Alt Space Chicago transforms old West Side bank into hub for creative arts and innovation
An old building on the West Side will soon be a hub of creative innovation and collaboration. That's the dream of a Chicago arts non-profit called Alt Space Chicago.
"On the front of the building, it says 'Savings Department,' and I love that," Alt Space Chicago co-founder Jordan Campbell said.
It's been a long time since the old Austin Bank building at 5645 W. Corcoran Pl. in the Austin neighborhood served as a bank, but Campbell wants to fill it with value.
"We believe that the greatest asset of any community is the people," he said.
Alt Space Chicago is a non-profit focused on art, faith, and the Austin community.
"We realized that one out of three stories that was released in the media about Austin was negative, and so for us, we wanted to use our artistic practice, our faith, our community that we were connected to, to flip that on its head," he said. "We are an alternative to the narrative."
Creative minds at Alt Space are behind the building's colorful benches, made from recycled plastic.
"We didn't have money to do a lot of things we did. It was literally us finding scrap material and making something of it," Campbell said.
They also launched "Project Stamp," decorating abandoned Austin buildings with photos of community members.
"We wanted to stamp the community with the people's identity," Campbell said.
Last year, Alt Space bought the old bank building from Catholic Charities, and last weekend they held a grand opening.
"Right now, we are sitting in a dream realized, man," Campbell said.
Soon, Alt Space will be home to the House Collective, a group of five nonprofits and ten artists in residence, all serving the Austin community.
"We haven't really had a presence in the city yet up, until this point," said Tony Rey, director of operations at Earth Paint, a non-profit that recycles paint, and has already moved in to Alt Space. "A lot of our staff are kids and young adults who have a special need or a disability."
An old building has a new purpose – a permanent, valuable place for Alt Space.
"I have no idea what's going to come of this space, and I don't care to know. I feel like I'm excited for the journey in and of itself," Campbell said.
Alt Space is still looking for artists to join the House Collective. They've already secured spots for three of the five non-profits.
