ARCH Development Corporation (ADC) announces the Anacostia Arts Center, coming spring 2013 to Historic Anacostia. Designed
to be a community arts nucleus, the Anacostia Arts Center will bring
approximately 10,000 square feet of creative commercial space to Good
Hope Road SE. Conveniently located at the south end of the 11th Street
Bridge between Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE and 13th Street SE, the
Anacostia Arts Center will bring independent creative projects together
under one roof.
Anacostia
Arts Center will occupy the street level of 1231 Good Hope Road SE,
formally the ARCH Training Center. The property is divided up into
spaces connected by a main hall, with common lounge areas in the front
and rear of the building.
Currently
under construction, the space will include: a built-out black box
theater, the American Poetry Museum Reading Room, the short-term
creative rental facility Blank Space SE, a coffee shop & juice bar,
three gallery rental spaces, and two boutique/wellness center rental
spaces. Now accepting proposals and lease applications: the black box
theater, all gallery and boutique/wellness center spaces, coffee shop
& juice bar.
Duane Gautier, CEO of ADC, explains his vision for the center: "This project will assist in transforming the Anacostia neighborhood into a place people recognize as an arts destination."
Anacostia
Arts Center represents the newest effort by ADC to revitalize Historic
Anacostia by providing opportunities for the creative economy to
flourish in the area. The organization's work in the neighborhood began
with job training, housing, and micro-lending programs more than 20years
ago. The focus expanded to the arts in 2007, with ADC's opening of its
first art gallery in the area, Honfleur Gallery. In 2009, Vivid
Solutions DC Archival Print Lab opened, followed by the accompanying
fine art photography and digital art exhibition space, The Gallery at
Vivid Solutions. ADC produced its first large-scale community arts
festival LUMEN8Anacostia in April 2012 and its return is scheduled for
June 22, 2013. In summer 2012 Honfleur Gallery established the Annual
East of the River Distinguished Artist Award. The Anacostia Playhouse,
formally the H St. Playhouse, relocated to Shannon Place SE with
assistance from ADC. It is also slated to open in spring 2013.
Calling
it a "natural addition to an already flourishing art culture" in
Anacostia and predicting that it will be a destination for residents and
nonresidents," ANC Commissioner 8A06 Kendall Graham said, "The establishment of the Anacostia Arts Center, along with
the opening of the Anacostia Playhouse and second annual
LUMEN8Anacostia festival, will only add to the momentum of Anacostia's
renaissance."
ADC's
Director of Business Development Nikki Peele pointed out that the
location of the Anacostia Arts Center directly above The HIVE 2.0 will
be mutually beneficial to both projects. She said, "The HIVE 2.0 is
about providing an environment for innovators, visionaries, and
entrepreneurs to collaborate and thrive. Having the Anacostia Arts
Center in the same building as The HIVE 2.0 is a huge asset in making
our space more attractive, more dynamic, and more cutting edge for the
entrepreneurs that call our small business incubators home."
With
the Anacostia Arts Center, ADC intends to further diversify the arts
landscape in Historic Anacostia by providing the space and start-up
support for other arts organizations to lay down roots in the community.
