space.  Those of you who have been monitoring this project and expressed interest in space should come by on Saturday to see how the new spaces are broken up.

We are continuing to receive applications and the numbers are growing so get them in fast! Please come check it out or you can view the application on the website. Thanks to all those of you who have already applied and showed interest we will be contacting you soon to conduct interviews and get you into your studios!

Click here for a complete list of studios and pricing.

UPDATE: FINAL Showing today: Sat. Dec 5 from 12-6pm.

ADDRESS:  325 Fifteenth St. San Diego, CA  (East Village between J & K)

In 2002, bestselling author and cultural critic Richard Florida posited that cities “without gays and rock bands” would lose out in the race to redevelop America’s urban core. In 2002, San Diego ranked #3 in the nation according to Florida’s Creativity Index, following San Francisco and Austin, and far outranking New York and Los Angeles. But when you think of artist lifestyles, San Diego is not the first city that comes to mind. Just trying to survive in San Diego is a real challenge. The artists, architects, and real estate professionals who make up the group Space 4 Art are changing all that. The bohemian artist collectives and warehouse lofts ubiquitous in neighborhoods like Brooklyn’s Bushwick are now popping up San Diego.

The group called Space 4 Art epitomizes Richard Florida’s “creative class:” we are progressive San Diego artists, architects, writers, filmmakers, musicians and dancers with background and experience in affordable housing and community built projects.

Lead sdspace4art Architect Bob Leathers

Space 4 Art will partner with progressive developers and forward-looking engineers and contractors working to empower artists and neighborhood residents through participation in the collaborative process of designing and constructing these buildings together. Space 4 Art will establish the real, practical living and working conditions that make it possible for artists to do their work and practice their craft in a way that strengthens and enhances the traditional cultures of the neighborhood.

We have just acquired a beautiful 1920s warehouse space in San Diego’s East Village, and we are accepting applications now (from November through February) from artists looking for studios and live/work spaces. The spaces will be move-in ready by March 1.

Gallery and studio space will be located in the main warehouse.

The existing space has 13-25 ft. high ceilings and heavy timber trusses with windows through the ceiling bringing in natural light in the full length of the warehouse. 26-28 Studios will be built into the existing warehouse space, some divided by 8 ft. high walls and open at the top, with 4ft. sliding doors to maximize space and allow access for large objects.

Other more specialized spaces in the west side warehouse will be available for welding, painting, pottery making, band practice space. The spaces will be nice, yet rough (ideal for messy work), and also very unique. There will also be a significant gallery space where we will have art shows, dance, poetry and theatre performances and other events.

Between four and six spaces are available for live/work with a variety of kitchen and bath arrange- ments.

Live/Work residents may choose to share one of many collective kitchens, or may opt to have their own space with kitchen and bath.

The studio and live/work spaces range from 150-1740 sq.ft. and prices will be affordable, between $250-$1600 and will vary depending upon which space you are renting. Utilities will be included (some studios heated and air conditioned).

Studios share common space, which includes:

• Large Gallery
• Event/Performance Space
• Outdoor Gathering and Meeting Space
• Conference Room
• Kitchen
• Bathrooms
• Woodshop (potential)
• Kiln (potential)
• Welding Space (potential)
• Gated parking offered at a small additional fee.

We are open to artists of all mediums and practices, and we recommend that potential residents to participate with us in the processes of renovating these spaces to make them work for your own art practice. The more you participate in the building process, the more money you can save, and the better you can tailor the space to your own needs.

Apply now for space, and we may be able to accommodate you right away. If we don’t have space for you now, we will put you on the waiting list.

Please contact us if you have any questions!

We will be showing the space frequently between November 29 and December 5.

Final showing:  Sunday, Dec 5th from 12-6pm

Location: 325 Fifteenth St.
Downtown San Diego, between J & K.