ARTISANworks

I've been wanting to visit ARTISANworks; http://www.artisanworks.net/home.php for years. I've lived in the Rochester area for about 11 years and I've heard a lot of great things about this place. I've also lived around the corner from it for many years, but just finally managed to visit it last weekend. I purchased a Groupon over a month ago and then a Meetup group I'm a part of announced an outing to ARTISANworks so I jumped on the opportunity to go. I invited a friend and we met others there on a cold Saturday afternoon.

Here's the skinny on ARTISANworks:

ARTISANworks is a self-funded 501(c)3 not-for profit art space that exists without government aide. We rely on the generous support from both personal and corporate members, and donations of artworks and memorabilia.

Our 40,000 square foot renovated factory building integrates arts of all kinds, events, and entertainment.

We support regional artists through our art incubator program and our collection includes more than half a million items. We take a multidisciplinary approach to the creation, presentation, interpretation, and collection of art, focusing on the visual, performing, and culinary arts.

It was very neat to go with 3 other people who had also never been there before. We took the tour and then went around the entire warehouse again as a group.  We dreamed for 3 hours about the next party or event we would host there. It's an amazing concept. While we were there they were preparing for hosting 2 weddings that evening in different spaces. There are over 20 spaces/rooms each with a special theme that you can rent out for whatever theme you are going for. You will be in sensory overload by all of the artwork. It is on the floors, walls, hanging from the ceilings and every little space. There are well known artist pieces such as Picasso and Warhol but also many local artist artwork. I even found out yesterday that my friend Karen Pelc has a couple of pieces in the gallery from her "artist days".  Makes me want to go back and see if I can find her artwork! 

Another neat aspect to this place is that there are artist studios throughout the warehouse. The day we went there were two artist in residence working and they let us visit, watch them work, ask questions about their art and so on.

I would recommend catching the tour because you get many interesting facts that you wouldn't know if you didn't go on the tour. Such as; it cost 14,000 dollars a month to heat this space!

Hope you enjoy a few of the pics I took.