CultureHouse

CultureHouse is a pop-up community space in the Boston area opening for the months of July to October. It will be a place to hang out, meet people, create, share skills, and learn. As a vibrant cultural institution in the Boston area, it will serve as an “indoor public park” and communal living room for all in the city by acting as a third space between home and work. 

CultureHouse will work to promote urban design in Boston by acting as a test kitchen for public space and streetscape improvements. Partnering with affordable, local businesses, the space will host a free cafe, and have regular programming determined by the community such as board game and trivia nights, flea markets, soup nights, and live music. There will be space to work, to meet, and to talk.

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About 67% of Boston residents are renters, and a large portion are college students and young professionals (bumc.bu.edu). In many cases, this population is constantly moving in and out of neighborhoods and uprooting themselves before they can really even establish their sense of community. This does two things. First, renters are left with an intangible sense of belonging, and second, community networks are debilitated in these neighborhoods.

There are very few indoor spaces where people are not required to buy something to enter, which can serve as a significant barrier for community members. Most people are familiar with parks and libraries. Both are great resources, however, parks are cold in the winter and libraries close after dark and do not encourage talking. So, many millenials use digital communities to substitute urban communities. This habit can become risky because our physical environment greatly affects our wellbeing.

CultureHouse is a youth-run organization started in 2017 that improves neighborhood livability by facilitating the creation of public social infrastructure through the transformation of unused spaces into vibrant places to work, play, and foster connections. Through this project, we hope to connect with groups with similar missions and encourage our visitors to wrestle with the key values underlying our work: public space, social justice, and the transformative power of design.

CultureHouse aims to be a place that supports local projects and provides a platform for community members to share their skills and efforts. During our July 2018 pop-up, CultureHouse became the site of an affordable housing hackathon, a local political meeting, a gallery of the work of a local artist, a library of books from a local children’s book publisher, and much more. Programming is key to the mission of CultureHouse because it realizes the vision of the space as a place where community can manifest visually. These initiatives enhance the public good, bring people together in an accessible public space, and support existing public projects.

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2 full-time staff

3 interns

Aaron Greiner uses art, design, and technology to tackle the global challenges of sustainability and societal well-being. With substantial experience in human-centered and urban design, he has worked on projects including redesigning a library and creating a mobile makerspace. He is currently working at Design Museum Boston where he creates exhibits and experiences that demonstrate the impact of art and design on everyone.

Our strongest partners have historically been the directors of business districts and main street organizations. Networking with them and building robust relationships is a top priority moving forward. We’ve also found success in relationships with city councilors and other city officials who have on-the-ground knowledge of commercial vacancies in their districts, and we would love to expand those collaborations.