Walnut Studios artists find new workspace after devastating weekend fire
After losing thousands of dollars worth of artwork and supplies in a devastating fire at Walnut Studios over the weekend, a small group of Toronto artists is getting a new workspace.
On Thursday, Walnut Studio's art director, Ilene Sova, learned her group of artists will be moving to a building on Dupont Street and will be on their feet much earlier than anticipated.
"We're going to be able to all go together to that one space, and everyone is really excited about that because we'll be able to stay together as one big family," she told CBC Toronto.
"The spaces are just beautiful. They're full of light. They're all painted white. The artists are going to be very, very happy in their new home."
With the new space on Dupont, many of the artists will be back to work in the next few weeks rather than in the next few months as some had feared.
Many of the artists didn't have insurance to cover the art, supplies and other materials they lost in the fire.
Coun. Mike Layton helped with finding the Walnut artists a way to keep their community under one roof. Together, they landed the space at 888 Dupont St. with the help of Tas, a real estate development firm.
"They're giving us a very, very low rent because of what happened to us and they know that the artists have lost everything," Sova said.
"They're still crunching numbers, but it looks like it's going to be less than half, maybe a third of what we were paying at Walnut for a space — it's a significant discount."
The senior director of property and asset management at Tas, Kelly Rintoul, says discussions are being held with the Walnut Studios team to find a space that would work well for their needs.
"Although discussions are still underway, we are fully supportive and intend to offer a lease that will accommodate all 50 of the Walnut Studios artists throughout the duration of the repairs on their existing space," Rintoul said in a statement to CBC Toronto.
Sova says a year-long lease is being drawn up for the building that is slated for development in two years. She expects that Walnut should be back up and running in the next year.
No one injured in fire
Sova told CBC Toronto earlier this week that Walnut Studios was the home to a "family" of some 45 artists and was located in a large warehouse at 83 Walnut Ave. that was once a canning factory.
Painters, sculptors, fashion designers, jewellery makers, photographers and installation artists used the building, which had two main studios connected by a hallway and loft space.
The studios are also home to Blank Canvases, an in-school arts program in which artists teach Toronto District School Board and Toronto Catholic District School Board students. Smoke severely damaged the program's office space, Sova said.
Toronto Fire said earlier that nobody was injured in the blaze and there's no evidence to suggest it was suspicious.
About 50 to 60 firefighters worked on the fire with the help of about 15 trucks. The cause is unknown, and investigators are trying to determine where exactly it began and how it started.
The Walnut artists are planning to meet in front of the studio to clean what they can of their canvasses on Saturday. An art supply drive is also in the works.
Meantime, Sova says the outpouring of support from Torontonians has made a very difficult week bearable.
"I'm so happy because I'm seeing the Toronto community come together and rally around us and really help with this process and make us feel supported," she said.
"I thought I was going to come back and I was going to be facing this week of devastating sadness and depression. It's actually not been like that. It's been very positive and uplifting."
