"They needed the space and we had it." photo, D.Castleman

Behind ten, somber, dark doors in Olivet Covenant are artist studios of various sizes and sundry content. Behind one door are saws and nails and half-finished installation pieces made of wooden frames, faucets and pipes. Behind another door are mural pieces and self-made airbrush templates of faces from the artist's friends to John Coltrane. While the content is diverse, the studios are all occupied by artists appreciative of being granted a place to lay their paint, particularly when this place allows them to be near friends.

About two years ago, seven or so artists met to talk about their art and their shared spiritual beliefs. They decided to make it a regular thing. One of the artists, Dayton Castleman, works for the Coalition for Christian Outreach (CCO). CCO recently opened a metro-Philly branch to work with art students in the city at Olivet Covenant at 22nd and Mount Vernon Streets in Fairmount. Castleman, who was working in a suburban district for the CCO, visited the metro office and found dusty, quiet rooms waiting to be used again. In particular, there were ten rooms, situated on a small, balcony-framed floor overlooking the gymnasium. Castleman took one look at this massive empty space and with his artistic eye, knew what he would like to see happen. He and Reverend Linda Jaymes collaborated on his idea to use the empty rooms as artist studios. A month later twelve artists found a communal home for their art practices (one artist is pregnant and doesn't require space, and two are sharing a studio). Now Castleman also works at the metro branch, and has been joined by Andy Campbell who works both for the CCO and Olivet Covenant in charge of College and Young Adult Outreach for the church. Castleman primarily works with students from Pennsylvania Academy of the Arts and Andy Campbell works with students from the University of the Arts.

Castleman, who attends Olivet, serves as a liaison between the congregation and the artist group affectionately named "The Church" because of their studio homes. Jaymes has been at Olivet for seven years and says she has wanted to do something with the space for a long time. She has wanted the church to serve a need in the neighborhood such as offering daycare or opening a women's shelter. Unfortunately, the church does not have enough of a membership to sustain a real ministry. "The church hasn't had a lot of real contact in the community ... the church is very conservative," the reverend admits.

180 degree composite view of interior of Olivet "Church."        photo, D. Castleman

She hopes that the new addition of artists in the building will change the community's perspective of the church. The congregation is an older crowd. That there are few young faces that look to the pulpit on Sunday mornings is what Jaymes sees as the main turnoff of the Fairmount church, whose members nevertheless she believes, compose a very loving entity. A dedicated bunch, some of the congregation has even moved into the neighborhood from the suburbs to be closer to the church. "If we could start getting people through here . . . maybe they'd get curious and want to find out more about the church."

And that's it. That's the only real expectation the church has of the artists--- just a hope that they will enrich the relationship the church has with the neighborhood. When forming this partnership, Jaymes made it clear that there would be no strings attached. When asked about the generosity of this contract, she shrugged, "They needed the space and we had it."

This is a dream come true for the artists. There is no rent, no costs for electricity or heating or an obligated utilization of their art. Approximately 2,000 square feet of space was given free of charge. Jaymes says, "It's expensive. They need electrical outlets, the cost to heat, and the artists are going to try to chip in, but they aren't required to."

Resident artist Ben Volta explains that Olivet has performed an act of charity. "What's wonderful about the church is that what they've done is so backward . . . The patrons of the arts get to have their share in forming culture. . . . with them allowing us to come in here and ask for nothing, in a way they've become our patrons." Tim Gierschick, a fellow artist-in-residence, adds, "Not only have they gone backward and said we are going to be your patrons, but they've not put restrictions on what we are going to produce . . . It's a huge amount of trust they've given us."

The artists are also grateful for a chance to interact habitually with other artists and the opportunity to form a real community. With the shared space, the group has become capable of growing from a monthly meeting (in some public place or home), to regular interaction, a condition allowing allowing for feedback of the artists' work and ongoing conversation with people who have similar values. Gierschick explains, "Other people are coming from the same direction and going in the same direction. [The community] wasn't something that I always had." Although the artists are affiliated with different denominations, they have a shared faith which allows them to bond on a deeper level. Volta reasons that their shared faith strengthens their friendships. "The faith aspect doesn't have to do with the art, it has to do with the community," he explained, adding,
"It doesn't make the community better, it makes it more interesting."

With Olivet's connection to the CCO, the "Church" is able to offer art students from many Philadelphia campuses a place to congregate with working artists. Last month, New York artist Tim Rollins spoke at the church to the Church artists and to other student artists attending college in the city. The CCO in conjunction with Olivet Covenant are trying to plan these types of conversations and speakers on a monthly basis.

The Church artists are forming ties in other ways to the Philadelphia art community. For example, Gierschick, who works with iconography and shapes, using an array of media such as Gesso, pencil, enamel and ink, has been a contributor for years to the Samuel S. Fleisher Art Memorial. Currently, he is working as an art handler for the Barnes Foundation performing conservation assessment activities. Volta graduated from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and is now attending the University of Pennsylvania. He has recently exhibited pieces at the Slought Foundation, the University City Art League. He has also shown outside of the city such as at the White Box Annex in the Chelsea district of Manhattan.

To obtain more information about Olivet Covenant or the artists, e-mail Castleman at artdialogue@gmail.com.

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