BEAT RICE STUDIOS/OPEN SPACE DALLAS

 

In 2014, I made a temporary move to Texas for 5 years in support of my partner’s professional goals. I needed a studio to work and nothing was presenting itself.  In Dallas circa 2015, space for artists was limited. On a whim after an espresso break in an industrial part of the city, I took a left turn into a neighborhood of older buildings and came across a dilapidated warehouse with a "for sale" sign in its front weeds. I immediately had a vision of a grand creative space for artists to work and collaborate. After negotiating a price, securing a loan, I designed a complete transformation of this building and within six months artists filled the spaces. Some artists stayed for a couple of months, others spent years creating in the studios.  Artists were Jennifer Ayyad, Kristen Cochran, Hilary Couch(me),Laura Dray, Erika Jaeggli, Jill Nonnemacher, Ricardo Salas, Keer Tanchak, and Deborah Welch.

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I founded Beat Rice Studios in 2016, naming it after one of the building's cross streets, Beatrice Street. The studios carried on until the sale of the building in 2021. 

 

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