Visual Arts

La Reunion TX has come a long way in a short time.

Lawrence Jenkins / Special to DMN

Sarah Jane Semrad (right) and Catherine Cuellar plan to build the compound around a railroad trestle.

In January 2006, the arts organization was an idea. By March, co-founders Catherine Cuellar and Sarah Jane Semrad began planning the first fundraising event: a prom. In April, an anonymous donor stepped forward to grant the organization use of 35 acres in Oak Cliff. By September, La Reunion TX was a registered nonprofit.

Today, it is gearing up for what looks to be another fast-paced year of progress toward the ultimate goal: the building of an artist-in-residency compound where up to 10 artists would live, work and foster local partnerships.

Ms. Semrad jokes that if she and Ms. Cuellar knew how quickly things would progress, they would have started earlier.

"People get it," said Ms. Semrad, executive director of La Reunion TX. "They are receptive. They want to see something like this in their community."

La Reunion (which takes its name from a European-inspired utopia that settled along the Trinity River in the 1850s) is planning a live-in/work-space compound for artists working in both new and traditional media, along Jefferson Boulevard. The mission is to "inspire, sustain and renew artists and community through education, outreach and residencies."

When Ms. Cuellar, a radio reporter for KERA-FM (90.1), pitched the idea to Ms. Semrad, neither imagined it would take off so quickly.

"To me, it's a universal affirmation that we are meeting a need," said Ms. Cuellar. "We're not duplicating the work of any other program or nonprofit organization in the community."

Ms. Cuellar is a third-generation Dallasite and a former arts staff writer for The Dallas Morning News. Ms. Semrad has worked on several arts projects in Dallas, serving as executive director for the former IR Gallery in Dallas and as director of the Pigeon-Stone Project. The latter brought artists and businesses together to "create a citywide sustainable art scene," she said.

The idea for La Reunion came from a book Ms. Cuellar saw at a friend's house. Artist Communities, released by the Alliance of Artist Communities in Rhode Island, provided details about other artist-in-residency programs. Ms. Cuellar wanted something for Dallas.

"I think Dallas has an incredible amount of good will toward artists and a great variety of art," she said.

Within months of receiving the land, a cohort of volunteers, including fraternity brothers from Southern Methodist University in need of community-service hours, were at the site cleaning up. Jessica Stewart, a board member, is one of many who braved 100-degree heat to help.

"The story is very inspiring," she said. "The way everything seems to be falling in place. It is just a very inspired idea I feel very lucky to be part of."

La Reunion looked at several Dallas neighborhoods, including Deep Ellum and the Cedars, to find a location. It was happenstance – at her daughter's piano lesson – that Ms. Semrad found the connection to the anonymous donor who is allowing the group use of the land in Oak Cliff, seven acres of which will be deeded over for the building, said Ms. Cuellar.

Ms. Semrad is currently the only paid staff member. The rest of the board members, including Ms. Cuellar, are volunteers. There is no office space. Ms. Semrad works from local coffee shops. Involvement, though, has allowed the organization to thrive. Not a day goes by, she says, without a call from someone saying, "I like what you are doing and want to help."

The money to fund the projects comes from grants, public and private events, and individual contributions. The broad base accounts for La Reunion's $85,000 operating budget for this fiscal year, which began July 1. A capital campaign is being planned to garner building funds.

Ms. Semrad said there is already interest from as far away as Latvia in the artist-in-residency compound.

La Reunion is drawing inspiration and ideas from similar communities throughout the United States, including the Writers' Colony in Eureka Springs, Ark., where Ms. Semrad recently made a visit. Organizers are creating a plan that is customized to the needs of Dallas.

"In all cases we never felt the need to reinvent the wheel," said Ms. Cuellar. "We've gone out of the way to study other programs."

Ms. Semrad says the artists who come to La Reunion will be involved in the community through lectures, exhibits and partnerships.

Already, the organization has teamed with the Dallas Art Dealers Association, Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas and CityGallery for Art Chicas Unidas. The collaboration brings artists together with 40 inner-city girls in November for a day of creation, with a show at the end. Sales proceeds will be invested in a spring retreat for 72 girls.

Lara Arp, curator at CityGallery, said she didn't hesitate in teaming with La Reunion because both organizations share a commitment to local and emerging artists. She'd like to expand the Art Chicas Unidas program if the pilot year goes well, and she said she would likely partner with the organization again.

"I think it is going to be a great influence on the city," she said of La Reunion. "It enhances the community at large."

There's also a partnership with Preservation Tree Services and the city to remove 14 unhealthy non-native trees from the La Reunion property. The trees will be carved into totems or sculptures. The project is slated to begin in January.

"It's a long-term decomposing installation," said Ms. Semrad.

During the spring, La Reunion garnered ideas from University of Texas at Arlington students for the architecture of the building. It served as a test-run for the juried architecture exhibition launching Monday. In total, $10,000 in prizes will be presented.

The group's ultimate goal is to live the mission statement.

"In an age of instant gratification, we are trying to be something that is a little more intentional," said Ms. Cuellar. "The hope is that we'll not only have a great facility, but also really talented artists and a reputation for being good to artists, being good for Dallas and really living up to that mission in inspiring, renewing and sustaining artists and community.

"Ultimately, that will breathe life into it, and it will outlive all of us that started it."