Patrick Short drives by the red-brick warehouse at Munger and North Haskell about every day, and he thought it could be perfect for his non-profit venture, Guerilla Arts. "I kept getting this little tug like, ‘That’s a really cool building, you should really find out about it,’" so he called the broker. And it turns out he was right — the 5,000-square-foot warehouse, which was built in 1900, is perfect for the studio, gallery and classrooms that Short wants to create to nurture artists in the transition between college and career.
There was one problem, though. He didn’t have any money. "I came up with this offer that I thought was ridiculous, and I showed it to my friend, who has worked in commercial real estate, and he said it was ridiculous," Short said. The offer, basically, was that if he could have the building rent-free for one year, he would use the building, which has been vacant for five years, for a higher purpose. He would make the building and the neighborhood better. And after one year of free rent, he told them, he could pay 25 cents a square foot per month. Ridiculous? Maybe. But they went for it. And Guerilla Arts is on its way.
Short hopes to have a 1,300-square-foot gallery ready by the end of the year. Classrooms and a second-floor studio will follow. The idea is to offer artists who are leaving college a work and exhibition space, especially for pieces that are "beyond their means" in scope and expense. He also wants to offer a summer program for high school students, modeled on a program at Boston University, where Short studied.
More after the jump.
Short, who lives in East Dallas, has shown his paintings in galleries all over the country. But he wanted to settle down and give something back to his hometown. He thinks Dallas has the energy to develop great artists and become a world-class arts center. "We’re not supporting young artists or doing anything to create interest in contemporary art," Short says. "There’s no reason why all of the great art has to come from New York and L.A., and then trickle down here eight years later. The only reason that happens is that there’s a difference in priorities here."
So he hopes to cause a shift in the city’s attitude about contemporary art from the old warehouse, which once was a Vietnam veterans’ motorcycle clubhouse. His friends and colleagues are helping with labor and amateur carpentry skills. Friends have donated HVAC and electrical work. Once the building is in better shape, Guerilla Arts can start having parties and events to raise money. In the meantime, "I’m looking for a plumber," he says.
