Welcome to OpenStudios, a program that pairs empty storefronts with practicing local artists. The artists benefit from a free studio for several months, and the building owner can market an animated, more attractive space that’s easier to rent!
FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM – all Final Friday and other activity posted by OpenStudios artists will be reposted on those platforms. To get your name on the list of artists, email your contact info and a brief description of what you’d like to do in your studio to info@fischhaus.com.
The intention of this project is to activate key neighborhoods of Wichita, specifically under-utilized areas with high potential to become walkable, dynamic, diverse, and prosperous nodes of cultural engagement: significant stretches of empty storefronts and non-active streetscapes are the most obvious challenges. In what has become known as the Soho Effect, artists move into these depressed, and therefore inexpensive, corners of cities, and unintentionally but consistently build thriving and vibrant communities that begin to attract attention from the creative class. This then cues developers to purchase viable buildings in the new “it” neighborhood and renovate them into expensive lofts and retail spaces, which in turn causes property tax and rent to rise, resulting in the eventual displacement of the artists. This inevitable cycle of gentrification affects all cities, from the smallest to the largest (the Soho Effect is named for the transformation that occurred in that part of NYC in the 1980s); in fact, Wichita is experiencing this phenomenon right now, in its own Commerce St. Art District.
However, rather than perceiving this as a problem, the OpenStudios project intends to embrace the pattern as a tool to inspire development. We are connecting with owners of buildings that contain under-employed street-level storefronts; specifically, retail spaces that have proven difficult to rent. This unfortunate situation detracts from the walkability of our city and is self-perpetuating, as potential tenants have difficulty envisioning their business in a dusty, desolate room. Our solution is to place working artists in these storefronts, makers with productive practices who are willing to welcome interested passersby and engage with the community. The artists receive the studios for free, and the landlords donate the rent in exchange for an animated, attractive street-level presence.
OpenStudios covers liability insurance and other expenses, as required by the owner. If the space gets rented, our ultimate goal, the artist has 30 days to vacate their studio and may be placed in another OpenStudio if available. The artist is aware of this condition from the beginning of their time with OpenStudios: the studio is free, and in exchange, the artist must accept that the arrangement may be temporary. We will attempt, if at all possible, to guarantee a minimum duration of three months for each artist in each space.
The long-term vision for this project is to not only supply free studios for Wichita artists, but also to advertise the program outside of our community in an effort to draw more creatives to the region; for example, at art schools such as the Kansas City Art Institute, KSU and K-State, or even further afield. The cost of living is reasonable in Wichita, and the art scene is unusually robust for a city of this size. This makes Wichita unique, and OpenStudios is excited to capitalize on the resources we already possess to help our city become competitive on a national stage.
Read the article in the Wichita Eagle about our first space, and follow us on facebook and instagram to get up-to-the-minute news and info.
A big thanks to our KeyPerks sponsors, who offer discounted goods and services to OpenStudios artists: so far, we’ve got great deals from WAM, Botanica, and The Mid-America All-Indian Museum (free admission for OpenStudios artists), and Piatto Neapolitan Pizzeria and Tanya’s Soup Kitchen (discounts on goods and services). Let us know if you’d like to bring artists into your local business too!
TOWNE WEST – 5 STUDIOS THROUGHOUT THE MALL
Director: Sydney Lenox-Barkus
Click here for a map showing studio locations
RESIDENCY: January 1 – March 31, 2023
ARTISTS: Lear Heath Studio (Patrick Heath and Jae Lear, with Megan Bigelow, Miki Bonilla, Sara Grant, Rohan Govin), Sara Harmon, Charity Harmon, Christina Trammell, Kim Benage, Ulrick Brown, Christian Loeffler, Damar Sarter, Emily Winesberry
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RESIDENCY: October 1 – December 31, 2022
ARTISTS: Lear Heath Studio (Patrick Heath and Jae Lear, with Megan Bigelow, Issabella Smith, Brooklynn Bolton), The Sunken Hollow, Julianne and Yvette Tovar, Kim Benage, shared studio (Miki Bonilla, Sara Grant, Natalya Paxton, Gayle Bryson, Rachel Hermes)
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RESIDENCY: July 1 – September 30, 2022
ARTISTS: Lear Heath Studio (Patrick Heath and Jae Lear, with Taylor Bullock, Fabes Belcher, Laura Barwick), E. Vincent Wood (and group), Sewer City TV, shared studio (Julian Kincaid, Jimena Trujillo), Landen Swearingen
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RESIDENCY: April 1 – June 30, 2022
ARTISTS: Lear Heath Studio (Patrick Heath and Jae Lear, with Saundra Highsmith, Joshua Jones, Mara Howes), TechArtICT, Holly Harper, Big Jump Studios, Black Rainbow, Kizmet Images, Write Vibez Publishing
BUILDING OWNER: Towne West
The Towne West location is thankful for the financial support of the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts.
FISCH HAUS 2nd FLOOR PRINT STUDIO
RESIDENCY: July 1, 2021 – ongoing
ARTIST: Shaunte’ Levine
BUILDING OWNER: Fisch Haus
2627 E. CENTRAL – MULBERRY INCUBATOR COLLABORATIVE
Director: Anthony Joiner
RESIDENCY: October 1, 2022 – January 31, 2023
ARTISTS: Dominique Joiner, Juli Saga, De’Andra Hughes
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RESIDENCY: July 1 – September 30, 2022
ARTISTS: Dominique Joiner, Eileen McNeill, Jordan Debbrecht, An Le
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RESIDENCY: April 1 – June 30, 2022
ARTISTS: Dominique Joiner, Sheldon Draper, Garrett Farha, Stephen Farha, Dajah Abasolo, Jessica Williamson
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RESIDENCY: January 1 – March 31, 2022
ARTISTS: Dominique Joiner, Sheldon Draper, Jason Crile, MAS Art Co, Caitlin Alexander
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RESIDENCY: September 1 – December 31, 2021
ARTISTS: Dominique Joiner, Brittany Stewart, Rachel Harris, Kynnedy Moore, Thomas Cottner
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RESIDENCY: June 1 – August 31, 2021
ARTISTS: Dominique Joiner, Amy Baber, Lauren Sanders, Kjersten Anderson, William Bloomquist
BUILDING OWNER: Bokeh Development
BOTANICA
Schedule of artist time in the gardens: https://botanica.org/artist-in-residence/. Look for a small orange flag with the OS logo.
RESIDENCY: August 1 – October 31, 2022
ARTIST: Andres Levaggi-Villanueva
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RESIDENCY: May 1 – July 31, 2022
ARTIST: Denita Benyshek
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RESIDENCY: August 1 – October 31, 2021
ARTIST: Jessica Vega
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RESIDENCY: May 1 – July 31, 2021
ARTIST: Malissa Long
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RESIDENCY: Fall 2020
ARTIST: Bill Goffrier
BUILDING OWNER: Botanica, City of Wichita
430 S COMMERCE – FINN LOFTS
RESIDENCY: March 1 – July 31, 2021
ARTISTS: Angela Rangel, Daniela Diaz, Jalen Cooper
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RESIDENCY: December 1, 2020 – February 28, 2021
ARTIST: Pam Bjork
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RESIDENCY: August 1, 2020 – October 31, 2020
ARTISTS: Anthony Dozier, Aaron Morgan Brown
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RESIDENCY: May 1, 2020 – July 31, 2020
ARTISTS: Marcela Martinez, Angela Rangel
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RESIDENCY: January 1, 2020 – March 31, 2020
ARTISTS: Laura Shank, Jim Phillips
BUILDING OWNER: David Farha, Finn Lofts
520 S COMMERCE
RESIDENCY: mid-September 2018 – June 30, 2019
ARTIST: Christopher Gulick
BUILDING OWNER: Epoch Developments
333 E ENGLISH
RESIDENCY: March 1 – June 30, 2019
ARTISTS: Tina Thomas, Micala Gingrich-Gaylord
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RESIDENCY: October 1, 2018 – February 28, 2019
ARTISTS: Kate Van Steenhuyse, Alex Moore
BUILDING OWNER: Jason Cox
GARVEY CENTER, KIVA LEVEL
RESIDENCY: June 1 – August 31, 2023
ARTISTS: Barbara Haynes, Curtis Haynes, Skyler Lovelace, Julie Rippy
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RESIDENCY: March 1 – May 31, 2023
ARTISTS: Peggy Hayes, Sam Pho
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RESIDENCY: December 1, 2022 – February 28, 2023
ARTIST: Jim Simpson
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RESIDENCY: September 1 – November 30, 2022
ARTISTS: Taylor McQueary, Emily Winesberry
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RESIDENCY: June 1 – August 31, 2022
ARTISTS: Grace Shively, Sloane Dyer
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RESIDENCY: March 1 – May 31, 2022
ARTISTS: Kat Eastman, Hope Dale
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RESIDENCY: December 1, 2021 – February 28, 2022
ARTISTS: Lisa Coogias, Sam Butler
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RESIDENCY: September 1 – November 30, 2021
ARTISTS: Ulrick Brown, Ruby Guerrero
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RESIDENCY: June 1 – August 31, 2021
ARTISTS: Patrick Heath, Jayln Lear
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RESIDENCY: March 1 – May 31, 2021
ARTISTS: Emiliano Milano, ShaBree Chatman
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RESIDENCY: November 1, 2020 – February 28, 2021
ARTISTS: Ashley Streid, Robbin Gheesling
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RESIDENCY: August 1, 2020 – October 31, 2020
ARTISTS: Alec Lang, Iris Fletcher
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RESIDENCY: May 1, 2020 – July 31, 2020
ARTISTS: Adelia Wise, Stephanie Jeanes
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RESIDENCY: January 1, 2020 – March 31, 2020
ARTISTS: Blake Anderson, Parker Tatro
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RESIDENCY: October 1, 2019 – December 31, 2019
ARTISTS: Steven Campbell, Matthew Habiger, Veronica Laflin
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RESIDENCY: July 1, 2019 – September 30, 2019
ARTISTS: Madison Leierer, Amanda and Jeremy Miller, Erick Nkana, Tim Stone
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RESIDENCY: April 1, 2019 – June 30, 2019
ARTISTS: Liv Grant, Hallie Linnebur, Amy Meador, Elaine Adair, Meghan Miller
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RESIDENCY: January 1, 2019 – March 31, 2019
ARTISTS: Meredith Radke-Gannon, Michella Tripoli, Jennifer Larson, Ted Adler, Juanta Wolfe
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RESIDENCY: mid-September – December 31, 2018
ARTISTS: Anthony Joiner, Dominique Joiner, Verlene Mahomes, Robert Maxwell, Trish Van Osdel
BUILDING OWNER: Garvey Center, BUILDING MANAGER: Larry Weber
THE RENFRO: 612 E DOUGLAS, SUITE 101
RESIDENCY: August 1, 2018 – January 31, 2019
ARTIST: Casey Joy
BUILDING OWNER: Bokeh Development
105 S BROADWAY
RESIDENCY: June 1 – July 31, 2018
ARTIST: Ellamonique Baccus, Wisdom Tree Arts
BUILDING OWNER: Sudha Tokala
Many thanks to the City of Wichita for initial start-up funding, and to Fidelity Bank for specifically supporting a studio at 333 E. English. This program relies 100% on donations and sponsorships, many of which are small contributions from individuals in our wonderfully supportive art community: too numerous to mention, but we thank you all sincerely. Our fabulous graphic designer is Carlos Palomino.
This project has been organized and underwritten by Fisch Haus’ not-for-profit arm, Fisch Bowl, Inc. If you are a building owner interested in participating, or an artist looking for free studio space, please contact OpenStudios at info@fischhaus.com, via facebook, or instagram.