At a recent monthly social, artists and staff from The Generator maker space were more or less celebrating the upcoming transition from their current collaborative workspace located in the heart of Reno at 250 Bell Street, to a new warehouse they rented out in the newly branded Oddie District in Sparks. Although their current space afforded them a convenient and central location for the artists, they seem to be looking forward to the new workspace, after months of dealing with moving and uncertainties.
The Generator offers memberships to artists, with the benefit of being able to use tools and machines that are generally too unrealistic to own personally, whether it be due to cost or other factors, as well as a workspace with other passionate and supportive people to step in and lend a hand when needed. Art for Burning Man has often been created here.
“We’re gonna go in there and make something temporary work because we have artists that need space immediately and we have to just keep working,” said Jessi Janusee, or “Sprocket,” the Public Programs and Communications Coordinator for The Generator of moving into the new space in Sparks, which is set to take place during the entire month of August. “We're going to have a year to build it out the way we want to build it out, and it's gonna be awesome.”
She went on to explain that the new space is a completely empty warehouse building where the old Lowe’s was located on Oddie Boulevard, and although daunting as far as making it a large-scale workable artistic space, she said that it opens up the possibility for the collective to make it exactly what they want and need. Last year, it already had to move from its original 1240 Icehouse Avenue in Sparks after its lease there expired.
Talking about the setup of the new space, Janusee said, “A lot of things will be in a room because we wanted to be more family friendly, that's something we’ve struggled with. And just be more accessible in general.” She added, “it's kind of chaotic when someone’s on a forklift driving by the kitchen.” Janusee explained that she hopes this new space will be much more permanent for The Generator, saying, “now we can think a lot more about the design and what will serve all of us, [everyone] will just have their own spaces, workshop has their own space, hotworks and lampworks will have their own space, we’re going to have a recording studio, and there’s going to be a lot of open space and kid friendly areas.”
Along with the upcoming move, Janusee hopes to cast a larger net to those interested in being a part of The Generator but are apprehensive for a number of reasons. She admitted that it can be intimidating looking from the outside in, saying, “So many of my friends were like, ‘wow, I thought this was only rich Burners that hung out here’ and I said, ‘no it's actually really poor weirdos.’”
“I mean it's hard because we started out specifically making large sculptures and large-scale Burning Man stuff, but we’ve matured into more of a community art space that’s more encompassing and more open.” She stressed the fact that The Generator is a welcoming place for all people and admitted that even she was anxious at first, “I was so intimidated, but it really only takes one connection with one person and having one memory and that’s it, then all of a sudden you’re like, ‘why didn’t I come down here sooner?’”
Janusee also shared her optimism that this move will expand membership and more importantly inclusivity to all parts of our community. The Generator is already the largest collaborative of its kind in the greater Reno area, but their vision is to develop even further and reach more parts of the community. Seeing as the Oddie District in Sparks seems to be somewhat barren for now, Janusee sees it as an opportunity to revitalize the area and a lot of different, fun ideas are being thrown around on how they are going to accomplish that. From backyard parties and live music just like their monthly socials, to community gardening in the park across the street.
According to The Generator’s website, the new space will feature artist studios, food and beverage options, flex tech workspaces, the makerspace and more. The new space will be located at 2400 Oddie Blvd, comprising of 30,000 sq ft of indoor space and 20,000 sq ft of enclosed outdoor space, and is set to officially open early fall of this year.