July 27, 2006

[Originally published in the 2005 Expo newspaper]

[Read other venue profiles in the Expo DIY Library.]

CELLspace--Collectively Explorative Learning Labs--located in San Francisco at 1056 Bryant Street plays many roles. It houses the Crucible Steel Gallery, a place for emerging Bay Area artists to display their art.

CELLspace also offers more than 50 weekend- and semester-length classes, ranging in topics from Spanish language, Excel to electronic music composition; pinata-making to break-dancing and metalworking.

It has generous rehearsal spaces and rooms for on-site caretakers and artists-in-residence. It is the home base for dozens of community groups, including Mission Urban Arts, a daily youth arts program for students ages 13 to 19.

CELLspace's interior design is pure love-drenched anarchy. The main event space has a maximum capacity of 299, that's 299 people in addition to the mirrors, refrigerators, kitchen niches, and myriad comfortable-looking sofas. One gets a sense that this place is well-loved and constantly in use.

CELLspace is a place for which a great number of people are both quietly and vocally grateful. Their gratitude is understandable.

In the spring of 2003, CELLspace was shut down for two months after it was determined by local authorities that they needed a POE (Place of Entertainment) permit.

Qualifying for their POE permit meant approximately $300,000 in building upgrades, including soundproofing the south wall, seismic retrofitting, upgrading catwalk supports, installing a number of new safety and exit signs as well as brand new doors for both sides of the building. It meant working very closely with city bureaucracies to ensure the space's survival.

Now, two years later, they've got their POE permit, and CELLspace is ready to party.

"Before, our POE was only issued conditionally, so advertising for events was limited," says Executive Director Zoe Garvin. "Now we can advertise for events again, which is great, because 60 to 70 percent of our revenue comes from events and space rental income."

Recent events include the Mission Movie Anniversary Screening Party, a Clean-Fuel Caravan Cabaret, and a performance by Circo Mutante called "The Dream Machine."

No doubt after reading about arts triumph once again, you want to know how you can get yours. Here are a few ways to get involved with CELLspace right now:

CELLspace always welcomes more volunteers to add to their 500-strong pool of current helpers; and because of San Francisco's Project 20, your volunteer time can even go towards working off your parking tickets.

In October, CELLspace will be celebrating their new POE status for a full month. They are looking for people to help them celebrate, both as patrons and performers.

"We will be producing some of our own events, but we are also accepting proposals," says Garvin.

The Mission Urban Arts program has room for more students. Also, the Mission Village Flea and Farmer's Market is open every Saturday at CELLspace from 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

For information on what is currently showing at the Crucible Steel Gallery, events listings, course catalogs or general information about CELLSpace, please check their Web site at www.cellspace.org.