Rose Klein, right, general manager of Liminal Space Collective, speaks to attendees during an event at 11th Hour Coffee in Downtown Santa Cruz on Saturday. (Amaya Edwards — Santa Cruz Local/CatchLight Local)
SANTA CRUZ >> A local artist collective best known for filling the Circle Church with art, music and performance in 2023 prior to its demolition, is charting a new course as a worker-owned cooperative — and is inviting artists to partner with creative projects.
At an event Saturday, leaders from Liminal Space hosted their first “Convergence Course,” a life coaching seminar for artists and others with creative pursuits. Convergence is one of several projects launched by the group.
The event at 11th Hour Coffee in Downtown Santa Cruz sought to help artists in “improving our work, improving the way that we relate to the world, and improving the way that we relate to each other,” said Liminal Space founder Weston Mossman. The event is expected to happen quarterly, with artists forming groups to support each other with their projects.
Structured into 30-minute workshops led by Mossman, Liminal Space General Manager Rose Klein and consultant Jay Brown, attendees participated in group activities designed to inspire creative solutions to individual and shared problems.
Mossman’s workshop directed attendees to identify their goals together, asking “what is the single easiest step” to achieving them, said Reggie Meisler, a participant. Meisler and other participants exchanged ideas about social movements and food-barter systems.
“One person said, ‘Oh, I have a bunch of cherry tomatoes.’ Another person said, ‘I have some peppers.’ And you start to realize it’s almost metaphorical that people could come together and make a salad just out of what they already have,” Meisler said after the event.
The course “allowed us to get insights, both from things they provided, but also from the space they held for people to be connecting with one another,” said Christy Tonge, a workshop participant.
Brown’s seminar focused on redefining personal narratives of success.
“People perceive art as something that only kids should be doing, or that isn’t treated with a lot of respect and honor, unless you’ve ‘made it,’” said Brown. That narrative is “one of the biggest reasons why artists struggle,” he said.
Mossman said that the event would be repeated every quarter, with registration on the website.
Jay Brown leads a workshop during an event at 11th Hour Coffee on Aug. 16. (Amaya Edwards — Santa Cruz Local/CatchLight Local)
Rose Klein, general manager of Liminal Space Collective, leads a workshop at 11th Hour Coffee on Aug. 16. (Amaya Edwards — Santa Cruz Local/CatchLight Local)
The group has multiple projects, including a “solar punk” card game that asks players to imagine a utopian future, a role-playing video game development group, and the Convergence classes.
Tiffany Thisner, a solar-punk artist with the cooperative’s “Interdependence” project, said the support from Liminal Space enabled their project to apply for a grant and make connections with other artists.
“It feels like together, we can really make something happen better than I could do on my own,” said
Mossman said individuals and businesses were welcome to join the cooperative for guidance or promotion in a creative endeavour.
“We’re looking for artists who are interested in who are open to changing, who are open to collaborating and who are open to their art being built on by others,” said Klein.
The group has an Instagram and potential collaborators can email the group through their website.
Convergence attendees take notes on Saturday. (Amaya Edwards — Santa Cruz Local/CatchLight Local)
Participants gather on yoga mats at a Convergence Course on Saturday. (Amaya Edwards — Santa Cruz Local/CatchLight Local)
Read more
- Art fills Circle Church in Santa Cruz during demolition delay — March 31, 2023
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Tyler Maldonado holds a degree in English from the University of California, Berkeley. He writes about housing, homelessness and the environment. He lives in Santa Cruz County.
