Welcome
to a place where creativity is contagious and art materials are provided, some free of charge.
The 100th Monkey Studio is a socially conscious small business owned and operated by two women.
The 100th Monkey Studio will provide anyone,
regardless of age, gender, ethnicity or sexual orientation, a safe and
affordable place to use art materials. We will support each artist in their
unique journey of using art as a means of individual self expression. The 100th
Monkey Studio will provide the community with art resources while also being a
creative place to visit and view art.
An open studio is a studio or work room that is
open to all, where artistic or creative work can be viewed and created
collaboratively. Artists and non-artists come together in the open studio to
celebrate the social act of collaborating. An Open Studio is intended to foster
creativity and encourage experimentation in a welcoming atmosphere of cultural
exchange, conversation, encouragement, and freedom of expression.
Open studios can be traced back to 17th century Paris where artists and other
creative intellectuals gathered. Other art forms such as beat poetry can
be traced back to originating in open studio settings. Post-WWII New York saw
many open studios. One famous example, The Factory, was created by Andy
Warhol.
Here
at the 100th Monkey Studio, we use our eight-roomed open studio in
many ways. Some of them include:
Offering classes and providing
drop-in art making space to the community as well as art materials, many free
of charge!
As a benefit to our members, not only providing space to work on
their own art, but also having storage available for their
works-in-progress.
Confidential
office space where families, couples or individuals engage with a Master's
Level Art Therapist. Our studio also provides clinical art therapy groups
to individuals looking for support and personal growth
Stop by for a tour and see what is happening today.
The name of the studio was inspired by a story one of the
partners read. It is a story that some believe to be fiction, but the message is one of positive social change.
The Japanese monkey, Macaca Fuscata, had
been observed in the wild for a period of over 30 years. It was documented that in 1952, on the
island of Koshima, scientists had been leaving the monkeys sweet potatoes in
the sand in exchange for a look into their social culture.
In 1958,
one female was documented as washing the sweet potatoes in a nearby stream to
rid it of the dirt and sand. She was
documented as teaching the habit to her mother and her playmates.
The new trait spread throughout the island. Suddenly not just on this
island, but on surrounding islands and onto the mainland monkeys were
washing their food.
The number 100 is merely a symbol, but in
the story it was used to recognize when the trait forever changed the
species. This magical occurrence was named the 100th Monkey Phenomenon.
The name The 100th Monkey Studiowas adopted because the founders saw the opportunity for humankind to have the same sort of
“phenomenon” in relation to using art as a means of self-care as well as
self-expression. It is our goal that
art making in a community setting become infectious, bringing art into people’s
everyday life. In this creative
community space any one is welcome to come and learn from each
other, while supporting and embracing each other's differences.