The preservation of Central Street Studios as an art space was recently celebrated with a ribbon-cutting celebration. ~Photos by Madalyn Jimiera

By Madalyn Jimiera

After an 18-month-long preservation campaign, the artists and stakeholders of Central Street Studios gathered on the front porch of the building last week to snip the red ribbon tied across the stoop, celebrating the preservation of the affordable artist workspaces long-term.

“​​We’re not just commemorating the preservation of a building, but we’re talking about a community of artists, and future generations of artists who are going to be able to use this space,” said Ethan Dussault, volunteer with the Art Stays Here Coalition, a non-profit organization geared towards combating artist displacement.

The Arts & Business Council of Greater Boston purchased the building at 57 Central Street from owners Paul and Karen Morse, Nancy Dutton, and David Benson, who had owned and operated the space as affordable studio space since 1983. When they decided they wanted to sell the building in 2021, the now-former owners realized they wanted to make sure the building’s next owner upheld the value of the arts in Somerville.

“That was the best chance for the building, for the artists community, and for us,” Paul Morse said. “It’s a win, win, win for the city, for the artist, [and] for us.”

To help support the Arts & Business Council’s purchase of the 8,500 square foot studio space, the artists of Central Street Studios teamed up with Art Stays Here to form a tenants association and organize multiple fundraising efforts over the last 18 months.

During this campaign, some of the artists said the efforts drew them closer together, allowing them to share a common experience and goal despite their work, which some said could be isolating.

“We’re accustomed to working one-on-one,” said Zainab Sumu, a contemporary artist and tenant of Central Street Studios. “This is one time that everybody wanted to have something in common and wanted a space that we all can call home.”

The City of Somerville provided a large portion of the funding to purchase the building alongside the funds gathered by the artists, private donors, the Mass Cultural Council, and the Cultural Facilities Fund.

Other stakeholders gave remarks to a crowd of about 50 people during the ribbon-cutting ceremony, including Joanne Kaliontzis, the new chair of Central Street Studios, Ward Three City Councilor Ben Ewen-Campen, and Somerville Mayor Jake Wilson.

“This is making Somerville history,” Ewen-Campen said. “At a time where we are seeing artists displaced left and right [and] art spaces under threat, this feels like a miracle.”

Wilson emphasized the importance of the arts in powering Somerville’s culture and economy, and said the preservation campaign, which was started during the tenure of former Somerville mayor Katjana Ballantyne, cements the role of the arts.

“Preserving this space is preserving the networks and the relationships that help our community thrive,” Wilson said. “When we invest in the arts, we are investing in our future.”

Paul Morse said he looks forward to still having Central Street Studios in his life, no longer as an owner, but as a tenant, where he will practice woodworking.

While the Morses, Benson, and Dutton have owned the building for the last 40 years, the space has had its own legacy in the arts. In the 1850s, the building operated as a crafts guild hall, according to Paul Morse. The former owners emphasized their satisfaction that the building will continue to be a space for the arts for years to come.

“It’s kinda like [being] a proud parent,” Paul Morse said. “Our baby is grown up now.”

For Jack Gruman, a Central Street Studios artist, the preservation campaign and its results cement the studio space’s legacy and reflect hopes for the future of art spaces in Somerville.

“I grew up in Somerville. I’ve seen a lot of places disappear, and I would say that in the course of my life, the urban landscape that I grew up in has been marked by a feeling of instability,” Gruman said. “So, having one thing that we’ve been able to nail down as stable, as preserved in time, really feels great.”