Here's How Just $1 Bought This Chicago Artist A Bank And He Made It An Arts Center

by N/A, 10 years ago | 3 min read

In 2012 the Chicago bank Stony Island Savings & Loan was nearly 100 years old, and hadn't even been used since the 80s. Chicago artistÂ Theaster Gates Jr.Â decided he needed to do something about that, and bought the building from the city of Chicago for just $1, and immediately got to work with his plans.

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The building saw weather damage to the roof which caused the infrastructure to crumble. To most, tearing down this building was probably the best option.

But, through a number of initiatives the and raising considerable funds the 17,000 square foot building was reopened this October.

Part of those initiatives? Salvaging pieces of marble from the building and selling them in rectangular pieces called "Bank Bonds."

So, under the new name of Stony Island Arts Bank, the building is home to art installations, artists, scholars, and archives on art history, architecture, and black culture.

It also houses theÂ Rebuild Foundation, a non-profit also founded by Gates to help fund underdeveloped neighborhoods by investing culture into them.

Stony Island Arts Bank is meant for black artists to share their projects with the South Side Community through interaction.

The University of Chicago and School of Art Institute donated over 60,000 glass lantern slides covering Primitivist art through the modern era.

There are also a number of projects in the works for the bank. Portuguese artist Carlos Bunga will open his installation titled, "Under the Skin."

On top of all this excitement, the bank will also house a good portion of Johnson's Publishing library.

This will give the public access to works such as Jet, Ebony, and Negro Digest.

Here's more of the historically renovated architecture you'll see inside...

Stony Island Arts Bank isÂ open Tuesdays through Saturdays for the public to visit the new art space. It's completely free, but donations are obviously welcome. So, get out and enjoy this piece of rich artistic history in Chicago.