Calcagno Cullen moved back to Cincinnati last year from San Francisco with her husband Geoffrey to start Wave Pool Gallery in Camp Washington. She chatted with CityBeat recently about alternative spaces, art’s role in the community, and whether running a space like Wave Pool in Cincinnati is becoming more challenging. This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.
CityBeat: So, why move back from San Francisco to Cincinnati? And why buy a building in Camp Washington?
CC: “I feel like Camp Washington kind of picked us, because they had such a great building. The firehouse had everything we needed. And right after we bought the space, while we were still waiting to close on it, Joe Gorman e-mailed me and said, ‘welcome to camp.’ It was just like, an immediate connection. He took me on a tour of the neighborhood and everything they’re doing there. I love Camp Washington not just because there’s a lot of great real estate available for cheap, but also because there are already so many artists living there that I didn’t already know. It’s been really exciting, because a lot of those artists just go to Camp Washington to work in their studios and didn’t even know each other are there.”
“Cost is part of it, but also the flexibility of the community. I kind of joke that Camp Washington is the kind of space where you can do what you want, and the community is going to be supportive. Things can happen. You can do what you want and you’ll find support for that. Only like, 1400 people live here, but it’s very tight knit.”
“That’s why we moved back. It’s kind of an old story at this point, but artists in San Francisco are being pushed out because it’s way too expensive. Like, $3,000 for a one-bedroom at this point. It’s crazy. No one can afford that unless you’re doing Apple or Google tech work or something.”
CB: What is your vision for Wave Pool? Why start this kind of alternative space?
CC: “Adobe Books, [a San Francisco art space where the Cullens worked before moving here] is the kind of place we hope Wave Pool can be, and we kind of see Camp Washington that way, where you can do what you want if you put the time and energy toward it and you can own it. Where as working at bigger institutions, they’re doing cool things, but there’s so much red tape and institutional stuff that it’s hard to feel like you own it. I think that’s why artists are attracted to kind of run-down places that nobody wants. You can do whatever you want. Those institutions report to board members, have to keep the city happy, it’s a whole thing.”
“We were able to sustain Adobe by turning it into a co-op, but the rest of San Francisco doesn’t have that culture. It’s boring if there isn’t potential for something new and exciting. But that ties right into development and gentrification. We want to be part of something new, that’s what we live and breathe for, but sometimes that turns itself on its head and you’ve made this into a trap where you can’t live here anymore. It’s a very tight line you have to walk.”
CB: Speaking of that, have you noticed changes in Cincinnati since you’ve been back? Do you see things here heading that way?
CC: “I notice, going to Final Friday [on Main Street in OTR], that there aren’t that many galleries. It used to be so alive. There are still a lot of people down here, but it’s for concerts and bars and things.”
“I do think that’s a sign of the times. It’s crazy to me that Brighton is now that place. I do think it’s harder now, and that’s part of the reason why we’re transitioning into being a 501(c)3 with a board. We need grants to be sustainable. As much as DIY spaces are amazing and integral to a healthy arts community, we’re both professional arts administrators and we want this to be our living, so we have to find a way to make that sustainable.”
CB: One of the things that’s really interesting about Wave Pool is your artist in residency program. What do visiting artists think of Cincinnati?
CC: “No one knows that there’s such a vital art scene here. For me, bringing outside artists to stay here for a semi-extended period of time, they really get to know Cincinnati and go back to their cities. Both of our artists in residence [Erin Colleen Johnson and artist collaborative Stairwells’] this summer loved it here.”
CB: Wave Pool seems pretty heavily focused on engaging communities. What are the challenges inherent in that mission?
CC: “Galleries in particular can be intimidating to people. We get a lot of people, kids mainly, who ask where the pool is. Which I love, because I’m like, ‘no! But there’s art in here. Come in!’ There is a social line, but we’re trying to break that. As integral as I think galleries are to a city, there is that line we need to work hard to cross.”
This article appears in Dec 16-22, 2015.