MISSION

SPACES invests in artists by providing the resources, platform and connections to create radical new work that challenges and deepens our understanding of the world.  

VISION

Cleveland is a place where artists come to take risks and experiment.

WHAT WE DO

SPACES commissions artists from around the world—at all stages of their careers and in all media—to make new work that is responsive to timely issues. We use these projects as a jumping off point to create educational initiatives that help develop a more informed citizenry. We also distribute grants to artists outside of our residency and exhibition programs.

CORE VALUES AND BELIEFS

Artists come first. We exist to serve artists. Every decision prioritizes their creative development, professional growth, visibility, and long-term careers. We treat artists as professionals—committing to fair pay, clear expectations, and meaningful resources.

Creative risk is essential. We actively support experimental, interdisciplinary, and socially and politically engaged work. Risk-taking is essential to a healthy cultural ecosystem and central to our mission.

Process matters. We value the full artistic process—time, space, critique, and reflection—as foundational to meaningful work and sustained artistic growth.

Art has purpose. We support work that engages timely issues and contributes to a more informed, thoughtful, and engaged public.

Sustainability and trust make the work possible.
We are committed to strong financial stewardship, operational health, and transparent governance. We build trust through consistency, accountability, and follow-through with artists, partners, and funders.

OUR HISTORY

SPACES was established in 1978 by artists, for artists, at a time when experimental, interdisciplinary, and non-commercial work was largely excluded from traditional galleries and museums. What began as a grassroots response to that gap has become one of Cleveland’s most enduring contemporary arts organizations—while remaining grounded in its founding principle: artists lead, and experimentation comes first.

The organization traces its origin to May 25, 1978, when founder James Rosenberger convened 35 artists through a simple typewritten invitation calling for those interested in “creating and presenting new art” and in need of “outlets for their creative energies.” That gathering laid the foundation for an artist-driven platform where work could exist on its own terms—outside conventional institutional constraints.

From the beginning, SPACES was not conceived as a traditional institution, but as a flexible, collaborative environment shaped by artists themselves.

This ethos defined SPACES’ early years. Initiatives like “a-space” for visual art and “p-space” for performance created opportunities for cross-disciplinary experimentation, often merging the two. Programming was developed collaboratively, and the organization intentionally resisted rigid structures—at times even questioning whether it should have a “rudder” at all.

The First Permanent Home
A major turning point came during Susan Channing’s 21-year tenure as Executive Director, when SPACES purchased its first permanent home on the Superior Viaduct in 1990. After more than a decade of operating in leased spaces, ownership provided stability, enabling long-term planning and expanded programming, including an international artist-in-residence program.
Over the next two decades, SPACES deepened its impact—presenting the work of thousands of artists, growing its membership base, and establishing itself as a key cultural anchor in Cleveland’s contemporary arts landscape.

A New Chapter in Hingetown
Today, SPACES operates from the Van Rooy Building in Hingetown, at the intersection of West 29th Street and Detroit Avenue—a historically significant gathering place for Cleveland’s BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities. This location reflects SPACES’ ongoing commitment to access, visibility, and engagement with diverse audiences.

The organization acknowledges this legacy and actively works to create space for underrepresented artists, audiences, and cultural workers.

Not Only Exhibitions
In the late 2010s and early 2020s, SPACES expanded its role by providing artist support funds, emergency relief grants during the pandemic, and new residency programs. These efforts reflected a philosophical shift in the organization’s history: SPACES is now not just a venue, but a platform that responds to the real conditions artists face, adapting as those conditions change.

National Visibility
SPACES’ role as Commissioner and co-curator of the U.S. Pavilion at the 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale marked a significant milestone, elevating the organization’s national and international profile. This recognition affirmed SPACES’ curatorial leadership while reinforcing its ability to operate on a global stage. Critically, that visibility has been reinvested back into Cleveland—strengthening local partnerships, expanding opportunities for artists, and demonstrating that international relevance can directly benefit the communities SPACES serves.

Looking Ahead
As SPACES approaches its fifth decade, it enters a new chapter with greater clarity, alignment, and intention. While its spaces, programs, and leadership have evolved, its purpose remains constant: to support artists, advance ambitious work, and create space for experimentation.

Moving forward, SPACES is focused on deepening its impact—strengthening its organizational foundation while continuing to champion artists whose work challenges, questions, and expands the cultural landscape. In doing so, SPACES affirms its role as both a vital local institution and a contributor to broader national and global conversations.

LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

SPACES recognizes the land upon which our building resides as the ancestral homeland of the Haudenosaunee. We further acknowledge the thousands of Indigenous people who now call this region home as a result of forced migration, dispossession of ancestral homelands and territories, or other reasons. We affirm their right as past, present, and future caretakers of this land. 

We make this statement recognizing that intentionally or not, we have participated in ongoing Settler Colonialism; a term that is generally recognized to mean the removal, erasure, and supplantation of Indigenous peoples. We commit to beginning the process of working to dismantle the ongoing legacies of Settler Colonialism. 

ANNUAL REPORTS 

  2024 / 2023 / 2022  /  2021  /  2019  /  2018  /  2017  /  2016  /  2015  /  2014