There’s a new arts hub in Austin that provides economic opportunities to local artists and increases affordable arts programming on Chicago’s West Side.
Artist-led nonprofit Alt Space Chicago celebrated its grand opening at 5645 W. Corcoran Pl. over the weekend. Over 500 people attended an open house, art exhibition, One Earth watch party with a sustainability panel, artist market and Sunday worship.
The nonprofit’s new headquarters in the historic Austin Bank building will house mixed-use space for events and exhibitions, small areas for retail, teaching space for local vendors and artists, workshops and a cafe.
The building, which alt_ Chicago bought last year with grant money and funds from the nonprofits’ projects, is currently used for community meetings and local events. It will host The House Collective, a group of artists and community members that will share resources to offer classes and workshops and put on exhibitions for the community.
“We’re offering an alternative to everything else that’s being offered to the city but doing it in our own way through the pillars of art, faith and community,” Jordan Campbell, executive director and co-founder of alt_ Chicago, told Austin Weekly News.
Made up of five nonprofits and 10 artists-in-residence, The House Collective is a community investment vehicle, allowing its participants to use money they would’ve spent to rent their own space to instead serve the community at a lower cost. And the collective will allow alt_ Chicago to rely less on grants for building operations, since that’s covered by what participants pay into The House Collective.
The House Collective will also create a grant where about 10% of what it makes will go back into the community to sponsor the likes of elders with fixed income or single-parent households.
“I want us to learn what it means to be philanthropic with our abundance and to be intentional about giving back to our community in as many ways as we can to really meet the needs through our service,” Campbell said.
Creating space for alt_ Chicago
Campbell and Jon Veal started alt_ Chicago in 2019 to create a healing tool for the Black community’s trauma.
Alt_ Chicago’s first community activation was Project Stamp, where Austin residents sat for family photos. They got to keep a copy, and another was used to decorate vacant spaces with images of local residents.
In 2020, alt_ Chicago became a nonprofit and launched alt_ Market, an annual interactive art installation that also serves as a giveaway spot for free non-perishable food and hygiene items. The idea was a response to the anger that Campbell and Veal saw in Austin after the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery.
“Essentially, we wanted to mobilize the community, empower them, dignify them and help them to understand that what we believe is the greatest asset of any community is the people,” Campbell previously told the Weekly. “Art has the ability to start those conversations or is the initiator of those movements.”
Alt_ Chicago’s Redemptive Plastics initiative has diverted over 10,000 pounds of plastic from the landfill and turned it into functional art like key chains, hammers and bus stop benches. Campbell said alt_ Chicago is finishing electric service in its new building in order to do processing for Redemptive Plastics.
Last year, alt_ Chicago hosted or participated in 24 events around Austin and paid $175,000 to contractors and artists. It also received $21,000 in donations and got $400,000 in grants – which was used to purchase and develop what once housed the historic Austin Bank of Chicago, constructed by Frederick Schock, a notable Chicago architect who lived and worked in Austin.
Previously, alt_ Chicago rented space at 5339 W. Lake St. Alt_ Chicago has been allocating funds toward a permanent location since 2021, when its founders were looking to buy a building. But that process stalled when Veal passed the following year and Campbell focused on maintaining operations.
Alt_ Chicago bought the old Austin Bank building with about $200,000 from consulting or working on projects for DCASE, Lurie’s Austin Hope Center and One Lawndale Children’s Discovery Center. It also got $300,000 from IFF and a credit with Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago, which used to operate the Father Augustus Tolton Peace Center from that location. Maryville Academy also resided in the building but has since relocated.
In the next five years, Campbell said alt_ Chicago will focus about 50% on building operations, 40% on internal operations, and the remainder on grants and community operations.
The nonprofit is looking to install infrastructure for geothermal energy or heat pump systems. Workshop spaces will likely be created in the basement once alt_ Chicago develops an accessible path to get downstairs.
Earth Paint was The House Collective’s first tenant. It provides recycled paint that’s cheaper than market rate and job opportunities to those with special needs. Recently, Earth Paint created a mural at T&C Fitness Club, possibly the first in Chicago to be done with 100% recycled paint.
“We’re really mindful of our footprint in terms of the materials that we’re using and who we’re sourcing from,” Campbell said, “and keeping things localized as much as we can within our processes as an organization.”