What’s situated between the Joel Lane House and Bloomsbury Estates, nearly a hundred years old, yet new this month? It’s ARTHOUSE, the first of many creative projects housed in architects, Chris and Nasim Kuenzel’s newly renovated 1920’s home, they call “Post Suburbia Project”. Curious? So were my wife and I as Kalesia Kuenzel, the daughter of Chris and Nasim and director of ARTHOUSE, greeted us this week.
The old and new theme continues… “Post Suburbia Project” is a reference to the movement back Downtown after the massive migration to the suburbs starting back in the 1950s. Kalesia shares her parents’ dedication to Downtown life, which until now has focused in Fayetteville where the family supports the arts through projects like the ten year old art theater, Cameo. Yet with ties to Raleigh through Kalesia and Nasim’s graduate degrees at NC State, their presence in Raleigh is a natural.
Walking through the front door at 716 W. Hargett, we find their vision evident. The perfect blending of old (highly polished original floors, doors and fireplaces restored in a way that reveals their history), and new (streamlined modern track lighting and cabinetry, fresh white walls), functions as the perfect backdrop for creativity. ARTHOUSE, the art studio where Kalesia works with children (ages 4 – 12), offers a bright, inviting, spacious environment, where kids may not at first notice the details of scented candles and specially selected music, but find themselves approaching art through all their senses. For Kalesia, this is a celebration of the way she herself was raised, with creativity always at the center of her experience.
Kalesia Kuenzel and Jim BeltWhy Hargett St., we ask? Kalesia beams talking about the sliver of neighborhood which is home to gathering spots like Boylan Bridge Brewpub and Moonlight Pizza Company, the history of the Joel Lane House, the promise of Bloomsbury Estates; and neighbor to the well organized, eclectic, artsy and activist Boylan Heights. To this, she adds the “unique mixture of living and working” that all add up to a buzz that’s bound to spread even further, with the arrival of the proposed new transportation or multimodal center in the nearby Warehouse District.
Drop in and meet Kalesia. You’ll be inspired by her, the setting and the view of Raleigh’s skyline. You may want to schedule art lessons, or like my wife, you may dream of moving in! With apartment units available for rent, this could be arranged.
Thanks for this article…I was wondering what was going on with that house. Their beautiful renovation of this historic house is a great asset to the area!