Theaster Gates’ Dorchester Artist Housing has been completed in Greater Grand Crossing, a South Side neighborhood, and is open to applications. Thirty-two homes have been designed to function as a mixed-income artist community near Gates’ Dorchester Projects and other properties refurbished into a cultural hub by Gates over the past several years. The Artist Housing offers two-bedroom apartment homes for $722 to $910 per month and three-bedroom apartment homes for $869 to $1150. Residents will be responsible for gas, electric and air conditioning. Those interested are encouraged to contact the leasing office at (773)324-2270 for information about pre-applications and more specific information about Section 8 and minimum and maximum income restrictions.

This artist housing is the result of a collaboration between the Rebuild Foundation, Brinshore Development and Landon Bone Baker Architects. In a phone conversation, Brinshore’s senior vice president Peter Levavi offered a breakdown of the campus and the individual units. At the center of the housing is an art center that includes a dance floor and a work room intended for artists to work on their own projects as well as teach classes. Of the thirty-two units, there are nine that include grand rooms the full height of the two-story spaces; preference for these spaces are given to working artists, dancers and musicians who might use the large rooms for studio and workspace. Eleven other units are affordable housing reserved for artists as well, with the remaining twelve intended for public housing for families interested in being part of such an actively artistic community.

Artist applicants will be screened based on income and proof of their art practices. Applicants who are shown to be artists and meet the other financial criteria will then be reviewed by a committee that is currently made up of individuals from Rebuild and Brinshore, but Levavi emphasized that their hope is for the resident artists to join the committee. (Matt Morris)