Tucked away in the back half of Tackett’s Mill is the soon-to-be largest indoor art installation in Virginia.
Run by Art Center Director Nicholas Zimbro from Clearbrook Center of the Arts and a team of local artists, the group has spent several years transforming the 5,000 square foot unit with its 10,000 square feet of wall space at 2230B Tackett’s Mill Drive.
“The first time I stepped into this building I was ten years old, and there was a kayak on the wall over there…I spent my entire twenties living in different states – I studied art at the oldest museum in the country, it’s the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. And when I was 29 I decided to move back to my hometown…and I became an artist at the [Lorton] Workhouse [Arts Center]…and I’ve been the resident artist for about five years now,” said Zimbro, continuing, “Three years ago I was handed the key to this unit and I received a sponsorship from the Clearbrook Foundation…when I first stepped into this unit, everything was brown, there was carpet – the unit hadn’t been renovated in ten years, and now people just want to come in.”
According to the organization’s website, “The Clearbrook Foundation is an effort to promote and conduct artistic and educational activities in the eastern end of Prince William County,” by providing grant funding for community art projects.
Read our story about the “Walk of Fame” – another Clearbrook Foundation project.
Zimbro spoke about how art has a power to it, and can transform one’s surroundings, using an example of how art has been able to transform Miami’s economy.
“Art has a really subtle power about it – almost like water – where it can transform things,” said Zimbro.
If you stop by the art installation when it opens, expect a “street art” vibe with ceiling and floor murals, collages, paintings, drawings, and sculptures.
“Jokingly we call this a ‘selfie museum’ because in today’s era, getting people to go out to museums or getting people out to galleries adhere to a different rule set,” said Zimbro.
Zimbro expressed hope that the art installation will serve as an inspiration to future artists in the years to come.
“At the end of the day, the largest victory that I could see for this place, is for Prince William County school buses to drop children off, and for someone that’s not even me, to explain what’s going on in here, and to see a spark in a little kid’s eye, because that’s kind of what happened to me when I was younger,” said Zimbro.
The public opening of the space is happening on November 10 from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m., and is a family friendly free event. Learn more about the opening here.
