When Kate Kelley lived in a Smith Hill apartment, she moved her living room furniture into the kitchen every time she required a photography studio. Even after placing the furniture on wheels, the shuffles grew tiresome after five years and crimped an expansion of her business.
So Kelley jumped at the opportunity to move into the Mercantile Block in Providence, a former industrial building converted to an arts-centric facility by arts organization AS220. Kelley moved into one of the artists’ residences in December and is pleased to cease playing the furniture shuffle. Beyond that, Kelley and others are optimistic that the project will spark a mini arts boon in the neighborhood.
“I feel like this particular part of downtown seems like it’s totally evolving,” said Kelley, who owns Kate Kelley Photography.
There’s more activity on the street, pop-up galleries are appearing and a Mexican restaurant will soon open on the first floor of the Mercantile Block.
AS220 put $13.5 million into the project, which officially opened June 13, although artists started moving in last fall. The 19th-century, four-story building underwent a complete rehab that included restoring the historic façade, turning a back alley into a vibrant patio space and repairing the tin ceilings and hardwood floors.
An eclectic mix of artists and businesses are populating the 50,000-square-foot building. All but two of the 22 residences are filled with photographers, graphic designers, filmmakers and other artists. Nonprofit organizations rounding out the space include the R.I. Council on the Humanities and College Visions, which helps steer high school students to college. Street-side, the building hosts a century-old locksmith business and a bar.
Besides the commercial storefronts, the Mercantile Block hosts AS220’s print shop and other programming space. The block is adjacent to the former Dreyfus Hotel, which AS220 previously renovated into office, studio and residential space.
“We like to think what we’re doing is reinforcing Providence as a destination,” she said.
The Mercantile Block offers AS220’s largest residences yet – measuring between 600 and 800 square feet. The studio apartments are still modest by most standards but provide just enough space for some artists.
Rich Giasson said his apartment fits the two saws and woodworking tools necessary to build guitars from cigar boxes. When he lived on the cramped third floor of a house in Warren, he made one guitar a year. Since moving into the Mercantile Block in late October, he has built five.
His girlfriend, April Gramolini, has space to set out a sewing table, her five sewing machines and everything else required to churn out wallets, belts and other accessories made from burlap coffee bags. Gramolini hopes the bolstered production proves enough for her to quit her day job as a sewer and focus on her personal-accessory business full time.
Beyond the space, the two say the building carries a good vibe.
“Everybody around is just creative and it inspires creative ideas,” Giasson said.
AS220 is focused on delivering affordable opportunities for artists seeking to advance their work. The Mercantile Block builds on the former Dreyfus Hotel site and the organization’s building on Empire Street, providing a place for artists to stay longer and physically spread out.
Povilas Mecys has done his share of moving around since emigrating from the Ukraine 15 years ago. He says the Mercantile provides not only a location to build his Web-design business, but a sense of place and identity.
“It’s like a little oasis in Rhode Island,” he said. •
