- Department of Safety
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Department of Safety, Anacortes, Washington
The Department of Safety was an artist-run community space founded in 2002, located in Anacortes, Washington's old police and fire station. It housed an all-ages music venue, art gallery, artist residency program, zine library, darkroom, artists' studios and living amenities for a handful of residents. Department of Safety provided hostel accommodations for travelers from 2002 until 2005, when the operators decided to focus on the Artist in Residence program. Department of Safety hosted music festivals, workshops, high school classes, hundreds of concerts, art exhibits, recording sessions, weddings, halloween parties and lectures.
The Department of Safety (DoS) did not maintain nor had it applied for 501c/3 non-profit status. The model of the DoS suggested two years of commitment from residents to work on the space and programming itself while simultaneously giving those individuals access to facilities to focus on their own artistic practice. Residents paid rent and insurance to live in the space; the programming was not subsidized by other means. The building was owned by a local used-car salesman.
The DoS incubated numerous high school and independent music acts and artists. Families were often known to attend events as a unit. Programming reflected a direct commitment to community while also prioritizing national and international talent.
In 2003, DoS collaborated with the APE Theatre Company to produce a play, Pills, Thrills and Automobiles. The true story told the tragic tale of a group of teenagers who crashed horrifically on the motorway while driving back from a music festival after a weekend of drug taking and sleep deprivation. Visual effects and animation were created for the piece by Mark Hatchard of Hotbox Studios and Hotbox Events. The ground-breaking work was debated in the Palace of Westminster (the House of Commons)[1].
The Department of Safety ceased operations in February 2010. The DoS was very rarely referred to as a collective art group. Rather, the space is what maintained the designation.
Associated artists and projects
Some notable record labels and musicians associated with the Department of Safety are:
- Knw-Yr-Own Records
- K Records
- Marriage Records
- Karl Blau
- Genevieve Castree
- D+
- Dirty Projectors
- The Lonely Forest
- Mount Eerie
- Norfolk & Western
- p:ano
- The Robot Ate Me
- Thanksgiving
- Urban Honking
- Laura Veirs
- Veneer Magazine
External links
References
- ^ APE Theatre Company apetheatrecompany.co.uk. accessed 2010
Categories:- Music venues in Washington (state)
- Social centres
- 2002 establishments
- Buildings and structures in Skagit County, Washington
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