Elsewhere Artists Collaborative

Never have I seen so many beautiful colors and textures in such an unassuming place. On the outside, Elsewhere Artists Collaborative is a small, brick building, nestled between various merchants on Elm street, downtown Greensboro. Inside, the former furniture and army surplus business has been transformed into a living museum. I was intrigued and I'll admit a bit skeptical about the idea of a living museum before I visited the collaborative. I had no idea what to expect until I walked into the building and saw shelves and shelves of old, color-coded children's toys. I'm not usually a big fan of "stuff"...I like things to be organized, aesthetically pleasing while being minimalist. There was something about Elsewhere though that was not overwhelming. While there was an incredible amount of "stuff"- old radios, board games, baby dolls, bolts of fabric, musical instruments, old shoes, etc.- I was surprisingly not overwhelmed. Everything seemed to have a very specific and pleasing place. What I found myself connecting with the most was the arrangement of colors and the visual aesthetic that created. I'm very drawn to bright color and I appreciated the attention that was given to it, especially in the bookshelves pictured above. It was this rearrangement of everyday objects that made the place into more than a collection of stuff.