Austin’s Popular Gallery of Graffiti Searches for a New Location - Austin, TX
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WalksfarTX
N 30° 16.553 W 097° 45.186
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The art at the HOPE Outdoor Gallery was not meant to be permanent. The gallery itself was not meant to be permanent, either. Now in its six year, the paint park will soon be moving from Baylor Street to a new location, though it has yet to find one.
Waymark Code: WMVYMK
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 06/11/2017
Views: 1
Austin Chronicle
Established in 2010 as a short-term experiment, the park has evolved into a local icon, the backdrop for countless selfies and a destination for tourists from around the world. Moving, says its founder, Andi Scull Cheatham, is the next step in its evolution.
The property belongs to Vic Ayad, a principal with Castle Hill Partners, which is headquartered in the Texas Military Institute castle perched on the hilltop above the gallery. The paint park began when Cheatham approached Ayad about creating an art installation to promote positive messages on the site of an abandoned construction project from the 1980s. Ayad and his partner on the project, architect Dick Clark, had planned to build condos there, but the financial crisis of 2008 intervened and the plan stalled. They agreed to let artists associated with Cheatham's HOPE Campaign paint the walls for six months, assuming the next step would be construction. No one anticipated how popular it would become.
Because while the park is free to visitors, it's not free to operate. Ayad says he pays about $100,000 each year in property taxes, insurance, and holding costs for the land. He and Cheatham's HOPE Campaign together have paid for trash collection, overnight security, and fences along the side of the property. Developers call him every week to inquire about the land, which, contrary to a popular rumor, is perfectly buildable.
On a pretty day, the site can attract more than a thousand visitors – families, elementary school classes, teens, Segway tours, buses of tourists. Volunteers help direct people and pick up trash, but they can't manage it all. Baylor Street and other nearby thoroughfares are strained with constant traffic, noise, and spillover graffiti from the gallery.
Once a suitable location is chosen, the HOPE Campaign will undertake a capital campaign to help fund the gallery's transition. For now, Cheatham is collecting input on a survey accessed from the gallery's Facebook page (www.facebook.com/hopeoutdoorgallery).
Ayad remains optimistic. "I'm confident that something is going to work out soon," he says. "The wheels are in motion, the karma is good, and God is smiling on the HOPE Outdoor Gallery."