DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A massive fire tore through a fire art studio in DeKalb County earlier this week, destroying precious artwork.
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South River Art Studios is an old, out-of-the-way cluster of warehouses by a railroad track. The buildings house dozens of art studios where creative people work to produce works of art, things of beauty.
They have built great camaraderie, too. They are nothing if not a close family.
However, in the predawn darkness of Wednesday, something awful happened. A fire rampaged through the studios, laying waste to carpentry, sculptures, ceramics, paintings, drawings, and tools.
One artist wrote on his GoFundMe page that he lost $50,000 worth of tools.
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Investigators have not determined what triggered the fire.
Nobody was hurt, and yet the fire was a punch to the gut for these artists.
Sunday morning, Julia Hill came out to salvage some work and do some cleaning up. Most of her art escaped damage, but she’s moved to tears when she eloquently speaks about the beauty of this place.
“It’s been a place where a lot of people feel safe being themselves and safe being creative and connecting with other, other like-minded folks trying to make beautiful things that shattered before our very eyes, being the hardest part,” Hill told Channel 2’s Bryan Mims.
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A lot of art did not make it through.
South River Art Studios has launched several GoFundMe campaigns to help support the artists.
Click here to find more ways to help and donate.
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