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Nautilus artists find happy ending with new home

Thursday, 8 August 2024

Nautilus artists collective has found a new home at the Dom Polski Polish House in Newtown, Wellington. Pictured, inside the new space.
Nautilus artists collective has found a new home at the Dom Polski Polish House in Newtown, Wellington. Pictured, inside the new space.

Wellington’s Nautilus artists collective, forced to disband when its former premises was sold, has found a new home.

Richard Brown, a spokesperson for the charitable trust that runs the group, said its artists had moved in to Wellington’s Dom Polski/Polish House, on southern Riddiford St in Newtown. Brown has been part of Nautilus for a decade.

He said it was both a happy ending and a new beginning for the creative community. Many members moved on from the group after the new owner of its former Ōwhiro Bay premises last year asked the artists to vacate the property which they’d called home for 15 years.

Richard Brown, front, pictured with Steve Baker in the new space, which features fewer private studios but more communal working areas.
Richard Brown, front, pictured with Steve Baker in the new space, which features fewer private studios but more communal working areas.

A philanthropist, who was aware of the group’s woes and had tried to purchase the Ōwhiro Bay property to keep the artists there, had gifted the collective a sum of money to be put towards establishing itself in the Dom Polski.

“It’s just long enough to pay the rent until we can become self-sustaining,” Brown said. “It seemed pretty bleak for a while. It’s taken months to find a new home. The feeling now is very positive and excited. It's a good energy down there.”

The search for a new premises was extensive. The group ultimately settled on the ground floor of the Dom Polski as many city council-run spaces were not sized for purpose.

Artists Mouse, Aleks and Sean in the new Nautilus headquarters.
Artists Mouse, Aleks and Sean in the new Nautilus headquarters.

About eight artists ‒ a mix of former members and new ones ‒ are now making themselves at home at their new headquarters. Brown says a recruitment drive is under way to encourage artists who want to join the community and lease working space to get in touch.

Nautilus’ space has shrunk: in the converted Ōwhiro Bay workshop it had about 25 studios, compared to its current six-odd in Newtown.

But the collective is trying new financial models, including leasing out shared studios and a communal wood workshop with shared tools, and charging a general membership fee for those who want to use a communal workspace that operates similar to hot desking. Nautilus’ kaupapa remains the same: to provide affordable space for creatives to meet and make.

The new home at the Dom Polski features communal artist space.
The new home at the Dom Polski features communal artist space.

Brown speaks about the collective’s vision for more collaboration in Newtown rather than artists being siphoned off in private studios.

The new space felt more connected to Wellington City and accessible, with increased foot traffic outside and it being in the heart of Newtown, a creative hub in its own right.

A lot of the art that was on walls of the Ōwhiro Bay premises, including the Nautilus sign, had been reused inside the Dom Polski, Brown said.

Artist Jordan Levy, pictured at the new space, says the Dom Polski is like a blank canvas.
Artist Jordan Levy, pictured at the new space, says the Dom Polski is like a blank canvas.

Jordan Levy, one of the collective’s artists who practises across various mediums including music, jewellery and crafts making, painting and other holistic work, felt there had already been greater community engagement at Nautilus’ new home.

The collective wants to begin hosting regular events from spring.

“There’s just so much new hope for something to rise from the ashes,” Levy said. “[Leaving Ōwhiro Bay] was probably one of the hardest things I’ve been through. … As soon as we found this new space, it was just the biggest blessing. It gave us so much strength and resilience to be like, well, this is a new opportunity.

“It’s a blank canvas. … After the stuff that we’ve been through and that low point, it just feels very exciting, very fresh and [like] everything’s going to work out.”