As I was contemplating what to write in my next blog, I realized that I should give a shout out to my studio, Lyndon Street Artworks located at 205 Lyndon Street in downtown Greensboro, NC. This is a great space and is the face of the future of art in my opinion (uh, yeah, that IS why I have a studio there). I would describe the place as a haven for functional artists, and others… ok, so it is kind of hard to explain. I suppose the facts will be the best way to explain Lyndon Street Artworks, it is a large building consisting of every kind of artist you can think of; approximately 44 of them, glass artists, painters, potters, cinema, metalworkers, and anything in between. It is a wonderful community, we all learn as much as we can and want from each other and the studios are open for the public to come in and talk to the artists as they are working, quite cool. We have random people perusing the studios daily. There is also a gallery with a collection of everybody’s work in it. These artists all have diverse resumes from self taught artists, to hard core entrepreneurs, to artists with MFAs… you name it, and we have it. The thing I really like about it is that we all seem to have one thing in common… we want to make money by selling our work to the public at an affordable price, just so everyone can have a chance at enjoying and appreciating art. Our art is not just for the collectors with big wallets (although they are definitely NOT discouraged to join us with their big wallets), but for all. Art should be for all to enjoy, not just the rich. Not just the art snobs… although again… art snobs ARE welcome at anytime. You understand my point right? We are all just cool artists wanting to share our cool art with everyone!
Now, back to why I believe this space to be the future of art. It seems like our world is getting closer and closer to becoming more community conscious: sharing, connecting, and communing with others instead of competing and stepping on others. If this is true, Lyndon Street Artworks (and others like it in cities around the US) is ahead of the game. You have your artists who care about the community, who want to educate them and share with them and have them come to appreciate art as they do. In the past we have seen numerous art galleries and studios that just do not care about its patrons, unless they are there to buy and because of this attitude, they price their pieces astronomically. This mentality is exclusive and not very communal. Those are the types of places that will not evolve; they will be extinct if they are not careful and do not incorporate this new community conscious energy which is penetrating our society.
Lyndon Street has a First Friday celebration every month and usually there is an artist demonstrating their abilities on stage, there are beverages around and lots of artists hanging out very anxiously awaiting any questions from the public. We also are holding a special February show which we have celebrated the past 4 years called Eros, it will be held on Friday the 13th this February. Visit the website to learn more about the First Fridays and the Eros show in February; http://www.lyndonstreetartworks.com/
So, there is my shout out to my peeps. If you have any questions feel free to email me or stop by anytime to see just what I am trying to explain here!
