Fort Worth painter Sarah Bales Losey remembers how special it felt when she had her artwork featured in an exhibition for the first time in March 2024.
She jumped on the opportunity to participate in 鈥淭ogether We Make Art Happen,鈥� a showcase at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center that celebrated diverse disciplines in North Texas.
The show opened doors for her, Losey said. She was optimistic her bright-colored concentric circles would be exhibited within the space again 鈥� a dream that never came into fruition.
The Fort Worth Community Arts Center closed its doors to the public at the end of December as the city-owned building is in need of roughly . City officials the arts center, but the .
In the months since its closure, Losey has noticed a lack of centralized space for emerging artists like herself to connect or grow.
鈥淚t has definitely felt like something is missing in Fort Worth,鈥� she said.
Established Fort Worth creatives and art leaders are also alarmed about the gap, with some concerned young talent possibly turning to other Texas cities for opportunities.
鈥淲e鈥檙e fortunate to be in a really super dynamic metroplex here where artists can live in Fort Worth and have opportunities in Dallas and vice versa,鈥� Wesley Gentle, executive director of Arts Fort Worth, said. 鈥淏ut without that type of local entry point, without that type of incubator space, artists have to find it somewhere. And if they don鈥檛 find it here, they鈥檒l go looking.鈥�
What led to the community arts center closure?
Arts Fort Worth, the organization that oversees the city鈥檚 public art and grant programs, managed the 77,000-square-foot community arts center since 2002.
Unlike other major cities 鈥� including , , and 鈥� Fort Worth does not have an office or department dedicated to arts and culture.
The Fort Worth Community Arts Center, originally known as the Fort Worth Art Center, opened in 1952 at 1300 Gendy St. as a space with nine galleries and two theaters for artists in what is now the city鈥檚 Cultural District.
In the two decades Arts Fort Worth oversaw the center, city leaders allocated $200,000 annually for management and repairs of the building. A 2022 assessment found that the structure needed $26 million in repairs 鈥� a number that quickly grew to .
A city-appointed task force spent several months in 2023 , but those plans were ultimately rejected.
By July 2024, Arts Fort Worth leaders determined that repairs were too significant and . In late June, the organization 鈥� the last remaining tenant of the building 鈥� to the first floor of the at 512 W. 4th St.
Marilyn Marvin, property management director with Fort Worth, said this summer that the redevelopment process for the community arts center was on hold while the city searched for a new economic development director. That .
鈥淚t is essential that both our city manager and the new director have the opportunity to fully assess the project and contribute to the next steps to ensure its long-term success,鈥� Marvin said at that time.
Artists concerned about missing opportunities
Inside SiNaCa Studios, molten glass is manipulated daily at extremely high temperatures to shape it into abstract sculptures, homeware and jewelry. Pedestrians passing the Magnolia Avenue studio often browse its store collection and leave with new art pieces for their homes.
The nonprofit has been a staple in the Near Southside for years, but it didn鈥檛 start off that way.
SiNaCa Studios that attracted supporters through their first exhibitions at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center.
Clifton Crofford, executive director of SiNaCa, said had it not been for the city-owned center, his nonprofit would not have been able to raise the money needed to eventually lease and renovate its current space.
Now he鈥檚 worried young artists won鈥檛 have that same opportunity to launch their creative ideas.
鈥淲e had a path. We had the resources that allowed us to grow,鈥� he said. 鈥淲ithout (the center) being there, there鈥檚 no path for a 20-year-old artist who has this brilliant idea or this thing they鈥檙e passionate about.鈥�
Fort Worth artist Jay Wilkinson, who exhibited his early works at the arts center in the 2000s, said various Fort Worth galleries offer new opportunities, but those spaces don鈥檛 have the capacity to handle as many artists.
William Campbell Gallery and Artspace111 are a few that have , Wilkinson said, but those spaces range between 3,000 and 6,000 square feet and are businesses that need to make a profit to survive. The community arts center provided space to freely experiment, he added.
鈥淎 space that doesn鈥檛 have a financial obligation to the success of your work is a testing ground for you to be able to figure out who you are as an artist and to be celebrated while you鈥檙e in the process,鈥� Wilkinson said.
Crofford is concerned that the longer the city remains without a centralized arts hub, more art groups fear there aren鈥檛 local resources available. He hopes city officials soon put forth efforts to revitalize the building and support creatives.
The city of Fort Worth is developing its proposed 2026 bond program, which would . Public artworks present opportunities for Fort Worth artists to create interactive installations in their communities.
Coming together to lend a hand
Gentle has seen the fear and concern grow among artists since the center鈥檚 closure. Still, he鈥檚 optimistic about the future of the arts in Fort Worth due to the and efforts by those smaller venues to fill the gap when possible.
Arts Fort Worth remains he said.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of people who are doing what they can to extend a hand to create some space and to make sure the ladder is still there,鈥� Gentle said.
In recent months, Losey pivoted to find new opportunities throughout businesses and neighborhoods of the Near Southside. Several places have opened 鈥渟urprising鈥� doors, she added.
She鈥檚 hopeful the day will come when the community arts center will again open its doors.
鈥淚 truly believe the community arts center was, and could again be, a powerful launchpad for local artists,鈥� Losey said. 鈥淚 hope a space like it returns, but in the meantime, I am doing my best to grow roots and build momentum in the spaces I can access.鈥�
David Moreno is the arts and culture reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at david.moreno@fortworthreport.org or .
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