New McColl studios allow 8 local artists to help each other grow

Virginia Brown
·4 min read

Artist Samantha Rosado moved to Charlotte in May and already things are falling into place, including snagging one of eight slots for new studios set up especially for local artists at the McColl Center for Art + Innovation.

Rosado, who earned her Master of Fine Arts from Louisiana State University, moved to Charlotte in May to join her fiancé. Weeks after she arrived, she saw the McColl Center’s email request for applications for its new studio rental program.

Now, she produces works out of a studio on the third floor of the North Tryon Street center and leads workshops at the McColl’s Open Studio Saturday events.

“Since I’ve been in Charlotte, it has been only good things,” Rosado said. “I have had so many opportunities that I was not expecting and have felt really hopeful that my art career can take off here.”

Artist Samantha Rosado mixes paint in her new studio at the McColl Center for Art + Innovation on Tryon Street in uptown Charlotte. The McColl recently opened eight new studios, just for local artists. Rosado and seven other artists chosen by the McColl moved into the renovated third floor studios earlier this summer.
Artist Samantha Rosado mixes paint in her new studio at the McColl Center for Art + Innovation on Tryon Street in uptown Charlotte. The McColl recently opened eight new studios, just for local artists. Rosado and seven other artists chosen by the McColl moved into the renovated third floor studios earlier this summer.

Helping local artists

Historically the McColl Center has supported artists from across the country in its weeks-long artist-in-residency program. Some alumni, like Juan Dolhare (Argentina) and Javier de Frutos (U.K.), have come from international locations.

But that focus was limited.

“Generally residences are designed to bring emerging artists into a city to connect with local artists, to build a national or international creative community, and then they leave,” said Jonell Logan, the McColl Center’s creative director. “There was this gap that was taking place, so we really wanted to be intentional in thinking about how to support local artists.”

Beginning about two years ago, leaders at the McColl Center began reexamining the organization’s strategic plan, with a goal to build opportunities for local artists, namely access to space, a pricey expenditure.

The COVID-19 pandemic created a natural period for construction — two large spaces on the third floor that had been used for artist residencies were converted into smaller spaces, nine studios in all.

The studios are subsidized by the Windgate Foundation, Bank of America and Chandra and Jimmie Johnson. Studio artists rent the space for one year, with the option to renew for another.

In all, 30 artists applied for studio space in this first round. “We know that there are more people who need spaces,” said Logan. “So we are trying to give enough people resources in two years to then move on and find another space.”

Jonell Logan, Creative Director at the McColl Center for Art + Innovation, said the eight new studios being rented to local artists at the McColl allow them to to collaborate with each other and use the McColl’s equipment to grow their careers.
Jonell Logan, Creative Director at the McColl Center for Art + Innovation, said the eight new studios being rented to local artists at the McColl allow them to to collaborate with each other and use the McColl’s equipment to grow their careers.

Communal labs

The eight artists selected represent a variety of focuses, from photography to painting, sculpture, and more. “We wanted a full range of creative practices,” Logan said, “so we are reflecting back the creatives in Charlotte.”

They invited members of the creative community to be part of a jury designed to help guide the decision-making. “We wanted to make sure that it’s not just our single voice … but (that of) the broader creative community here in Charlotte,” Logan said.

One current studio artist, Eboné M. Lockett, is at the McColl in a partnership with Charlotte Is Creative, and another, Malik J. Norman, is supported by an anonymous donor. The other artists include Wil Bosbyshell, Micah Cash, Christopher Holston, Kristen Rowell, and Nill Smith.

In addition to the affordable space, artists in the program also have access to the McColl’s many communal labs, where they can explore printmaking, 3D printing, laser cutting, digital media, ceramics, woodworking and sculpture. Plus, they’re included in Open Studio Saturdays and other programs that allow them to interact with each other and the public.

The eight local artists selected to rent the new studios at the McColl Center get access to communal labs for printmaking, 3-D printing and laser cutting, digital media, ceramics, woodworking and sculpture fabrication. This is the printmaking lab.
The eight local artists selected to rent the new studios at the McColl Center get access to communal labs for printmaking, 3-D printing and laser cutting, digital media, ceramics, woodworking and sculpture fabrication. This is the printmaking lab.

‘Get in the zone’

For Rosado, who moved into her studio in June, studio access gives her the space and solitude she needs to focus on her work, which colorfully reflects her Puerto Rican heritage.

“I think about Puerto Rican cultural and family dynamics, and the play between religion and sexuality,” she said. Both Rosado and her sister grew up Roman Catholic and are in same-sex relationships.

“(My art examines) interactions we have on a daily basis with our family,” she said. “Everyone is so different, but there’s a lot of love. There’s joy and chaos.”

Charlotte artist Samantha Rosado works on a painting in her new studio at the McColl Center. Thirty Charlotte area artists applied for the McColl’s new studio rental program. Rosado was one of eight chosen to occupy the renovated studio spaces for the first year.
Charlotte artist Samantha Rosado works on a painting in her new studio at the McColl Center. Thirty Charlotte area artists applied for the McColl’s new studio rental program. Rosado was one of eight chosen to occupy the renovated studio spaces for the first year.

The space allows her to “get in the zone,” Rosado said. “And it’s a good way to make friends.”

Artist interaction is another benefit of the studios, according to Logan. “It really is exciting because, not only do they get the space, they get to work together,” she said. “There’s this broader exchange of ideas and conversations around what’s happening in the larger art world.”

Cash, who is primarily a photographer but likes to work in a variety of media, agrees. “Being in the space, with this diverse group of artists, is a very fertile space to be in,” he said. “The facilities allow me to take risks and get messy in my studio, so I can go where the work takes me.”

Learn more

For more information on the McColl Center’s studio artist program, including studio hours, visit the McColl Center’s website at mccollcenter.org/artist-studios/.

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