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October 2015
Feature Central School Project Bisbee, Arizona by C.J. Shane |
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At a time in which artists are being squeezed out of affordable studio space, children’s school art programs are being cut, and affordable space for exhibits and performances is increasingly difficult to locate, Bisbee artists and supporters of the arts have made great progress toward finding a solution for all these problems.
They call it the Central School Project.
Pete Goldlust
Pete Goldlust, executive director of the Central School Project (CSP), says, “We are a cooperative nonprofit organization that was incorporated in 1985. Our mission is to preserve the historic school building we’re housed in, to provide affordable studio space for artists, and to provide space for community arts programming.” CSP is housed in the historic Bisbee elementary school which was built in 1905 and served as a functioning school until 1975. Central School Project purchased the school building in 1994 and began transforming the school into a community arts center.
“We have poetry readings, film programs, dance programs, and art exhibits,” says Goldlust. CSP also invites visiting artists to come to Bisbee and conduct programs. The building also houses the Bisbee Radio Project which is a low-power community radio station, and also houses Bisbee Obscure Productions, a community theater company.
The school houses an 80 seat theater used for performances, and the large central hall way is an art exhibit space. The recent Bisbee Biennial included some 90 pieces of art, and the opening night was “a mob scene” according to Goldlust. “The Bisbee Biennial is kind of an anti-biennial,” Goldlust laughs, “The Bisbee Biennial is not juried. It’s an art exhibit open to anyone, and everyone comes to the opening.”
See a review of the Biennial HERE>
“We have poetry readings, film programs, dance programs, and art exhibits,” says Goldlust. CSP also invites visiting artists to come to Bisbee and conduct programs. The building also houses the Bisbee Radio Project which is a low-power community radio station, and also houses Bisbee Obscure Productions, a community theater company.
The school houses an 80 seat theater used for performances, and the large central hall way is an art exhibit space. The recent Bisbee Biennial included some 90 pieces of art, and the opening night was “a mob scene” according to Goldlust. “The Bisbee Biennial is kind of an anti-biennial,” Goldlust laughs, “The Bisbee Biennial is not juried. It’s an art exhibit open to anyone, and everyone comes to the opening.”
See a review of the Biennial HERE>
Goldlust says his favorite CSP programs are the ones organized for children. There’s the MAKE Youth Arts Festival hosted by CSP every year. This is an all-festival for kids of all ages to participate in various visual art activities, music, and performances.
The LEAP program (Learning, Experiential, Activities, Program) is a large, very active arts program for children and teens that provides important activities in summer and during the school year. In the summer just past, LEAP provided swim lessons for kids 2 and up, and also offered a large variety of classes in everything from American sign language, dance and music lessons, natural history classes, and computer classes.
Goldlust points out that when the Bisbee School District cut back the school week to four days due to budget cuts, Bisbee artists stepped up to fill the void with the LEAP program. (The four-day school week is actually fairly common in small towns in Arizona. It remains controversial.) On Fridays when school is not in session, children and teens go to CSP to participate in LEAP programs. Friday classes have included cooking, quilting, story writing, West African drum and dance, poetry writing, playing in an orchestra, yoga classes, and more.
The LEAP program (Learning, Experiential, Activities, Program) is a large, very active arts program for children and teens that provides important activities in summer and during the school year. In the summer just past, LEAP provided swim lessons for kids 2 and up, and also offered a large variety of classes in everything from American sign language, dance and music lessons, natural history classes, and computer classes.
Goldlust points out that when the Bisbee School District cut back the school week to four days due to budget cuts, Bisbee artists stepped up to fill the void with the LEAP program. (The four-day school week is actually fairly common in small towns in Arizona. It remains controversial.) On Fridays when school is not in session, children and teens go to CSP to participate in LEAP programs. Friday classes have included cooking, quilting, story writing, West African drum and dance, poetry writing, playing in an orchestra, yoga classes, and more.
LEAP West African Drumming and Dancing class
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LEAP Quilting for Kids
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CSP Art Gallery
Goldlust, who has an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, is himself an artist who creates public art, primarily sculpture. He is the third executive director of CSP since its founding. He and his family have lived in Bisbee for eight years.
“We’re a pretty lean organization,” Goldlust says of Central School Project . He’s the only employee, and there are 20 artists on the board. “I love this job….it’s the best job I’ll ever have.”
For more information:
Central School Project: http://centralschoolproject.org/index.html
Bisbee LEAP http://www.leap-bisbee.org/
Bisbee Radio Project: http://www.kbrpradio.com/
Bisbee’s Obscure Productions: https://sites.google.com/site/bisbeesobscureproductions/
Central School Project: http://centralschoolproject.org/index.html
Bisbee LEAP http://www.leap-bisbee.org/
Bisbee Radio Project: http://www.kbrpradio.com/
Bisbee’s Obscure Productions: https://sites.google.com/site/bisbeesobscureproductions/