Are Artists Flocking to Highland Park?

in general — by — July 23, 2010
Note: I began this post on July 18th, before I had even heard of the local gay bashing. Don’t remember why now, but didn’t finish the post, and looking over my drafts today I saw it. I think it is still a good post to put up. Crime and incidents can happen anywhere. One way we continue to make communities and neighborhoods safer is by refusing to allow ourselves to be frightened- by taking back the neighborhood, so to speak. I hope we see Highland Park continue to build a creative community, and see diversity flourish here.

Sitting and enjoying an iced decaf caramel latte today, at my favorite coffee house in Highland Park, Tazza D’oro, I noticed a flyer up on the window for affordable living for artists. This sounds perfect! Like exactly what I was looking for many years ago, and eventually found elsewhere.

Rent starting at $175/month, allows an artist to put their time, money and energy into their work instead of how to pay a high rent bill.

Highland Park is a perfect neighborhood for an artist. Enough bus lines come in and out for easy transportation, and there is much in walking distance too, such as the new Bakery Square, as well as the East Liberty/ Whole Foods shopping area.

Artists, and a community of artists being a life and a creativity that can only benefit any neighborhood. There is an artist who lives (???) somewhere just on Stanton Ave I think near Euclid or N. St. Clair. At least that is where his studio is. In a row of garages that can be rented, I will often see him working away on a big painting. I doubt these garages are heated, and I’m not even sure I remember seeing electricity in them (but there may be), but he will be in there, during any month of the year, working away. That mindset and gut-felt desired to create makes artists a unique type of person, and an asset to any community.

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