F Street Artists
In 2000, a group of artists united under the banner "Downtown Artist's
Coalition" fought to save the last working art studios in downtown
Washington, DC. The studios were housed in a group of 19th century
townhouses in the 900 block of F Street, NW, all of which were threatened
with demolition to make way for a new office building.
During this period, as a result of favorable politics and an influx of private equity, much of downtown Washington was undergoing a massive transformation in its private and commercial real estate sectors. With this in mind, the artists, including Michael Berman, Stuart Gosswein, Judy Jashinsky, Richard Dana, Jason Gubiotti, Mimi Masse, Nancy Van Meter and Ian Lowrie, sought to document the rich history of Washington's so-called "downtown arts district" which at one time included studios used by Gilbert Stuart, Rembrandt Peale, and Matthew Brady.
Considering what was at stake both historically and in present day context, I sought, and was granted permission to visit with each of the artists and photograph them at work in their studios as a way of documenting this important legacy of the City's cultural history.
Ultimately, the Coalition, by working with the developer, city officials, and historic preservation groups, were able to preserve two of the townhouses and six studios within the larger, newly constructed Carroll Square complex. The effort on the part of Downtown Artist's Coalition demonstrated that it is possible to successfully combine new construction with old, and the commercial realm with that of the arts.
