Telluride Arts: New Artist Studio Space in Illium!

12 Jan Telluride Arts: New Artist Studio Space in Illium!

Calling all artists! Telluride Arts is offering a new studio space in Illium that is available for local artists to sublet, starting immediately. If you are interested in setting up a studio tour or would like more information, please contact austin@telluridearts.org. For more information contact Telluride Arts at 970-728-3930, info@telluridearts.org, or find the nonprofit online at www.telluridearts.org.

Securing affordable studios for local artists has been a part of Telluride Arts’ mission since a group of local artists established the Stronghouse Studios in 2005.

The space, made possible by under-market rent was a thriving creative hub for a myriad of local artists and musicians until the property was sold to new owners in 2017. The new owners undertook the much-needed and painstaking restoration of the building, which is now the Stronghouse Brewery.

At that time, the Voodoo Lounge building was sitting vacant. Telluride Arts worked with the Town of Telluride for a temporary lease, with the understanding that the property was slated for development. Telluride Arts established the Voodoo Studios in 2017. The Voodoo site will become Telluride’s newest large-scale affordable housing project and is expected to break ground this spring.

With the anticipated closing of Voodoo Studios, Telluride Arts is excited to announce the opening of the new Illium Artist Studios, which will expand a dynamic creative space above Ghost Pocket Kitchen that includes the Wheel House pottery studio.

The new Illium Artist Studios will support a variety of creative disciplines from digital media to jewelry making, painting, collage, sculpture, and ceramics. There are workspaces ranging in size from 60-120 square feet, wifi, and 24-hour access. Private locking storage is also available.

None of these spaces would be possible without the generosity and commitment of local landlords, including the Lifton-Zolines, the Town of Telluride, and Ghost Pocket.

Studios for individual working artists are an essential component of a healthy local arts ecology, and providing affordable options in a real estate climate like Telluride is a triumph. Telluride Arts welcomes community involvement as it works on implementing strategies for more permanent solutions that maintain and support Telluride’s local creative talent. The co-working environment provides not only creative space for artists to advance their work, but also strengthens bonds between artists, encouraging collaborations and skill-sharing.

Studios will be available to rent on a first-come, first-serve basis, and open to working artists who contribute to a vibrant, shared, creative space.