Media Brief:
SUPER
STUDIO
THE
STEEL YARD RE-OPENS FOR ANOTHER 100 YEARS OF INDUSTRIAL ARTS
The Steel Yard - At a
Glance
The Steel Yard is a non-profit
industrial arts organization in Providence, RI. Our professional workspace
enables community access to equipment for welding, blacksmithing, jewelry,
ceramics, woodworking and the foundry arts.
●
More than 500 students
attend free or subsidized courses annually
●
Over 1,461 paid teaching
hours provided for working artists each year
●
Weld-to-Work, our creative
job-readiness training, provides practical and creative skills to Rhode
Island’s chronically underemployed
●
10,000 or more people
attend cultural events at the Steel Yard each year
●
Dozens of public art
projects produced annually add up to hundreds of installations across Southern
New England
●
It is estimated that over
500,000 people see the Steel Yard’s public art installations every day!
In 2016 and 2017 the Steel Yard reached
capacity in nearly all of our programs. We had just about as many students,
event attendees, free tours, public project commissions, residents and
workforce trainees as the shops could accommodate. Our ability to fulfill our
mission is linked to the condition of our site and resources.
Studio Restoration - Much
needed capacity
Renovations to the facility have addressed
community needs head on through expanded and efficiently designed studios. The
addition of heat and ventilation where there was none enables an additional four
months of operating. This increases the quality of every Steel Yard program and
project with cleaner, safer and ADA accessible facilities and an overall gain
of 35% capacity across the organization!
The award-winning KITE Architects developed a design that
delivers exactly what the community needs to keep working, learning and
practicing the industrial arts.
Increased Capacity
The Steel Yard’s workforce
training programs, award winning industrial arts courses, residencies and
community open studio access will maximize the impact of nearly 1,800 hours of additional
shop time annually in an efficient, insulated and heated facility.
●
240 additional hours of
paid training programs for low-income Rhode Islanders
●
150 additional annual
course registrations
●
450 more paid teaching
hours for working artists
●
30 – 50 new youth
participants through school partnerships
Greater Accessibility
Industrial art
enthusiasts, students, hobbyists, event attendees and tour groups of all ages
will enjoy upgraded facilities to participate in all of our programs safely.
●
Updated ADA restrooms
available to everyone, year-round, supporting students, teachers and program
participants with special needs
●
Upgraded safety, heat and
ventilation for the comfort of diverse audiences
Commitment to the Environment
The Steel Yard is doing
our part with an improved facility that reinforces our commitment to a
climate-prepared neighborhood that is ready to meet the challenges of the
future.
●
40 KW solar array will
feed back into the grid
●
Complete restoration of
the historic electrical system circa 1920’s
●
400 sf of asbestos
containing materials is permanently removed
●
Repair and replacement of
thousands of square feet of windows, retaining the natural light that everyone
can appreciate
Economic Stimulus
Access to industrial space for artists is an important
indicator of the economic health of our community.
● $183,000 additional
annual economic activity, comprised of
o $100,000 new purchasing
of goods from other local businesses
o $8,800 new trainee
stipends for extreme-to-moderate low-income Rhode Islanders
o $20,000 in new
operating cost
o $40,000 added payments
to teachers, fabricators and public-artists
Historic Restoration
The Steel Yard’s campus is
on the National Register of Historic Places, a living example of Rhode Island’s
industrial heritage.
●
20,000 sf of restored
historic facades including steel and masonry walls, roofs and doors
●
2,000 sf of historic
windows are restored and repurposed
●
10,000 additional visitors
every year will learn about the site’s history from permanent displays about
labor and industry in Providence on multi-lingual signs across the site
The Steel Yard’s Programs
Mission
The Steel Yard’s historic
campus is a platform for professional artists, makers and the community to
practice and learn the industrial arts. The organization fosters creative and
economic opportunities, by providing workspace, tools, training and education,
while forging lasting links to a local tradition of craftsmanship.
Vision
We believe in a world still made by
hands, where individuals, neighbors, businesses, institutions, municipalities
and communities come together to experience the creative process in order to
enrich our private lives and public spaces.
Community Impacts
The Steel Yard is an award-winning industrial arts center, a
manufacturer of custom and functional public art, a craft school, shared
studio, and Providence’s most unique private outdoor venue. Our 3.8 acre campus
and 12,000 sf studio are located on the National Historic Register former home
of Providence Steel and Iron, in Providence’s
Industrial Valley.
Community members of all ages and abilities rely on the Steel
Yard to practice their craft, gain experience and knowledge and launch their
businesses.
Programs
Open Enrollment Courses provide arts education
and practical training while connecting people to the fundamental skills and
techniques used in an industrial shop. These courses are open to the public for
ages 15 and up, with subsidized tuition and need-based scholarships available.
These courses have been widely recognized for their unique blend of technical
and creative skill building.
The Public Projects Department creates commissioned
one-of-a-kind functional public-art projects and works closely with artists in
communities throughout Southern New England. The program has gained National
Recognition as a model that combines the personal expression of artists and
community placemaking with economic and cultural
outcomes. Locally commissioned work allows the Steel Yard to pay artists and
fabricators while providing vital amenities such as bike racks, trash cans,
benches and public art throughout New England.
Workforce Training Programs serve under-employed
Rhode Islanders living at or below the federal poverty line with access to
education, training and facilities to practice the industrial arts. Our
flagship training, Weld-to-Work, combines the creative curriculum of our
community courses with public-art fabrication and installations. Weld-to-Work
transforms participants from those who typically receive services to being able
to give back to their community. Weld-to-Work graduates go on to work in
manufacturing/industrial jobs with many returning to the Yard for Public
Project commission or work as Teaching Assistants.
Cultural Events, both public and
private, support our mission by utilizing our nearly two-acre inner campus as a
venue to combine the industrial arts with community building activities.
Revenue generated from site rentals helps support facility maintenance while
welcoming the community. The Steel Yard’s own fundraiser events play an
important role in public education by introducing audiences of all ages to the
industrial arts through free and low-cost demonstrations and hands on
activities throughout the year.
Residencies in Ceramics, Metals,
and Jewelry provide resources and space for artists to gain access to our
equipment and materials and become leaders in the creative community. The
program is designed to assist emerging to mid-level artists in growing and
strengthening their art practice in a supportive, cooperative environment
through access to the Steel Yard’s studios and facilities. Participating
artists have the opportunity to work together, to take part in community events
and sales and to be creative leaders in a vibrant community shop.
Special Programs allow the Steel Yard
to extend the educational expertise of the community to partner organizations
who bring their constituents, students and/or employees for team building and
technical training programs in any of the studios.
Volunteers at the Steel Yard are
engaged with the Yard at every level of operations from corporate and
professional coaching to site maintenance and preparations. Teams collaborate
to produce elements for spectacular fundraiser events and community-built
infrastructure across the site. Volunteers learn through mentorship and shared
purpose while preserving the Yard for the community.
Small Business Incubation in The Steel Yard’s
office building, where creative businesses enjoy below market rent and many
other benefits of co-locating at the Yard (current tenants include a sewing
studio and a youth craft program)
Open Studio Hours allow artists to rent space and time to
develop and complete their projects. There are no private studios at the Steel
Yard, but spaces within the shop can be rented by the day or up to three months
through micro-residencies while outdoor spaces can be utilized to realize large
scale projects.
The RISD/Steel Yard -
Kiln Yard is a community resource shared between institutions and
intentionally designed to bring together art students, community artists and
Steel Yard residents for the pursuit of new and traditional ceramic kiln design
and experimentation.
Links/
Resources
Rudy Bruner Report
for Urban Excellence
For more Information on the
Steel Yard’s Programs and History Download
this Report from the
Rudy Bruner Awards For Urban Excellence
Rhode Island State
Council on the Arts
State Announces $4.6 million in Capital Grants for Arts, Culture, Heritage, and Public Historic Sites. The Steel Yard to be awarded $300,000. January 9, 2018.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3pREu543YbYODUweWF0alp6ZGFtUndKZkZLNWJoZzI3ZkRv/view
State Announces $4.6 million in Capital Grants for Arts, Culture, Heritage, and Public Historic Sites. The Steel Yard to be awarded $300,000. January 9, 2018.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3pREu543YbYODUweWF0alp6ZGFtUndKZkZLNWJoZzI3ZkRv/view
Providence Business News
The Steel Yard’s Weld to Work and
Public Projects department featured in the 2017 Annual PBN Giving Guide
http://thesteelyard.org/documents/givingguide2017-web-pdf.pdf
http://thesteelyard.org/documents/givingguide2017-web-pdf.pdf
Take Magazine
Take Magazine wrote an article about what we do here at the
Yard and who our shop services in our community. To read all about it, click
here Take Magazine covers the Steel Yard (pdf)
Providence Monthly
Amanda M. Grosvenor provides an exclusive and in-depth exploration of the Steel Yard's planned $2.7 restoration and construction.... The Superstudio.
Amanda M. Grosvenor provides an exclusive and in-depth exploration of the Steel Yard's planned $2.7 restoration and construction.... The Superstudio.
The Steel Yard Logos
The Steel Yard Photos