Let the artists move to Hamilton

[rousseau]

We recently went into Toronto to pick up a piece of art from Roger Wood:



We chatted for a while with this very personable gentleman, and when the subject of his living/working arrangement came up he mentioned that he was thinking of moving to Hamilton. Why? Lower rental costs and the atmosphere of the city downtown. He said he was tired of all of the development going on in the Liberty Village area, and wouldn't mind buying a cheap place with a shop on the first floor and accommodations above it (apparently there are such places listed at the MLS website in the $200K range).

This got me to wondering: where would you have suggested he buy this type of place in Hamilton? James North? Barton? He said he makes most of his money from orders generated at an annual arts show in Philadelphia, so I would imagine that street traffic wouldn't be all that important.

Just to be clear: my post here is not an invitation for a zealous busybody to make contact with Mr. Wood regarding the possibility of a move to Hamilton. Rather, I'm just curious what streets the Hammertown intelligentsia would recommend in this hypothetical situation.

[RePinion]

I'm glad you posted this question.

Obviously, most of the artistic activity in the city is presently concentrated around James North, where a lot of the resources which many artists find useful (e.g. gallery space, art supply shops, art centres, etc.) are also located. James North is, I guess, as close to an art scene "ground zero" as we have in this city, and if Mr. Woods is looking to work/reside in the vicinity of other artists (and those directly involved in the business), this is probably the area to recommend. As I say, though, it is the "obvious" place to locate, and Mr. Woods may be looking for something a little more off the beaten track (not to suggest that James North is anywhere near as gentrified as somewhere like West Queen West, mind you).

Barton would be an interesting locale to choose. It maintaings a vast collection of good old-stock commercial buildings which could easily be converted into suitable studio space, and is relatively conveniently situated. It is certainly a gritty area, particularly in comparison to the highly gentrified Liberty Village from which Woods currently hails, but it seems that he is looking to escape the yuppy scene, so perhaps Barton is the place to recommend. Beasley is also a decidely ungentrified urban locale, but it is dominated by large disused warehouses rather than small commercial buildings, so perhaps it would not be suitable in this case.

Other than that, Dundas maintains a sizeable population of artists (and art buyers), but real estate costs are obviously higher there, and the aesthetic of the place is more leafy Victorian town than gritty downtown, so it's probably not what Woods is looking for.

This is clearly not intended to be an exhaustive list. There are any number of suitable locations for artists in Hamilton - which is what makes the city such an attractive destination. It really is a rather easy sell.

I hope your friend ultimately makes the move.

[flar]

Artists in the Hamilton area are definitely concentrated on James North and in Dundas. I think the more daring and experimental artists and more stereotypical starving artists would be in the Jamesville area and the more established craft artists like potters and jewelery makers are in Dundas. I was surprised to see how many great artists there are in Dundas when I went on the studio tour here one year. I think there is another Dundas Studio Tour on Mother's Day weekend.

Personally, to be different, I would choose the Delta for a studio. There are lots of nice commercial buildings available there and some nice residential neighbourhoods to draw customers from.

[rousseau]

Interesting suggestions. My impression is that Mr. Wood's main motivation is economic. He gets his raw materials from flea markets around southern Ontario and Ebay, so the main thing an arts scene would provide him would be a social life. He did mention how much he enjoys the lively activity of the building he currently lives in off King near Lamport Stadium, in any case.

Of course, I must be cautious at how many words and ideas I am putting into his mouth. I met the man once, so these are all simply impressions.

Another impression I got from him was that the notion of artists being priced out of Toronto and moving to Hamilton was far from a novel one, but was in fact something that many people there consider doing.

[holymoly]

Originally Posted by rousseau

Another impression I got from him was that the notion of artists being priced out of Toronto and moving to Hamilton was far from a novel one, but was in fact something that many people there consider doing.

Did you think he meant they were mostly considering buying in Hamilton, or renting?

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by rousseau

...and wouldn't mind buying a cheap place with a shop on the first floor...

Reading comprehension not your strong suit?

[raisethehammer]

Lol.

If he wants a social life and to be near the action I'd suggest James North or Gore Park area.

[holymoly]

Originally Posted by rousseau

Reading comprehension not your strong suit?

That's just rude.

I wasn't asking what Wood is looking for. The fact that he wants to buy doesn't mean that most of the "artists being priced out of Toronto" do. With the widespread conversion of industrial space to loft condominiums in Toronto, artists lost an enormous amount of reasonably priced, rented working space. Before the conversion frenzy, many (myself included) lived illegally and cheaply in factory/warehouse spaces. It could be that cheap rentable space is what Toronto artists are looking for in Hamilton.

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by holymoly

That's just rude.

I wasn't asking what Wood is looking for. The fact that he wants to buy doesn't mean that most of the "artists being priced out of Toronto" do. With the widespread conversion of industrial space to loft condominiums in Toronto, artists lost an enormous amount of reasonably priced, rented working space. Before the conversion frenzy, many (myself included) lived illegally and cheaply in factory/warehouse spaces. It could be that cheap rentable space is what Toronto artists are looking for in Hamilton.

Yeah, you're right, that was rude. I blame the internet. And, typically enough, my pomposity backfired because it was actually me who was doing the misreading. I associated your "they" with the "we" used by Mr. Wood when he mentioned moving to Hamilton (I gather he was referring to a significant other who was not present when we met him).

To answer your question, he did not talk about whether other artists were interested in renting or buying. He only mentioned that he himself was interested in buying.

[RePinion]

I expect that most artists, particularly young ones, will be looking to rent space, as is their wont in most big cities. However, the nice thing about Hamilton is that real estate prices are still relatively so cheap that many artists who would not normally be able to own their live/work space might actually be able to do so here. Of course, they would still have to face the traditional hurdles of financing, etc ...

[oldcoote]

Artists are always the first to recognize value in deteriorated neighbourhoods.

James North is great because of the classic architecture and ethnic mix. The mix of retail between galleries, restaurants and markets is great as well, although it could use a cafe with a small patio.

The real heroes of the strip are people like Dave from Mixed Media who work so hard to promote it.

The double edged sword of course is that once a neghbourhood becomes funky and unique, people start to move there. Once people start to move there, rents start to increase which sometimes have the effect of displacing the artists that made the neighbourhood 'cool' to begin with.

That's probably a reason to support ownership over rent.

[FairHamilton]

Originally Posted by oldcoote

Artists are always the first to recognize value in deteriorated neighbourhoods.

James North is great because of the classic architecture and ethnic mix. The mix of retail between galleries, restaurants and markets is great as well, although it could use a cafe with a small patio.

The real heroes of the strip are people like Dave from Mixed Media who work so hard to promote it.

The double edged sword of course is that once a neghbourhood becomes funky and unique, people start to move there. Once people start to move there, rents start to increase which sometimes have the effect of displacing the artists that made the neighbourhood 'cool' to begin with.

That's probably a reason to support ownership over rent.

Owning vs. Renting is a truly a Hamilton benefit for some of the more established artists. Keeping in mind that established artists and musicians in Canada aren't traditionally multi-millionaires.

In my thread about musicians in Hamilton I got the feeling that many of the ones I listed (if not all) are homeowners. I'm sure one of the reasons they chose Hamilton over Toronto was they could afford to buy on a Canadian musician earnings.

[raisethehammer]

more on this topic:

http://raisethehammer.org/blog.asp?id=1052

[Boomtown_Hamilton]

James Street North and Barton Street East, as mentioned above are obvious choice locations. The others that I would also include in the mix would be Dundurn Street South and Locke Street South in the West-end and in the East-end I would target Ottawa Street North.

On the mountain I would target Concession Street.