The current Dallas Arts District encompasses an astonishing expanse of acreage and architecturally significant buildings that have been lauded for years. Among its trendy scope of institutions are: the DMA, the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, the Crow Collection of Asian Art, the Nasher Sculpture?Center, the Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, and the AT&T Performing Arts Center. More recently, the openings of Dallas City Performance Hall, Klyde Warren Park, and The Perot Museum of Nature and Science seemed to cap Dallas?s ambitious mix of cultural venues. But, in fact, there?s more in the planning stages. Much more?and it?s happening south of downtown.
Cedars Union is currently an unmarked building?formerly the Boedecker Ice Cream Company that subsequently morphed into an office supply outlet?but it?s about to shake things up in a big way. Located at the intersection of Griffith and Ervay, the enterprise is coming onboard with a mammoth 40,000-squarefoot?facility that is slated to house studios and equipment that will benefit local and international artists with ?hands-on? assistance. The project is an offshoot of the Bowdon Foundation, an organization that has already been silently supporting artists?s causes for years. Floated with funds from the Bowdon family?s?highly successful investment in the oil and gas industry, the Cedars Union?s goal is to help artists get on their feet both creatively and financially. Spearheaded by a team of diverse and highly talented?individuals, the project is already underway and due to be fully functioning in 2016.
I sat at a long office table in the newly purchased Cedars Union building and chatted with three key players: Robert Hernandez, the group?s Executive Director; Ben Griffith, Program Manager; and Megan Bowdon, Board Member. The latter is a newly minted graduate of TCU and is fully cognizant of challenges?facing artists. However, she?s no ordinary student. She also confesses to being a proverbial black belt at black tie. Says she, ?I go from being ankle deep in sawdust at the studio to dressing in a ball gown. I?m used to that kind of transition.? While she may travel in a variety of social circles, it?s clear that Ms. Bowdon?s heart is deeply entrenched in the world of the arts. She slides a metal business card toward me across the table?s surface and exclaims, ?We made it in the studio.? It has rounded corners and?resembles a credit card rather than a typical card used in business. It gets the job done with flair and, thus, I begin to get the idea. She and her brother, Matthew, are the driving forces behind Cedars?Union?and they lobbied their father to lend entrepreneurial heft when it comes to helping artists not only stay afloat but prosper. The happy corollary is that this also benefits the community in?which they work.
Hernandez clarifies the programs. ?We want artists to have access to studio spaces, and we also want to provide every kind of help they might need.? This, I learn, includes expensive tools, large-format printers, and highly complex routers. All of these things, not to mention more mundane paints, brushes, canvas, and wood are often beyond the pale in terms of expense when it comes to lean artistic budgets. ?They simply don?t make enough to even finance their next project,? notes Megan. But she immediately?follows up with a solution for that particular challenge. ?We?re also working on micro-lending. Just one-thousand dollars is often enough to help struggling artists keep their work going.? True. And, by the way, what an innovative and stellar idea. This is definitely not business as usual, and that?s terrific. What is even better, is that the goal of Cedars Union is to help artists learn to become more fiscally responsible and viable in terms of presenting their work to both galleries and the public. All parties nod in solemn agreement when someone utters, ?Artists aren?t usually the best at marketing their own work.? No kidding. But help is on the way in the form of the Cedars Union. For instance, they are also planning a service that will help connect artists with parttime work. Thus, they can keep up an income stream while they work at their vocation.
Moreover, the scope of the programs they?ll be supporting is far-reaching. ?We want to include all the arts,? notes Hernandez. Thus, every discipline will be represented: painting, sculpture, theater, music, sound design, and new media. The latter is something the group finds especially compelling; if it?s ?new,? their faces light up. They look almost startled, and ready to call people to get input on what?s needed to implement an effective plan of action. None of this would be possible, though, without an?able construction expert. Thus, Ben Griffith is dubbed a Program Manager, and it?s noted that he has a long and highly laudable background in construction. Ben is eminently attractive and it?s clear that he?s completely devoted to the project at hand. He also sings the praises of his ?boss,? Ken Bowdon. ?From the moment I met him, I felt welcome. He is such an unusually kind person.? They all begin to erupt in laughter and describe ?family dinners? that include colleagues and friends. Apparently it?s not unusual for the family patriarch to host over two-dozen people, all of whom feel deeply engaged in both the Bowdon familial life and the ongoing process of entrepreneurial and artistic projects.
Ben takes me to a vast plate-glass window on the second floor that looks out onto a cavernous space that will soon be converted into working studios. ?Look at that,? he says. ?It?s about 15,000 square feet and we wish it was even more.? The building, I should note, encompasses three stories, and the entire facility will be converted into use for the Cedars Union project. It?s almost outrageous in terms of a renovation project. But one gets the feeling that it is completely in scale when it comes to an undertaking by the Bowdon family. Plus, Ben Griffith has already completed a number of projects for them, and it?s clear that his best and most devoted work will be focused like a laser on the new and thriving?project at 1201 S. Ervay.
Very close by, the MAC (McKinney Avenue Contemporary) has purchased property and they, too, are moving their operations to the area south of downtown. They?ll be occupying what used to be an old tractor showroom, and both the gallery and the Kitchen Dog Theater will become neighbors to the Cedars Union. Both ventures plan to keep the area friendly to artists and not price them out of the area, something that happened in both the State-Thomas and Uptown neighborhoods. The Cedars is admittedly a bit rough, and with a bit of careful planning, everyone is hoping it will largely stay that way. Dallas is known for gentrifying things at such a rapid pace that artists are left to fend for themselves by moving to outlying areas. However, now they?re leading the pack in terms of new and vital ways to enliven the city. In a word, the Cedars Union is implementing what amounts to a new, alternative Arts District that is very, very different from the one that has been nabbing publicity over the years. Dallas could use a dose?of grittiness, and the Cedars Union is absolutely perfect when it comes to filling the bill. Moreover, artists may finally get a bit of a break instead of having to live out the lean sting of a character in?La Boh?me. Enough already with artistic poverty. And kudos to the Cedars Union when it comes to just ?bringin? it? when it comes to creating opportunities that simultaneously encourage art and thriving entrepreneurial initiatives. The combination of so many artistic types coming together from diverse backgrounds is likely to operate as a kind of combustion chamber. Thus, get ready for rapid motion and a bit of fiery enthusiasm. It will make it easy to spot the Cedars Union. Just look for the luminous glow on the horizon. –P