This rendering by Encompass Architects shows the perspective view of the canopy.
Oglala Lakota Artspace breaks ground in Pine Ridge Reservation By Sarah Elisabeth Sawyer (Choctaw Nation), Artist in Business Leadership Fellow 2015
he kind of place everyone dreams of. That is how artist and First Peoples Fund staff member Bryan Parker (White Mountain Apache, Muscogee Creek, Mississippi Choctaw) describes the Oglala Lakota Artspace, a first of its kind facility for the Pine Ridge Reservation. A groundbreaking ceremony was held September 27 for the unique arts center. The 8,500 square foot Native arts and cultural center, a collaboration between Lakota Funds, First Peoples Fund and Artspace, will provide a home base for the work of the Rolling Rez Arts Bus and an expanded opportunity for nurturing the creative economy and arts ecosystem in the reservation. Located in Kyle, South Dakota, the $2.75 million Oglala Lakota Artspace is scheduled for completion near the end of 2019 and will be in close proximity to the Pine Ridge Area Chamber of Commerce, the Lakota Prairie Ranch Resort, Oglala Lakota College and Thunder Valley Community Development Corporation. Oglala Lakota architect Tammy Eagle Bull and her Omahabased firm, Encompass Architects, have incorporated Indigenous artistry from the start, with the team turning to Lakota star
T
Page 8
Oglala Lakota Artspace will include: ● ● ● ● ● ●
● ●
Individual artist studios.
Shared workspace for group collaboration that can double as a small performance space. Recording and sound studio.
Computer lab and classroom space.
Commercial space for arts-related businesses.
Native art gallery and gift shop, including a place to buy art materials and for visitors to shop. Storefront for Lakota Federal Credit Union. Home base for First Peoples Fund’s youth development spoken word program, Dances With Words, and a garage for the Rolling Rez Arts Bus.
www.ArtsSouthDakota.org
