5 years of the Boom building .... coming out of one plan and going into another.
In September 2022, we come to the end of a 5 year lease on our main building. We are also approaching the end of a 5 year plan.
This is a a good point to reflect on the past 5 years, share some of the highlights and talk about the next 5 years.
We have filled the building and poured out of it, to other places and spaces, including pop-up workshops in local shops, painting walls, painting rocks, colouring in main street, popping up and taking over other empty spaces for creative use.
We welcome your contribution to our next 5 year plan through this short survey.
5 years in 1 minute of the Boom Building.
But, where were we in September 2017….
We had been using the top floor of 80 Main Street for 2 years, and grown from the original 3 founders to a group of 18 studio artists, taking over the floor below.
We had 5 classes running every week, Messy Mornings, Squiggles & Giggles, SiSi Spanish, Life Drawing Bangor and Boom Stitchers, running out of our original workshop.
The Plan in 2017 for the 5 years was to continue to establish the model and understand what we do and how we do it. Then move into establish support for our artists, designers and makers to progress their practice.
When the 3 founders, Kate,Jo & Marianne set up Boom Studios it was clear that it would be a “for purpose” enterprise. Profit was never part of the conversation.
It was inspired and established by 3 local creatives and their individual experience at Project 24, Bangor. They wished to create a vibrant workspace where they could develop their work.
That was 8 ½ years ago, (December 2014) when they stopped talking and started doing and moved into the Boom building.
Fast forward to 2022 and Boom Studios is now a crafted, social enterprise that provides vibrant workspaces and head-space for our local creative industry, with 25 workspaces, a year round programme and a range of artistic outreach services for the local community, local businesses, festivals and events.
We are established as one of the leading creative enterprises in the borough, supplying and supporting community arts work and running 20+diffferent types or workshops and classes through the year.
We have knocked down walls, metaphorically through “demystifying the process of art-making” with our local community and through supporting our creative sector( through our Trade programme) to sustain meaningful work, fulfilling our core aim to support our artists, makers, designers whatever stage they are at and whatever that looks like.
In 2018 we actually knocked down walls in our workshop through our renovation project, creative a space that people can come in and own.
Our services are :
provision of workspaces and other opportunities for the local creative sector, that includes professional support, peer to peer support, paid work opportunities and opportunities for engagement with the local community.
provision of weekly/monthly/ quarterly artistic and creative workshops for local residents and visitors.
a mechanism for local artists/designers/makers to financially support their practice.
generation of income for Boom Studios through venue hire and artistic services.
We provoke engagement with arts and creative activity by the local community creating social impact in line with 6 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Boom Studios is a space where people are allowed to be creative, have fun, develop skills and connect to each other.