RSVP for the Grand Opening

RSVP for the Drum Circle

Downtown Fort Pierce’s historical buildings have gone through multiple transitions over the years. A recent metamorphosis has taken place at 111 Orange Avenue. Formerly the Sun Bank building, it is now divided into several sections with offices and galleries upstairs, and until recently, the home of St. Lucie Cultural Alliance.

This summer, the Alliance headed to the basement. “We’re calling the entire space The Vault,” curator Terry Long says. “There’s an actual bank vault there. It’s the coolest thing ever – a fun space.” Long has been curator for the last year and a half. “Fort Pierce, really all of St. Lucie County, is extremely rich with a variety of talented people in the arts, music, dance, theater.” 

Fort Pierce also has its own genre, art history-wise. “We have the Highwaymen,” Long explains, “and hundreds of plein air artists. I could go on and on. As more people become aware of St. Lucie Cultural Alliance, we’re constantly increasing membership.”  This led to the happy problem of becoming cramped upstairs. “We started in little offices inside the county administration building on Virginia Avenue,” Long says, “then moved downtown. But we’ve outgrown it.”

Over the years, artists have been housed in the building, including Art Mundo, a non-profit that focused on visual arts. For Rebecca Miller, chair of the board of directors for the Cultural Alliance, things have come full circle. “I was also chair of Art Mundo. We had a gallery, visiting artists, classes, and Art Walk. It was the pulse of Fort Pierce, the center of the gravitational pull for the art world.”

Without municipal support, however, the concept wasn’t sustainable. A vision to celebrate all art forms and culture was born, which St. Lucie Cultural Alliance fulfills with municipal and corporate partnerships, in addition to its members.  This summer and fall, work on The Vault was completed. Visitors enter through Lisa Jill Allison Gallery and Working Studio into the Cultural Alliance’s five rooms. Glass walls facing the walkway create a unified, welcoming feel. A boutique is planned for handcrafted jewelry, wearable art, and more.

Executive Director Alyona Ushe calls the rooms “galleries with desks. We didn’t want to waste space for administration, so each space has a desk. We’ll also use the rooms for classes.” Plans include belly dancing instruction, visual arts, professional development, and film screenings.  The expansive vault itself will house juried art shows, changed periodically and usually reflecting a theme. The acoustics promise to be an asset for live music and readings.

The financial aspect is also positive. “The cost per square foot is amazing,” Miller says, “which helps us be fiscally responsible. It’s not about being showy, but now we have four times the space.”  Community partnerships are an important component. “Rather than just hosting events,” Ushe says, “we want to collaborate more with others, supporting our members’ events, supplying public schools with master classes, and arranging music concerts with the Department of Parks and Recreation.”