Urban Arts Space Grand Opening

It was standing room only at the February 8th, 2008 grand opening celebration of the OSU Urban Arts Space in the historic Lazarus building in downtown Columbus! An estimated 1,200 people flocked to the College of the Arts' new exhibition and alternative performance space for the festivities, which included costumed stilt-walkers, music from a student mallet ensemble, a Carnival costume in action, a student jazz ensemble, food, drinks and fun. The event also celebrated the opening of two inaugural exhibitions, Midnight Robbers: The Artists of Notting Hill Carnival and Linking the Past to the Future, a look at the Lazarus building through the years. Mayor Michael Coleman gave remarks to the crowd at the evening event, as did Dean Karen Bell and OSU President Gordon Gee.

Midnight Robbers: The Artists of Notting Hill Carnival

The North American premiere of Midnight Robbers, with costumes, original designs, video, photographs, interactive computer program and historical banners. The exhibition explores the nature of Carnival, its artistic process and the connections between the Notting Hill celebration and the original emancipation celebrations of 1807 in Trinidad, West Indies. A look at the incredible artistry of the London Carnival, co-curated by Lesley Ferris, OSU Theatre, and Ruth Tompsett of London.

Linking the Past to the Future

As the Lazarus Building begins a new era, this exhibition incorporates memorabilia from its past, plans for its future, and unique images of its transition. OSU alumni Fredrick Marsh (MFA ’84) and C. Grant Fletcher (MFA ‘07), current student Betsy Heimlich and professor Ardine Nelson were invited to photograph the inner sanctums of the building—the results of their explorations over the past month are startling in revealing the grit and underpinnings of the building’s interior structure, history and subliminal beauty. Visit the Photo Gallery section to see images from Frederik Marsh and Ardine Nelson featured in this exhibition.

Under Construction: The Making of the Urban Arts Space

What did it look like before it looked so good? Check out these images to see how the Ohio State Urban Arts Space went through its transformation from rough space in an empty building to one of Columbus's hottest gallery spaces.