Space to create

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Space One Eleven in downtown Birmingham may be an art gallery, but it’s not a traditional commercial gallery.

SOE is a nonprofit, artist-run space that prides itself on featuring cutting-edge work that is aesthetically, and sometimes socially, challenging, co-founder Peter Prinz said.

 “We are a conduit for artists to voice their concerns or address contemporary issues,” he said.

SOE was founded in 1986 and moved to Second Avenue in 1989. It provides professional opportunities for artists, works to boost public appreciation of contemporary art, and it offers arts education to youth, including at-risk or disadvantaged kids.

That commitment to an educational mission will be on display during June and July when about 200 Birmingham-area children and teenagers are expected to take part in SOE’s annual series of summer art camps. Kids from second through 12th grade can join professional artists in SOE’s studios to draw, paint and create with clay and fabric arts. A student art show July 29 will cap off the camps. 

Some of the kids who take part in the classes may find they not only have fun and learn something about art but also make new friends and unlock some of their own potential and creativity, said SOE director of programs Cheryl Lewis.

“It’s well documented that the visual arts are good for students across the curriculum,” she said, adding that for some at-risk or disadvantaged youth, the studio “is also a place for them to shine.”

Some kids may find a new sense of belonging when they discover the world of art, Lewis said. “A lot of kids don’t know what their thing is. They are not a football player or a sports person. This is their thing.”

A mother who had taken her son to the art camps told staff her son had “finally found his tribe at Space One Eleven,” Lewis said.

Students receive quality, personalized instruction at SOE, according to Prinz and Lewis. “Our teaching artists are … truly working artists, so the students do have models,” Lewis said.

And students in the classes are not forced to do the exact same project as everyone else, Prinz said, adding: “We encourage individuality.”

SOE staff members said they hope their classes and other programs can help area children and teenagers, as well as adults, become more engaged with the visual arts.

“You want to grow a public that is appreciative of and knows about art,” Lewis said.

Prinz agreed. “Kids have to be exposed to art in order to appreciate it.”

Enrollment remains open, but it is subject to availability, and some classes may be full, Lewis said. Tuition is based on a sliding scale, and families may qualify for free or reduced tuition.

The summer art camps begin June 6 with “I’m an Alabama Artist,” in which students in grades 2-5 will experiment with a variety of media and make projects influenced by Alabama artists.

Numerous specialized camps in a variety of mediums — including painting, drawing, photography and mixed media — will be offered to middle- and high-school students in June and July.

For example, “Fired Up!” is clay workshop for grades 6-8 in which students will have their pieces fired in the kilns at SOE. In “Fabric and Fiber Fun,” students in grades 9-12 will learn blend embroidery and collage in their own textile art.

In “Portfolio Development,” students in grades 6-12 can work on their portfolios — perhaps for use with applications to college art programs — and get recommendations from Dr. Mary Ann Culotta, former Examiner of Art and Design in the Southeast for the International Baccalaureate Organization.

Artwork will be displayed during the annual Student and Teaching Artist Exhibition at the SOE galleries, 2409 Second Ave. N., on July 29 from 5:30-7 p.m. 

For dates, times, tuition, instructors, class registration or to find out more information about SOE, visit spaceoneeleven.org or call 205-328-0553.