Short Summary
Soulcraft Gallery is a gallery of furniture by Cleveland-based designers and makers which we aim (with your help!) to open in the newly renamed 5th Street (was Colonial) Arcade in downtown Cleveland. It is an outgrowth of Soulcraft Woodshop; the burgeoning Cleveland design scene and a promising revitalization of Cleveland's downtown.
In July of 2012, we opened Soulcraft Woodshop, a community shop wherein the public can use our space for the own projects or take classes. Furthermore, the Woodshop is home to a number of furniture designers and makers who are growing their businesses out of the shop.
We wanted to create a gallery to showcase the best of the work coming out of the shop, but also to display the tremendous work that has been generated in the growing furniture design scene in Cleveland.
When we open, will have 12 furniture designers from all over the Cleveland metropolitan area, many of whose work has been displayed nationally and occasionally internationally. We want to give them a local gallery home. At present, the designers who will show include A Piece of Cleveland, Bomb Factory Furniture, 44 Steel, Forrest City Fabricators, Rust Belt Welding, Sawhorse Woodworks, Northend Woodworks, 2nd Shift Studio, Steve Yusko, Domenic Fiorello Studio, Shelley Mendenhall, and Peter Debelak.
What We Need & What You Get
We are running this exciting campaign in parallel with our participation in a grant competition held by the Downtown Cleveland Alliance and the Charter One Foundation. We are pleased to have been chosen as one of five finalists in that competition, and now we are asking the public to help make this vision a reality.
We will use the funds raised, in short, in order to get our doors open and to get the word out about each and every designer we showcase. Our goal is to have a successful gallery, but moreso to enable each designer access to a broader audience: the audience this Cleveland talent deserves.
We will use funds toward built out of the beautiful space at the 5th Street Arcade; initial marketing and events; website creation with an e-store; and to enable as many designers as possible to bring their products to a broader market.
The Impact
The concept behind "Soulcraft" - both the Woodshop and the Gallery - is really just to enable. We feel we benefit from, but also will contribute to the success of a number of larger growth efforts: 1) The revitalization of downtown generally, and of the 5th Street Arcade specifically; and 2) The growing furniture design scene in Cleveland.
There has been a robust discussion about Cleveland being a good "fit" for furniture design and production. There is still tremendous interest in creating a Design District in Cleveland; and the furniture designers in Cleveland are beginning to get wide-spread recognition. This has been boosted by such things as the annual F*Sho, a one-night contemporary furniture fair, as well as the remarkable reception Clevleand designers have received at international furniture fairs, such as ICFF in New York.
By launching a successful furniture and design gallery - indeed, a successful retail business - in downtown Cleveland, we are excited to benefit from and to contribute to the success of furniture design in Cleveland and the revitalization of Cleveland's downtown.
Other Ways You Can Help
As we said, we feel a part of something bigger than just a stand-alone retail business. You can help by spreading the word about our campaign and our larger efforts. You can help by coming downtown and supporting us as we host events and openings. And you can help by starting to MAKE! CREATE!
