Studeō ~ Latin ~ Verb
Definition: I dedicate myself to, I strive after

At its simplest form, Studeō PAR- can be considered a land-banking-for-the-arts initiative of Professional Artistic Research (PAR-) Projects — a community-based, arts & education nonprofit located in Northside, Cincinnati. The goal: Preserve a place in a developing community where artists can share ideas and increase their collective value.

While we, PAR-Projects, will be utilizing some space for our Applied Arts Education Program, the majority of Studeō PAR-'s 15,000 square foot facility is designed to serve as a place to foster creative connections. Keeping in line with the project’s name sake, over half of the space will accommodate artists dedicated to their studio practices and creativity-based businesses — all specifically curated to avoid overlaps in disciplines, while promoting as many forms of diversity as possible.

To complement the studios, in the Summer of 2020, we will also be opening a new contemporary art gallery — a space charged with becoming a central gathering hub and creative outlet for the tenants of the facility. In the grand scheme of things, with its quaint courtyard and industrial skylights, this space will serve as a relaxed environment for the community to connect and experience high levels of wall-based artwork — an intentional contrast to the installation-based art gallery we operate at our headquarters next door. In due time, the gallery will also double as a rentable event space, but its primary purpose will be to serve as an entry point for budding artists and ambitious curators of the region.

The final piece of the facility is quite simply a front-of-house community room designed to be shared with fellow artists and neighbors alike. Before expanding to just over 800 square feet in 2021, the current 500 square foot space is available to serve as an affordable place that can be rented for classes/workshops and/or borrowed (when available) for civic-minded discussions, artist support groups, etc.

In essence, when paired with the seasonal community space & installation art gallery we already own next door, Studeō PAR- will help redefine what connection and collaboration can look like in our region’s creative community. And being that this is a minority lead initiative, an underlying hope is that the work created at PAR- will also serve as a bridge, a model, and a reminder of what’s possible when less barriers are in place.

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