Experimental Skeleton
Encyclopedia
The Experimental Skeleton is a non-profit
artistic organization in Tampa, Florida
that promotes visual arts throughout the area.
, simultaneously became attractive to developers. The end result for most of the growing art community was to be pushed out by the hikes in rent and real estate
.
In 1996, The Florida
Center for Contemporary Art (FCCA), a not-for-profit organization that once called Ybor City its home was struggling to reinvent itself in Downtown Tampa
. The FCCA began by renting a space on the far north side of Franklin St. where it floundered under the debt it had inherited trying to survive in its Ybor City
location. At this time a developer offered up free space at the old Crown Wig Shop further south on Franklin St. and the FCCA took the offer with new hopes of reinvigorating it’s vitality in the arts community. At this point in time The FCCA also joined forces with the artist group Titanic Anatomy, Inc. The Titanic Anatomy group took control of the second level of the space and looked after the F.C.C.A.’s exhibition needs. The partnership yielded a year of energetic projects that made a lasting impact on the arts community.
The programming at times linked with Tampa Theater to connect visual projects with film openings. At the end of 1998 the tide again turned and a project to revitalize the Franklin Street Mall became a hot topic. The plans to create a “farmers market” and “art flea market” from old buildings such as the Woolworth's building caused enough of a stir that developers pulled the plug on the arts organizations’ squatting techniques in hopes of high dollar rental.
The efforts to breathe life into Franklin St. failed and buildings such as the Crown Wig Shop have remained derelict for seven years and remain so today. The FCCA did not pursue a new venue. Titanic Anatomy, Inc. splintered off into a new group with a different mission called Experimental Skeleton, Inc. Experimental Skeleton was to have many small venues finally landing proper in Seminole Heights where Florida Ave. was quickly becoming the breeding ground for galleries, artist studios, and transplants from the old Ybor City days now making it happen again (notably places like Viva la Frida’ restaurant/gallery). Experimental Skeleton along with other arts organizations like Covivant Gallery continued to function and enrich the city and Seminole Heights neighborhood.
The vision of Flight 19 is to offer an exhibition space to serve the Tampa Bay
community by promoting local art and arts organizations as well as programming important national and international art and projects. The programming will also be biased toward experimental art in keeping with the Experimental Skeleton mission. By employing these strategies the hope is that the space will organically grow into an arts “think tank” and a nucleus for creative energies in the downtown area. There will always be something exciting to see at the Flight 19 space. We will not restrict ourselves to the normal exhibition patterns or to any one discipline. We plan to show visual art, live music, performance, one night projects, lectures and even hold workshops on new/ innovative materials for students and artists. The Flight 19 space also will align itself with the city of Tampa in achieving some of its initiatives such as “Lights on Tampa”. We will actively pursue temporary or permanent public works to be sited in downtown Tampa and if possible at the Flight 19 space for public viewing.
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
artistic organization in Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
that promotes visual arts throughout the area.
History
During the last 15 years in Tampa there have been several attempts to revitalize downtown Tampa. Many attempts have focused on areas where local artists and artist groups had already gained a foothold and began to build their own communities. These flowering locations, such as Ybor CityYbor City, Tampa, Florida
Ybor City is a historic neighborhood in Tampa, Florida located just northeast of downtown. It was founded in the 1880s by cigar manufacturers and was populated by thousands of immigrants, mainly from Spain, Cuba, and Italy...
, simultaneously became attractive to developers. The end result for most of the growing art community was to be pushed out by the hikes in rent and real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
.
In 1996, The Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
Center for Contemporary Art (FCCA), a not-for-profit organization that once called Ybor City its home was struggling to reinvent itself in Downtown Tampa
Downtown Tampa
Image:Tampa_Skyline.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Downtown Tampa looking from the Hillsborough Riverpoly 2403 537 2441 500 2488 483 2516 455 2566 439 2597 410 2649 390 2682 358 2803 315 2949 342 2956 362 3068 383 3074 406 3202 431 3204 447 3332 473 3350 484 3485 1616 2446 1587 Wachovia Centerpoly 1745 1216...
. The FCCA began by renting a space on the far north side of Franklin St. where it floundered under the debt it had inherited trying to survive in its Ybor City
Ybor City, Tampa, Florida
Ybor City is a historic neighborhood in Tampa, Florida located just northeast of downtown. It was founded in the 1880s by cigar manufacturers and was populated by thousands of immigrants, mainly from Spain, Cuba, and Italy...
location. At this time a developer offered up free space at the old Crown Wig Shop further south on Franklin St. and the FCCA took the offer with new hopes of reinvigorating it’s vitality in the arts community. At this point in time The FCCA also joined forces with the artist group Titanic Anatomy, Inc. The Titanic Anatomy group took control of the second level of the space and looked after the F.C.C.A.’s exhibition needs. The partnership yielded a year of energetic projects that made a lasting impact on the arts community.
The programming at times linked with Tampa Theater to connect visual projects with film openings. At the end of 1998 the tide again turned and a project to revitalize the Franklin Street Mall became a hot topic. The plans to create a “farmers market” and “art flea market” from old buildings such as the Woolworth's building caused enough of a stir that developers pulled the plug on the arts organizations’ squatting techniques in hopes of high dollar rental.
The efforts to breathe life into Franklin St. failed and buildings such as the Crown Wig Shop have remained derelict for seven years and remain so today. The FCCA did not pursue a new venue. Titanic Anatomy, Inc. splintered off into a new group with a different mission called Experimental Skeleton, Inc. Experimental Skeleton was to have many small venues finally landing proper in Seminole Heights where Florida Ave. was quickly becoming the breeding ground for galleries, artist studios, and transplants from the old Ybor City days now making it happen again (notably places like Viva la Frida’ restaurant/gallery). Experimental Skeleton along with other arts organizations like Covivant Gallery continued to function and enrich the city and Seminole Heights neighborhood.
Activism
Experimental Skeleton has a very strong activist nature. The group has weighed in on public/civic projects like gun buy back programs and was instrumental in creating the competition to create a bat house in Al Lopez Park to replace the homes of displaced bats from the old Tampa Stadium. In early 2004 Experimental Skeleton began to engage the city of Tampa in discussions on the city’s initiatives to create a "City of the Arts." The end result of the negotiations with the city and its cultural liaisons was that Experimental Skeleton would be given a space for programming exhibitions,projects and performances. This space, named Flight 19, would reside in the baggage claim building connected to the Union Station at 601 Nebraska Ave.The vision of Flight 19 is to offer an exhibition space to serve the Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay Area
The Tampa Bay Area is the region of west central Florida adjacent to Tampa Bay. Definitions of the region vary. It is often considered equivalent to the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area defined by the United States Census Bureau. The Census Bureau currently...
community by promoting local art and arts organizations as well as programming important national and international art and projects. The programming will also be biased toward experimental art in keeping with the Experimental Skeleton mission. By employing these strategies the hope is that the space will organically grow into an arts “think tank” and a nucleus for creative energies in the downtown area. There will always be something exciting to see at the Flight 19 space. We will not restrict ourselves to the normal exhibition patterns or to any one discipline. We plan to show visual art, live music, performance, one night projects, lectures and even hold workshops on new/ innovative materials for students and artists. The Flight 19 space also will align itself with the city of Tampa in achieving some of its initiatives such as “Lights on Tampa”. We will actively pursue temporary or permanent public works to be sited in downtown Tampa and if possible at the Flight 19 space for public viewing.
External links
- Creative Loafing, Tampa Bay - Taking Flight
- City of Tampa Florida - Taking Flight
- Experimental Skeleton Home Page