A.L.I.V.E. Performance Space

As part of our Baltimore CDW program, we partnered with Artistic Laborers in Visual Exaltation (A.L.I.V.E.), a performance and visual art space educating and cultivating emerging youth artists. They had no defined space for programming, causing staff and their work to be spread everywhere, from spaces within their building to partner spaces in the community.

 NDC’s program manager Julia DiMauro directed our design volunteers Red October, The Why Creative, and Xiaobai Zhao to help solve their space issue.

The Vision

Renovate the structure into a community center for A.L.I.V.E.’s programming. Create space for more in-depth, year-round programming to better serve students and their SMART goals without large gaps of time in between.


The Plan

We worked closely with A.L.I.V.E. staff to better understand the needs of their programming and of the surrounding community, collaboratively envisioning the center and identifying desired space needs. We worked on plans for the site, including floor plans, code analysis, and renderings. These conceptual plans were used to help A.L.I.V.E. secure bond funding for phase 1 implementation of the design.


The Build

A.L.I.V.E.’s space will become a true hub where kids can come during the day or in the evening, offering a safe place for expression. Providing a safe space for children to go also offers relief to parents and other caregivers.