Assembly House art project in Armley crowd-funding for £12,000 to enable expansion and a secure future post-COVID

For nearly 7 years Assembly House has been a home for those trying to make Leeds a better place through art and culture and rents studio space at cost-price or below, making them the cheapest in the city.

In that time it has supported more than 90 permanent studio holders so far; including painters, illustrators, photographers, sculptors, designers, makers and performers as well as providing free-to-access skills tuition, workshops, exhibitions and public events and careers guidance.

In the last few months alone this has included a 45 year old former drug trafficker, an 18 year old painter from rural Oxfordshire, a 30 year old ex-offender from our local area, a Kenyan former-refugee film-maker, a queer/trans/intersex people of colour welfare activist and a Yorkshire born-and bred sculptor.

With the arts sector having been hit hard by lockdown and coronavirus restrictions, the future of Assembly House, which was an abandoned textile mill, is dependent on ways to generate more income and the artists working in the building are looking to expand into a newly-vacant part of the building.

It will double the space and means there is room for 26 local artists, with a quarter of that space being saved for artists from Armley, and there will also be a permanent space for screenings, talks, workshops and similar events.

An Assembly House spokesperson said: "Even at the most affordable rates in Leeds, this new studio will also earn enough income for us to offset losses from Covid, and to hire a Studio Technician, transforming Assembly House into something truly self-sufficient and sustainable way into the future."

"We’ve seen over the last eight months that so many creatives are really struggling, feeling isolated and alone. All through 2020 we’ve been trying to help out however we can, but now we desperately need more space and a way to generate new income if Assembly is to have a secure future.

"Most of our team are volunteers who make their income in sectors hit hard by Covid, and we usually fund our core staff through income from gigs, gallery hire and events. This has meant it’s been really tough this year making ends meet, and so now we want to find a way to adapt our business model whilst staying self-sufficient, and helping out our community at the same time."

More than £4,000 has been raised already via the Crowd Funder page and the money raised will fund renovation costs for the project including putting up walls, fixing windows, laying electrical circuits and sockets, putting in proper fire safety, installing a toilet and studio sinks, painting and decorating.