HELL'S KITCHEN — A co-working space for performing artists will make its debut in the neighborhood this spring.
The Artist Co-op, which hosted a four-day pop-up in Chelsea last year, will start operating out of 508 W. 52nd St near 10th Avenue in mid-May, founder Rachel Berger said.
The venue will feature two rehearsal rooms, a lounge and co-working area, locker rentals, printing facilities and other amenities for artists, said Berger, who herself is an actor.
“The idea is to create a co-working space for artists,” the 28-year-old said. “It’s about community.”
After spending a few years applying to master of fine arts programs, Berger started thinking about what she hoped to gain from them.
“I was thinking, ‘What would I get out of an MFA program?’ I’m not guaranteed a job, [but] I am guaranteed a greater sense of community,” she said.
As her acting classes came to a close, Berger often wished she and her classmates had a conference room or lounge where they could continue their conversations.
“It’s those organic, water-cooler moments that were lacking,” she explained.
Artists who become co-op members will pay around $50 per month for unlimited access to the co-working space — which will also offer free coffee and WiFi — and an hour of rehearsal space each month.
Non-members will pay around $20 per day to use the co-working space and $30 per hour to use a rehearsal room.
“For myself as well, I’m pinching pennies, but if I add up all the times I’ve gone to a coffee shop to have a business meeting, or a restaurant, it would benefit me to use the Artist Co-op” she said.
Because the Clinton Housing Development Company plans to start renovating the building in 2018, the new space is only a temporary one, Berger noted. The co-op can move the furniture and building materials for which it’s raising money to another space when the time comes.
Berger hopes she and other artists who use the space will eventually find a permanent home.
“We moved to New York City for a reason — it’s the cultural capital of the world,” she said. “We need a place where we can all congregate and meet one another.”