Lost at the M. Rich & Bros. Co. Building and Found

I go to events so I can see the buildings. It was high time I visited 
the M. Rich & Bros. Co. Building.

It is a legendary place, home to Rich's Department Store until 1924. C4 Atlanta gave me the perfect excuse.

You'll get your chance on February 2, more on that below.

This is the south water tower. You'll want to read about it in Jeff Clemmons new book Rich's: A Southern Institution.

I was not prepared.

It was way cooler and way bigger than I thought. The architectural firm of Bruce and Morgan remodeled and enlarged this 1882 building 1906. It fronts on Whitehall Street (now Peachtree Street). It's actually 3 buildings shaped like a T-bone with another entrance on Hunter Street (now Martin Luthor King). Four street names gave me a headache.

The event was C4 Atlanta's "TechsmARTs - Using Twitter" presented by Stuart Shapiro from Binders.

C4 Atlanta is a non-profit that helps artists to not starve. They say it better: "(We ) ...build a foundation of research, technology and education for a sustainable, creative economy in the Atlanta region."


Lert to right: Stuart Shapiro is the social media guy and more (@BindersArt) at Binders, Joe Winter is Chief Technology Officer at C4 Atlanta, Jessyca Holland is Executive Director at C4 (@c4atlanta).

 
C4 Atlanta is an early tenant at the re-purposed Rich Building, You know: offices, incubator, gallery, restaurant, a place to attract creatives.


I got there early and roamed.


I took this from the meeting room looking into an "incubator / small office / shared spaces in the middle" kind of place. It felt great there, old and solid with natural light.


The other early birds worked in the meeting room while I got lost. The floating horizontal white window art thingies do a nice job of breaking up the volume.


You'd need a hard heart not to love the ceiling.


Deja vu alert. THIS is a department store stairway. I'd seen pictures of this. I made a wrong turn that turned out right.


I looked out and spotted the balcony, common bond, brick arches galore, and massive sills. Is this 1882 or 1906?


Dark bricks poked out around the windows, a very rugged look.

 
Brick sills made me think this was the newest of the 3 buildings, still more than 100 years old.

It was time for the meeting and I found my way back.


Jessyca gestured the C4 hand signals and introduced Stuart who layed the tweet on us.

Thanks to C4 and Stuart: great information and great people in a great space.

I'm planning to party here on 2013-02-02. You can too and you should.

Dashboard Co-op will present their 2013 artists in  "boom city - 12 Artists // One Floor" on Saturday, February 2, 2013, 7pm - midnight. I've been to these. Art, food, drink, music, often dance, and all the cool kids will be there. Park in the Underground Atlanta Parking Deck.

See you there?
@TerryKearns

We huddled around a print - touring a private collection

This was a first for me, I toured a private art collection. It made an impression on me so I made a few sentimental notes:

I'll never see these works again. I'm grateful to have seen them once.

It was a little fundraiser and promotion. I was on the waiting list and got a spot at the last minute.

There were art dealers and gallery owners, curators, and collectors, artists and me. I wore a nice shirt and smiled.

It was a bit intimidating, being with experts and enthusiasts.

But experts are just as shy as everyone else.

The art itself was the equalizer. It worked on novice and expert alike.

I'd met the collector in another context. I knew of  him more than I knew him personally.

Was he a snooty art collector showing off his wealth and taste? No. And I've been thinking about this. He was modest and humble, courageous too I think. If "art is the truest truth," then the collection must expose the collector.

He was a steward rather than an owner. He protected and appreciated the work. He knew that the work would outlive him. He only had it for a while. I thought it was in good hands.

It's was a family home, a family with dogs. The dogs toured with us.

We toured the stairwell, landings, foyer, living room, family room and office.

He showed us around then we had some time to wander.

Were two hours enough? It was enough time to be overwhelmed yet barely time to appreciate a handful of pieces.

I tried to see every piece twice then I lingered at a few. Time is what works for me.

There was a print in the office, a Miro I think, I can't keep it in my head. It was so beautiful, it lit up the room.

Folks were attracted to it, they wandered away then wandered back.

It was as if they were huddling around a warm hearth on a cool night.