Urban Culture
The concept for Urban Culture Project emerged through extensive conversations with individuals in the arts and business communities oriented toward furthering Kansas City’s development as a dynamic center for artists and contemporary art. Informed by the success of the Crossroads District — an urban neighborhood that had evolved almost entirely through the small-scale, entrepreneurial efforts of artists and creative businesses — UCP imagined infusing a similarly grassroots, artist-driven energy and activity into the Downtown “Loop,” where for many years it had been almost entirely absent.
UCP was simultaneously driven by the real needs and desires of artists for studio, exhibition and performance spaces where they could take risks in a non-commercial setting, collaborate freely with other artists, share their work and contribute to the continued development of the arts community and downtown area. Obtaining temporary no- or low-cost leases from landlords of previously vacant street-level spaces, then teaming architects and artists to collaborate on designing improvements to the spaces to make them suitable for a range of programming, UCP thus began creating new opportunities for artists of all disciplines, highlighting the current and longstanding impact of artists in the community and contributing to downtown’s revitalization.
Since launching in 2003, UCP has transformed ten different storefront spaces into new contemporary arts venues, and has developed into a nationally esteemed and emulated model distinguished by its artist-centered structure, high quality programming, community impact and advocacy for artists and grassroots activity. A leading-edge, artist-centered initiative, UCP stimulates and stokes the creative community from the inside-out – serving as a home base for serious artists, setting a high bar, encouraging innovation and collaboration, supporting experimentation and fostering cross-disciplinary exchange, while simultaneously highlighting the art community’s strengths, impact and importance to a broader public, including heightening KC’s profile nationally.
UCP presently encompasses three street-level spaces: la Esquina, Paragraph and Urban Culture Project Space; and two studio facilities currently providing free studios to 13 artists for one-year terms: Bonfils and pARTnership Place. Through establishing, operating, programming and promoting these venues, UCP provides new opportunities for local artists and curators, builds and cross-pollinates audiences for their work, and contributes to downtown Kansas City’s ongoing revitalization.
