The Caroline Collective, a co-working and art studio/gallery space will shut its doors in September after five years, reports CultureMap Houston. Co-creator Ned Dodington says that the decision is not related to the attempted robbery of a Caroline Collective member on Thursday morning, which made the news when the unnamed member shot two of the robbery suspects. “This is all completely amicable,” Dodington told CultureMap. “We launched the project knowing that, if it became time to develop the property, we would explore other options.”
Co-working is a recent trend that is meant to meet the business needs of independent contractors/entrepreneurs and to promote creative collaboration. The Caroline Collective threw artists and nonprofit arts organizations into the mix, with the mission to “positively impact the cultural landscape of Houston.”
“Right now,” says Dodington, “we’re looking to find the best solutions so our members aren’t left in the lurch.” At this time, these plans may include starting a Houston branch of The HUB, a Vienna-based “incubator” with a more global idea of collaboration.
Meanwhile, as amicable as the agreement may have been, the closure identifies yet another neighborhood where real estate developers have followed grass roots arts organizations and stirred up enough excitement to make it financially unviable for the organizations to stay.
