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"The Light Factory is a spectacular organization!" growls BareBones managing director Lambert, "and I think they have wallowed in obscurity for long enough. We need to shine a light on how great they are."
Street-front galleries, an idea floating about town in recent weeks, would be a nice start. TLF personifies the variety and synergy that makes Spirit Square so unique. Marcie Kelso, executive director, tells us that two galleries are commandeered round-the-clock for exhibitions. Those galleries double as screening rooms, and TLF also shows films in both the McGlohon and the Duke.
About the only spaces Light Factory doesn't use -- yet -- are the dance studios. When you remember those photography classes, serving NW students by day and adults by night, and the organization's utilization of office space, you get the idea how intimately wedded they are to Spirit Square. They are the glue that holds it all together and makes sense of all the variety that's there, the distinctive soul of the place. Yes, they're an arts education center all by themselves.
They are also the poster child organization for the benefits of residing at Spirit Square, in the city's heart.
"When we left our location behind the stadium," Kelso points out, "our attendance annually was about 12,000. And as I've said before -- there are gallery counters on the door, so these are documented numbers -- 72,000 people went through the galleries last year. We certainly like to think we keep growing and improving and working toward excellence with our exhibits and our films and our classes, but having a really high-profile location is so important. It's a symbiotic relationship. Spirit Square has helped us, and we have helped Spirit Square."
The improved quarters have also improved the level of exhibits that The Light Factory can host. The one piece missing in the puzzle, the ability to show 35mm film on-site, has obvious utility for any developer considering the retail potential of the property.
All in all, Kelso is now optimistic about securing a more prominent place in the next redevelopment of Spirit Square. There were some very anxious moments, however, before the BOCC appreciated her challenges and concerns.
"The analogy I've been using," Kelso recaps, "is we're more comparable to an oil tanker than a speedboat when it comes to turning. We plan our exhibits two years out, and our exhibits have very specific demands as far as the space where they are placed, and the climate control, and security, and all those things. So we just couldn't physically find a way to move and still be able to show our fall programs."
The BOCC turnabout last week didn't guarantee a two-year window, but Kelso confides that the minimum breathing room she'll need to preserve The Light Factory's continuity is a Spirit Square occupancy that lasts through January 2008. That's just one month past what Shields' proposal secured -- a virtual lock when you consider how long it will take for a County committee to iron out RFP language, gather proposals, and decide on a new course for Spirit Square.
If Kelso hasn't quite witnessed the onset of universal respect and irresistible goodwill for The Light Factory, her faith has been largely restored in the citizens and the Commissioners, who now seem to be on the same page in addressing the city's needs and priorities.
"Commissioner Clark was very eloquent about acknowledging that communications didn't work like they were supposed to," Kelso explains. "And I think that's basically what you've seen. In the end, it was really exciting to see the process work!"
