Design Profile: Civic Power Studio Village Of Arts And Humanities

The Village of Arts and Humanities, located in a severely underserved area of North Philadelphia, is a nonprofit with a long tradition of serving neighborhood residents through the creation of art. The Village sought to create a community space for gathering, media production, and free expression. The Civic Power Studio, opened in 2022, fills that need by combining three vacant two-story rowhouses to make a gathering space and individual music/media studios. The project draws from decades of critical thinking on the part of funders and community leaders on how to use the arts to promote healing, forgiveness, and recovery. Community members were looking for an inviting and creative space with natural light, greenery, and shared space. The resulting plan uses the center house to make a tall civic space, exposing the existing party walls, and letting in natural light. The classrooms occupy the flanking former rowhomes, allowing for both group and individual creation. The Civic Power Studio was funded by ArtPlace America and Spring Point Partners, with land and park revitalization supported by the William Penn Foundation.  

Project: Civic Power Studio 

Location: North Philadelphia 

Client: Village of Arts and Humanities   

Project Size: 4,050 square feet 

Project Team:  

Woodcock Design, Inc. (Architecture)  

Oval Project Management (Project Management) 

P.E. Bipin Associates, LLC (MEP Engineering) 

Lyon Contracting Services, LLC (General Contracting) 

PHOTOS: MATT WARGO