In Rochester, creativity is bursting at the seams within Muck Duck Studios. Founded by Casey Arthur, Muck Duck is a non-profit arts and community hub for all things creative. The space is home to a variety of artist studios and communal spaces which are used to host workshops, open mics, mediations and more.
Arthur’s idea originated during the pandemic when she rented a small artist’s studio for herself. The global shutdown caused Arthur to rethink her job working with the United Nations Human Rights Council.
“It was obviously a very intense job, and very overwhelming,” Arthur recalled. “It’s challenging to kind of see people suffer and then not have closure at the end of the day. I just left a lot of open ends.”
For Arthur, art proved to be a vital outlet to deal with these emotions. And she thought others could benefit from this too.
In 2021, she moved into a 1200 sq. foot space and hosted five resident artists. In 2022, she expanded into the current space ,which is double the size and currently hosts around 15 artists.
While some artists pay for private studios and long-term residencies, other parts of the studio are consistently open for public use on an hourly or daily basis. Other spaces within the studio are used for recurring events like Muck Duck’s mental health open mic.
Currently, Arthur is on the verge of acquiring a second permanent space that is over 7000 sq feet. Support for the studio passed unanimously in a city planning meeting a few weeks back. This studio is set to open as early as this April. The expanded space will make it easier to host community workshops and live music events.
“This really is striking a positive chord with people, and that’s why we have so much faith in what our plans are at this new venue,” Arthur said.
A key component to Muck Duck’s success is that it’s an all ages venue. With the current decline of so-called “third spaces,” the widespread accessibility that Arthur offers is crucial to combating both the loneliness epidemic and helping to foster local community.
“Everybody deserves access to friendship and connection,” Arthur said. “They deserve to meet a stranger and feel really excited to get to know them again and then realize over time that they’re not strangers anymore.”
Arthur said Muck Duck hosts everyone from children to the elderly and everyone in between. Some patrons of the studio are over 90-years-old. While others are artists who are legally blind. Muck Duck also works with cancer recovery groups and homeless outreach.
“Art as a shared language is so important, because it gives everyone an entry into the conversation,” Arthur said.
Arthur describes herself as an artist first and a businessperson second. For that reason, most events and programs are offered on a sliding payment scale, so that no one is turned away based on income. Arthur also allows companies and community members to “sponsor” tickets for those who can’t afford them.
“To us, having people attend is more important than the money that comes in the front door,” she said.
As a non-profit, Arthur is able to offset costs through grants and corporate sponsorship in exchange for tax writeoffs. The studio also makes money through communal and private workshops. Arthur said the key is offering diverse revenue streams. The ultimate goal is to properly pay artists for performing rather than charging creatives for events.
“It’s more like, how can we the community create resource buckets so that we can pay artists to perform,” Arthur explained.
Arthur grew up in LeRoy New York, about 30 miles west of Rochester. Although she has done humanitarian work around the world, she said she wanted to make real change at home as well.
“Our cultural imprint is leaving in the air camaraderie, friendship, collaboration…” Arthur said. “Our community is more than just arts facilitators or creators themselves, we’re really building a home here for people to rest and recover and reclaim themselves.”
The current Muck Duck Studio is located 595 Blossom Rd # 317, Rochester, NY 14610. To stay up to date on upcoming events, go to instagram.com/muckduckstudio.
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