ARTS

Art, by their bootstraps

Meet three of the galleries that embody the spirit of the East Austin Studio Tour

By Jeanne Claire van Ryzin
AMERICAN-STATESMAN ARTS WRITER
Thursday, November 12, 2009

If there's one point that the annual East Austin Studio Tour has made clear in its five years it's this: A DIY spirit continually propels Austin's creative community.

Forget relying on established institutions. Austin's young artists find ways to do it for themselves — striking up collectives, colonizing leftover buildings, starting indie galleries and otherwise finding ways to make their art and get it seen.

This year EAST is bigger than ever, with a mind-boggling 154 studios featuring the work of more than 270 artists now spread out over two weekends.

Prioritizing what to see on the tour is daunting. Consider, then, starting with the kind of destinations that have come to define the East Austin arts scene — the spunky DIY spaces started by Austin's energetic artists. Here are some suggestions.

jvanryzin@statesman.com; 445-3699

Big Medium, 5305 Bolm Road, www.bigmedium.org

Where EAST began. The artist trio known as Sodalitas — Shea Little, Jana Swec and Joseph Phillips — colonized a row of warehouses seven years ago. They carved a gallery out of the cavernous space, encouraged fellow artists to open studios nearby and began a string of exhibits, one of which grew into the widely buzzed-about Texas Biennial that now tours the state. And the trio organized an open studio tour for East Austin artists, now the sprawling event known as EAST. Big Medium is currently home to 16 artists, including Little, Swec and Phillip.

One of the newest of the independent artist-run galleries to spring up on the east side, Birdhouse Gallery hangs its shingle out at a bungalow that serves as an exhibit showcase for emerging artists. And for EAST, Birdhouse becomes home to more than 100 artists with the 'Teeny Tiny 4" x 4" Art Show' featuring art work that's all 4-inch-by-4-inch in size.

Additional EAST hours:12 to 3 p.m. Nov. 16-21

Co-Lab, 613 Allen St. www.colabspace.org

The forward-thinking folks who started Co-Lab are tapped into where so much of contemporary art is headed: toward the temporary, site-specific, performance-based projects that bust boundaries of genre and media. With new exhibit/performances each week, Co-Lab acts as an incubator for those artists who are pushing art's most cutting of cutting edges. For EAST, Co-Lab hosts a daily-changing lineup of outdoor and indoor installations, interactive pieces and performances including a collaborative wall mural and a bike-in movie.

Additional EAST hours: 6 to 10 p.m. Nov. 16, 6 to 9 p.m. Nov. 17-19, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Nov. 20

Pump Project Art Complex, 702 Shady Lane. www.pumpproject.org.

What started in 2005 as the collaborative effort of a few is now an official 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The big yellow 1950s warehouse just off East Seventh Street houses working studios for more than 30 artists and craftspeople.

East Austin Studio Tour 2009

When:All studios are open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 14-15 and Nov. 21-22. Additional events run Nov. 16-20.

Cost: Free

Information and maps:www.eastaustinstudiotour.com