Alexandria's River Oaks marks 40 years as cultural, artistic hub of Central Louisiana
When artist David Crain worked as a designer for an advertising agency, he would hit the road at lunchtime to explore and see what he could find.
“One of the coolest, consistently coolest, places was River Oaks,” said Crain who is now one of River Oaks Square Arts Center’s resident artists. “So I'd come down here and launch and just walk around for the studios and explore and see what all the different artists were doing, which is what the general public is supposed to still do. "
Encompassing both the historic Bolton House and Studio Annex building on the corners of Main, Lee and 3rd Streets in downtown Alexandria, River Oaks is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year as the cultural and artistic hub of Central Louisiana.
The Bolton House is where the administrative offices, gift shop and several studios are located. The Studio Annex houses the Bolton-Davis Gallery, Galerie des Amis and the Stokes-Harris Gallery along with 25 studios, an arts academy and a ceramics lab.
“For artists, it's a great place. I don't think people know that this exists,” said artist Leah Morace. “It's just a great place to work with other artists and collaborate and get some inspiration and I love it.”
“The most rewarding thing that they’ll all tell you is how they vibe off one another,” said executive director Rachael Lajaunie Dauzat. For her, that creative atmosphere is wonderful to see.
One of a kind
River Oaks is the only facility of its kind in Central Louisiana, and even the region.
“There are a lot of places that try to cultivate what we have here for artists, but there have been very, very few that are successful and very few that are in operation today,” said Dauzat.
River Oaks provides studio space for working artists of all mediums.
Morace said having a studio at River Oaks allowed her to further her career as an artist.
“If I'm not here, they come and show my art for me. They market it for me. So, it's really helped me to be a part of River Oaks,” said Morace.
Currently, about 30 artists are working at the facility and they are at capacity which they have been at for years.
“There is a waiting list,” said Dauzat. “Everything here at River Oaks undergoes an adjudication process. Whether you want in the gift shop, whether you want an exhibition, a feature solo work of your show, whether you want studio space, it all undergoes an adjudication process.”
Adjudication serves several purposes such as ensuring the quality of work that they feature and including diversity among artists and their crafts, she explained.
Hub of community events
As a cultural hub, the center hosts events such as “Men Who Cook & Men Who Mix” coming up May 4, the Van Gogh Gala on Oct. 26 and the annual Porch Sale set for Dec. 7.
“Men Who Cook & Men Who Mix” is a “community favorite” fundraiser that was implemented to attract a younger audience to the facility, said Dauzat.
Men are invited to prepare culinary dishes or drink recipes. The event was started about 20 years ago to encourage a younger audience to visit the facility, she said. About 500 people attend each year and it continues to grow.
"It has done what it was meant to do,” said Dauzat. “It continues to do that. It invites the nontraditional crowd to River Oaks.”
River Oaks fundraisers are always held at the facility because visitors are likely to return to the facility after the first visit.
"They may be here for a cooking competition, but they're looking at art. They're realizing there are studios here. They're seeing the calendar of events that's unfolding for the year. It's definitely multipurpose.”
The Van Gogh Gala is even more popular. Tickets are highly sought after, and the event always sells out.
Community members are selected and mentored by River Oaks artists to create a work of art before the gala. The pieces are then auctioned off during the gala which always has a theme to which visitors come dressed in costume.
“For so many years, you had to beg people to come to events,” said Dauzat. “To see these events be beloved the way that they are, it's a very humbling experience.”
The annual Porch Sale is another success story, she said. Last year, they sold nearly $70,000 worth of art in the six hours it was going on.
"We're about creating awareness of the arts. We’re about facilitating an environment for the artist. At the end of the day, it's about moving their work,” said Dauzat. And, people love visiting with the artists and the artists love it as well.
“It's just informal. It feels like an old time Christmas shopping episode of some Lifetime movie,” said Dauzat.
Outreach efforts
Their outreach efforts towards special needs groups are what makes Dauzat most proud. For her, that is the most rewarding. It has been flourishing since starting 10 years ago and they continue to expand upon it.
For the past 30 years, River Oaks has been offering the Summer Arts Studio which is the area's largest visual art summer camp spearheaded by artistic director Aubrey Bolen.
“In the months of June and July, we will welcome over 180 kids ages 5-13. We turn this place into a school,” she said.
It’s multidisciplined, involving the culinary arts, theatre, painting, mixed media and working with clay. A few artists in town also teach sessions.
River Oaks beginning
River Oaks had its beginnings when the Bolton Family donated the 1899 Queen Anne house was donated by the Bolton Family to the City of Alexandria in 1979, Dauzat said. River Oaks opened its doors in 1984.
The Alexandria Museum of Art opened in 1977 and there was an underlying movement “to get the arts up and running for Alexandria,” she said.
“And Fran Bolton was integral during this time. Being from the Bolton family, and also heavily involved in the arts, Fran was a major mover and shaker when it came to getting this established. And she had also been involved with the museum as well,” added Dauzat.
The Yeager building adjacent to it was opened in 1987 to provide additional space for studios before it was torn down. The 15,000 square food Studio Annex was built in its place and opened in 1999.
According to a contract River Oaks has with the City of Alexandria, the city takes care of the utilities and major maintenance, said Dauzat. The city’s involvement is crucial to their success, but the city provides no other monetary support.
“However, we have over a half-million-dollar budget that we have to maintain in order to run River Oaks,” she said. “And every penny of that is raised by the staff and its board.”
Dauzat said River Oaks has always been about community whether it’s the artists or patrons because they make River Oaks work.
“It truly is a very unique gem,” said Dauzat. “I’ve had people that have come in and study us from New Orleans, Texas. And they're just really amazed, that we have this major of a facility in a town this size.”
This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: River Oaks marks 40 years as creative hub of Central Louisiana
