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FIVE YEARS OF PROGRESS AT URBAN ARTS SPACE IN THE COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
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Five years of progress at The Ohio State University’s Urban Arts Space. Presented by The Arts Initiative in the College of Arts and Sciences.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS 6
AN INTRODUCTION In the Heart of it All Growth Letter from the Director
14 WE OFFER... Exhibitions Programs Events Innovation
18 WE VALUE...
Engagement and Outreach Collaboration Accessibility Sustainability
26 HOW WE DO IT 30 FOCUS ON EDUCATION 32 PRAISE AND AWARDS
AN INTRODUCTION Urban Arts Space was founded in February 2008 with a vision to challenge our ways of thinking about the visual and performing arts and their role in everyday life through conversation, art-making, and experimentation. The 10,000 square foot gallery and alternative performance space encourages transformative experiences that expand worldviews, offers interactive experiences in the arts and education, and develops new career skills to reflect an entrepreneurial culture. Welcoming over 20,000 people a year, Urban Arts Space serves as a laboratory for Ohio State faculty and community artists, a professional launching pad for Ohio State students, and a venue for innovation, engagement and change.
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IN THE HEART OF IT ALL Over the last decade, downtown Columbus has grown and changed immensely. Urban Arts Space is housed in the former flagship Lazarus department store on Town Street. The store was renovated, and the Space was established to become a creative hub connecting the Ohio State University with the greater Columbus community. The neighboring Columbus Commons park now provides a destination for outdoor recreation, while the Scioto Mile links us to the creativity housed just across the river in the Franklinton Arts District. As new restaurants, retail venues and apartments continue to crop into view, daily life becomes more invigorated in downtown Columbus.
INTRODUCTION
13,692 patrons in 2010
9,587 patrons in 2009
City Center mall is demolished
LC Annex Apartments built across Town Street
Urban Arts Space opens its doors on February 5, 2008
2008
2009
2010
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19,779 patrons in 2012
17,457 patrons in 2011
High View apartments begin construction
Huntington Bank and Mojo Lounge open for business inside the Lazarus Building
The Center for Architecture and Columbus Region become Lazarus Building tenants
Over the last 5 years, our growth has served as an indication of not just our establishment in the community, but also of a revitalizing downtown. In the five years to come, we will continue to grow as a facilitator of new audiences for arts and culture, and serve as a contributing force to making downtown Columbus a desirable place to live.
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Columbus Commons park opens across High Street
2011
GROWTH
2012
The Lazarus Building is a symbol of our Downtown’s renaissance” Guy Worley President/CEO of the Columbus Downtown Development Corporation
directors letter INTRODUCTION
(right) Rough and Perfect Steve Thurston and Rebecca Harvey One Hundred Handfulls of Air Down on Town
LETTER from the DIRECTOR Valarie Williams As we have grown over the past five years, we want to thank our supporters and founding partners who had such foresight to establish Urban Arts Space in the Lazarus building in downtown Columbus. We often say that the Space is a tangible example of the university’s commitment to the city of Columbus and to the state of Ohio. Situated between the Columbus Commons and the Scioto Mile, we have grown into our role as a leading organization in the community. Over 70 Ohio State students have been employed at the Space to learn and experience the arts as a business and as an entrepreneurial enterprise. We welcome hundreds of artists a year who exhibit, perform, and create in the Space, along with almost 1,000 school children and their families who come for our educational programs. Our collaborations with Wexner Center for the Arts, the Columbus Museum of Art, Thurber House,
Ohio State’s Libraries and our own academic departments, such as Department of Art and Department of Theatre, contribute to the overall eclectic line-up of exhibitions and performances. Hopkins Hall Gallery joined with Urban Arts Space as one of the two galleries within The Arts Initiative that support curricular and programmatic needs for the visual arts departments and that exhibit national and internationally known artists. Together the galleries bring Columbus to the nation, and the nation to Columbus, engaging us on a national level through the recruitment of exhibitions and collections. Our hope is that these two galleries will function as a foundation for the design of a future campus gallery at 15th and High Street that will serve as the cultural and artistic entrance to the university.
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With the College of Arts and Sciences’ presence in downtown through the establishment of Urban Arts Space, former Executive Dean and Vice Provost, and current Provost Joe Steinmetz had a vision for increased collaboration with all arts organizations in Columbus and the establishment of a Town and Gown Advisory Committee for the Arts. The Arts Initiative’s galleries have contributed to the increased opportunities the university shares with Columbus arts organizations and our original dedication to downtown has grown to include the participation of the arts at Ohio State with downtown arts organizations such as CAPA, the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, OperaColumbus, King Arts Complex, and CDDC. As we look toward the next five years, we anticipate the integration of Urban Arts Space into the broader vision for The Arts Initiative, which includes the Ohio State University/Royal Shakespeare Company Partnership, Town and Gown Advisory Committee on the Arts, Community Partnerships, and community outreach programs.
Valarie Williams Executive Director of The Arts Initiative Director of Urban Arts Space
INTRODUCTION
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A truly vibrant performing and visual arts laboratory in the heart of our city, the Urban Arts Space connects our University with Columbus and the extended community. Each time I visit, I am inspired by the transformative work taking place. I am grateful that, for the past five years, the Urban Arts Space has afforded so many opportunities for creative and experimental expression to our students, faculty, and visiting artists.�
E. Gordon Gee
President Emeritus of The Ohio State University
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exhibitions Over the course of five years, Urban Arts Space has had 89 exhibitions with 1,470 total artists.
WE OFFER
Rough and Perfect Steve Thurston and Rebecca Harvey When... Inosculation
WE OFFER... featured exhibition: INOSCULATION
Named for the natural phenomenon in which trunks or branches of trees grow together, Inosculation presented paired and collaborative new works by Ohio State Department of Art faculty and alumni of the Department’s Master of Fine Arts graduate degree program in autumn 2012. Using this process as a metaphor for the creative and personal intersection that occurs between faculty and students, faculty were asked to choose an alum for whom they felt some kind of creative kinship or interest.
EXHIBITIONS Since 2008, we have presented 89 exhibitions to the public. As an alternative visual and performing arts space, we offer a wide range of experiences in the arts. We exhibit: • Ohio State’s Department of Art faculty biennially • Local, regional, national and international artists • 2-D works, interactive installations, and performances • Annual student shows from the Departments of Art; Design; Dance; Theatre; and Arts Administration, Education and Policy
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Ohio State students and faculty
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can utilize the space for events, programs, class projects, and club meetings.
PROGRAMS
EVENTS
Emphasizing outreach and education, we coordinate and host fun arts-related programs for the public. Monthly programming includes activities for children that engage directly with our artists and exhibitions, exhibition receptions and tours of our gallery and rooftop garden, craft sessions, lectures, film screenings, artist talks, workshops and more
We function as a rentable venue for the public. We invite the use of our space for private and public events and encourage the use of the gallery as a place for community activities. We have hosted various local and national organizations during special events such as The American Institute of Architecture’s 2012 Ideabook Launch, FASLA Architecture and Green Columbus
WE OFFER
INNOVATION through... Idea Lab is a student-run project incubator that helps transform Ohio State students’ ideas into reality. City Center Gallery supports emerging artists through exhibitions in the Space’s corridor gallery.
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annual featured exhibitions: MASTER OF FINE ARTS BACHELOR OF FINE ARTS BACHELOR OF SCIENCE OF DESIGN
Urban Arts Space was founded as a laboratory and exhibition space for both graduate and undergraduate students in the arts. The forefront of our mission is serving Ohio State students and fostering their professional development through annual exhibitions, programming, internships and employment opportunities. Annually, the Space presents the work of undergraduate students in the Department of Art and Department of Design, as well as graduate students in the Departments of Art; Theatre; and Dance.
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students Evan Dawson (left) Low Earth Orbit (walking around the block) NextWave: OSU MFA Thesis Exhibition
In its first five years, Urban Arts Space has exhibited the work of 189 graduate students and 481 undergraduate students in the arts.
WE VALUE... ENGAGEMENT and OUTREACH We are dedicated to providing hands-on educational and arts experiences to enrich the lives of Columbus community members. We constantly seek to develop new programs and opportunities for our patrons, collaborating with local and statewide organizations and universities to make them happen.
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featured exhibition: CONSTRUCTING JAMES CASTLE In winter 2013 we exhibited over 100 works from the collection of James Castle (1899–1977), a self-trained deaf artist from rural Idaho, who created his works using found materials. The selection focused on works that demonstrated the impact of his education at Idaho State’s Gooding School for the Deaf and Blind from 1910–1915. Curated by OSU English professor and co-founder of OSU’s Disability Studies program Brenda Brueggemann, this exhibition hosted meaningful tours for the deaf and blind community, audio-visual description workshops and a symposium for k-12 educators. Image at left courtesy James Castle Collection and Archive, Boise, Idaho.
WE VALUE...
Sue Cavanaugh (right) Ori-Kume #14 Wonder + Work =
COLLABORATION We couldn’t make all of our special exhibitions and events happen without support. Columbus is home to many established and innovative arts organizations, and these partners allow us to produce in-depth community happenings. Our donor support helps to ensure that all of our exhibitions and programs have the resources they need to be excellent and reach out to the community.
CONFERENCES HOSTED AT THE SPACE: Since its inception, Urban Arts Space has been the home for the Lawrence and Isabel Barnett Symposium on the Arts which hosts speakers and participants from around the globe. Sponsored by the Barnett’s gift, the symposium happens every other year and focuses on the aspects of arts business, enterprise, policy, and culture. Urban Arts Space has been a part of hosting conferences such as the National Council of Arts Administrators with the Department of Art, which welcomed over 140 arts administrators from around North America, and the Committee on Institutional Cooperation (CIC) Academic Leaders Conference with the Provost’s Office, which saw 90 leaders from big ten schools.
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The Urban Arts Space and our ever-expanding collaborations with professional arts organizations downtown reflect our mission to champion the arts and promote an atmosphere that inspires creativity and excellence in the community beyond our campus borders.” Joseph E. Steinmetz Former Executive Dean and Vice Provost, and Current Provost
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OUR PARTNERS COLUMBUS DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION Columbus Commons programming, development projects and support EFROYMSON FAMILY FUND, A CICF FUND funded Idea Lab, City Center Galley and MFA exhibition catalog OHIO ARTS COUNCIL Time and Place Exhibition and Dresden Sister City Artist Residency Exchange
featured exhibition: BIGG: BREAKTHROUGH IDEAS IN GLOBAL GLASS
This exhibit featured more than 40 international artists and is an example of a collaboration among The Ohio State University Department of Art’s Glass Program, Urban Arts Space, and Hawk Galleries. This exhibition was sponsored by Steuben Glass and featured 92 individual works of glass made from current artists. After their exhibition at Urban Arts Space and Hawk Galleries, select works from the BIGG exhibition traveled to SOFA Chicago 2009.
GREATER COLUMBUS ARTS COUNCIL Columbus Arts Festival, GoArts Call for Entries, Columbus Arts Marketing Association, and funding for exhibitions WEXNER CENTER FOR THE ARTS combined efforts produced and promoted Bebe Miller: Tracing History, and brought international curator Lynne Cooke COLUMBUS MUSEUM OF ART loan of George Segal original from collection for summer 2013 exhibition
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JOHN FERGUS FAMILY FUND Fergus Scholarship exhibition, sponsors two post-MFA fellows, supports the materials for the yearly MFA in Art Exhibition VSA OHIO producing the annual Accessible Expressions Ohio exhibition and ReelAbilities Film Festival
IN–KIND CONTRIBUTORS EARTHA LIMITED glass recycling and events consultation services SMALL BUSINESS BEANSTALK helping Columbus Ohio businesses connect with consumers COSI loaned LEGO robots for discovering robotics and the arts workshop in 2010
DEPARTMENT OF DESIGN annual student exhibition
CAFE BRIOSO providing excellent coffee to serve our patrons during programs
DEPARTMENT OF ART two faculty serve on the UAS advisory board, and biannual student exhibitions, including MFA in Art
KATZINGER’S DELICATESSEN providing food for ongoing programs from 2009–2011
THURBER HOUSE The Nance writer-in-residency program
WE VALUE...
ACCESSIBILITY We uphold the highest possible ADA guidelines applicable to our facility code requirements and artwork displays. We go further, by offering audio podcasts and touchable art pieces for blind and low-sighted patrons, coordinating specially tailored gallery tours upon request, and exhibiting works by artists with disabilities.
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SUSTAINABILITY We are proud to be housed within the largest LEED Gold-certified renovated building in the region, and seek to make environmentally responsible decisions whenever possible. We uphold best practices by recycling; using low or no VOC paints; upgrading to LED lighting in the gallery; distributing our promotional materials via bike courier; and facilitating and promoting a creative dialogue about sustainability.
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The Urban Arts Space’s Education programs continue to evolve and grow each year, reaching new demographics and better fitting the needs of our community. The Education Team aims to instill a greater appreciation of art, as well as make arts and crafts more accessible for patrons of any age and ability. Our staff members also have the wonderful privilege of partnering with other local organizations to take our programs further and to new places.”
Brittany Schwark & Cali Sanker The Education Coordinator and Assistant
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The Urban Arts Space has significantly enriched the university and the community through meaningful local, national and international arts experiences.“
Karen Bell
Founding Dean of Urban Arts Space Chair of the Board, Greater Columbus Arts Council
HOW WE DO IT
HOW WE DO IT Functioning much like a teaching hospital, a group of 20 to 30 student assistants run the day-to-day operations of the gallery, guided by a full-time professional staff. Student assistants work on one or more of our distinct teams, based on their field of interest. Our operations continually evolve as teams crosscollaborate to solve problems and develop new ideas and better practices. Students leave the gallery with new skills and hands-on experience, confidence in their work and themselves, a greater appreciation for art and culture, and the ability to access their creative potential. We have served as a professional launching pad for over 70 student interns and employees in five years. Our student assistants major in a variety of areas including design, English, art and tech, print making, hospitality management, Chinese, studio arts, dance, theatre, landscape architecture, history of art, arts policy and administration, painting, communications, business and marketing, among others. Our student assistants have gone on to work for organizations such as Thurber House, Columbus College of Art and Design, Origo branding company, Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission, and Columbus City Schools, just to name a few.
“My work at Urban Arts Space helped me build my graphic design portfolio. Right after graduation, I got an internship with my ideal design firm in Chicago, followed by one in San Francisco.� Cale LeRoy (above) Design Team, now graphic design intern at Grip Design (Chicago), with plans after to work at Cooper User Experience Design Firm (San Francisco)
“Throughout the years, I have enjoyed watching the positive impact the Space has had on the students, faculty, artists and local businesses and community members and I’m proud to consider myself a small part of that force. My passion is in building strategic partnerships with businesses and organizations around the community with a shared goal of a vibrant downtown.”
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Liz Celeste (right) Deputy Director of Exhibitions and Programs, former Barnett Fellow, now Gallery and Exhibitions Manager for the Department of Art & Art History at Stanford University.
“Urban Arts Space introduced me to the power of networking. I was able to develop personal contacts with vendors around the city that aided in my post-grad career search.” Emily Benfer (right) Events Coordinator, now Conference Services Coordinator at NorthPointe Hotel and Conference Center
"Based on my time at the Space, I knew that arts administration was where I wanted to concentrate my career, and because of my experience with the Space, I was able to jump right into my desired field" Katie Poole (right) Education, Idea Lab, City Center Gallery, now program coordinator at Thurber House
The Urban Arts Space Team PAST AND PRESENT
EVENTS/RENTALS AND OPERATIONS
THE EXHIBITIONS TEAM
maintains the inner workings of the Space; works with Deputy Director to keep our finances and facility upand-running
prepares and maintains the gallery space; designs the layout for exhibitions; installs the artwork
featured in photo: Zoey Boyles, Nicole Eggert, Jackie Little
featured in photo: Scott Neil, Shannon Reily, Andrew Graham, Jeremy Stone
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THE COMMUNICATIONS TEAM
THE EDUCATION TEAM
designs all promotional materials and signage; drives information to the public and engages with the community
plans and carries out arts programming for all ages, including gallery tours, on- and off-site programs and learning partnerships
Featured in photo: Callie Bookman, Stephanie Owens, Ada Matusiewicz., Brianna Dance, Leigh Lotocki, Paul Miller, Cale LeRoy, Jeremy Tinianow, Kelly McNicholas
featured in photo: Katie Poole, Michelle Viera, Cali Sanker, Brittany Schwark
FOCUS ON EDUCATION LEARNING PARTNERSHIPS
CARRY-OUT ART
In addition to our tours, the Space facilitates learning partnerships with various private and public academic institutions. These partnerships produce interdisciplinary projects and educational experiences as well as opportunities for community engagement. Over the course of multiple visits, students tour the gallery, participate in a hands-on activity, and practice critical analysis of artworks.
For those who cannot make it to the Space, our exhibitions go mobile to provide accessible art experiences for everyone. Our education team works with adults in retirement and nursing homes and hospitals to present our exhibitions or facilitate a related activity.
ART EXPLORATIONS
Our exhibitions often present an intersection of many fields of study, including disability studies, gender studies, storytelling, immigration studies, new media, philosophy, and beyond. We welcome and encourage faculty to teach classes at or in conjunction with Urban Arts Space.
Art Explorations is a monthly interactive art education series for children ages 4–10 and their families to create art in a gallery setting, with a goal of instilling a sense of art appreciation. Art Explorations encourages an interest in the arts and aims to develop participants’ cognitive skills, self-esteem and self-expression. The program gives opportunities to develop a range of artistic techniques with visiting artists while engaging directly with the exhibitions.
UNIVERSITY COURSES
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(clockwise from left) Katie Poole and Jordan Boeke leading Spring Break Arts Camp 2012 Brittany Schwark, Education Coordinator 2012–present, leading Art Explorations for Kids, 2012 Art Explorations for Kids, 2011 Shawna Schonauer, Education Coordinator 2010–2011, leading Carry-out Art program, 2010
FEEDBACK
“ “ The OSU Urban Arts Space takes the Best Honors for the second year in a row thanks to its well–edited lineup of shows that are welcoming to visual art newbies and contemporary art fiends alike. The galleries, which are free to peruse, manage to not feel like a megaphone for the university but a place for experimentation in exhibition showing and art making.”
PRAISE FROM
Columbus Alive!
The former flagship Lazarus department store, shuttered and then renovated for office and retail space, houses the wonderful OSU Urban Arts Space, which exhibits work from student, professional and outsider artists. The inviting gallery emphasizes education and outreach, providing free programs, exhibitions and events for the public year–round.”
Kristen Schmidt Delta Sky Magazine
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URBAN ARTS SPACE AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS:
GCAC Award 2009: For risk and innovation in the arts.
Best Local Art Gallery 2011: Voted Best Local Art Gallery in Small Business Beanstalk’s first-ever awards gala
Best Art Gallery 2012 and 2013: Twice voted by the public as Best Art Gallery in the Columbus Alive! annual Best of Columbus poll
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Mark Romesser (below) Deciding Which Way to Go Darby Creek: A Glimpse of the Past
FOUNDING FRIENDS City of Columbus Columbus Downtown Development Corporation The John Fergus Family Gieseke Rosenthal Architecture + Design John William Creamer Ernst + Young King Business Interiors The Ohio State University The William and Dolly Saxbe Family State of Ohio Wasserstrom
SUSTAINING FRIENDS The Efroymson Family Fund, a CICF Fund The Estate of Ellis Morris Kurtz Greater Columbus Arts Council (GCAC) Jay and Jean Schottenstein Steuben Glass, Corning Incorporated The Ohio Arts Council Columbus Foundation, The Colony Fund Columbus Foundation, Jay and Meredith Crane Fund
DONORS Michelle Attias-Goldstein Amy Lynn Fair Prudence Gill Michael William Grossklaus Hattie W & Robert Lazarus Fund Ben C. Jay Leo Frank Kowalyk John Steven Kubish Linda Wiles Kubish Robert Lazarus Jr. Kara Marie Lyon Carrie Nicol McBride Ronald E. McComas Paula Jean Moses Marilyn Kurtz and Philip Charles Parker Kent Martin Rambo Shane M. Rittenhouse Christy Rosenthal Raymond Arthur Schindler Kathryn Simcox Patricia D. Strope Valarie Williams Jacqueline Kay Yakubowski