For decades, art students at Spokane Falls Community College have been attending class in some of the oldest buildings on campus. The photography building was formerly a part of Fort George Wright, which was built right before the 20th century, and the fine arts building was one of the first built when the college originated in 1967.
Though the two buildings fulfilled their purpose over decades, they eventually began to succumb to the seasons they weathered, says Bonnie Glantz, vice president of learning at SFCC.
"We had continual problems with roof leakage, asbestos mitigation, plumbing, you know, they were just really old buildings," she says. "Our instructors have always made due with what they had, but it was a very inadequate space."
Those conditions are why — back in 2011 — the college asked the Washington State Legislature to fund a new building. In 2019, the proposal finally made it into the state budget for capital projects. Glantz, who served as the college's dean of arts during the bidding process, says it took three tries before the approximately $43 million project was finally approved in 2019.
"That initially funded the pre-design and design of the building, but we didn't get any construction funding," she explains. "It turned out that another project didn't go forward, so we did get that [construction] funding."
Students have filled the halls of sƛ̓x̣etkʷ(ska-hét) since the start of this year's fall quarter in September, but the two gallery spaces — one for fine arts displays and the other for photography — have yet to open. Jeff Bunch, district communications director for the Community Colleges of Spokane, says via email that gallery construction is set to be completed during the winter quarter and the space will be open by spring 2025.
"You know, I'm really excited for all of these programs to get a dedicated building like this one," Glantz says. "It's honestly one of the most beautiful buildings in Spokane."
Perched above the Centennial Trail and the Spokane River, the modern, two-story building itself is like a piece of fine art on the college's campus. And since Washington sets aside 0.5% of the cost of new publicly funded buildings for the commission or acquisition of art, technically part of the building is art.
This includes all of the second floor windows, an installation by Canadian artist Jill Anholt titled "Aperture." Each pane shimmers in the light, mimicking the swirls of the current one might see in the Spokane River below. To achieve the reflective design, Anholt specially fabricated the panes in Germany with a glass frit, a porous type of glass that's often mixed with ceramic particles to create a decorative pattern, between the window's outer surfaces, Glantz says.
"Being on our campus is being on Native land, so we talked right away about the significance of the river," Glantz explains. "She really wanted to bring [the river] up to campus.
Walking into the building, visitors are immediately thrust into its heart: the atrium. Surrounded by walls of windows, this central area sort of acts to direct people through the rest of the space.
"Knowing [the art building] would sit on the edge of campus, we really went through a very thoughtful process of human-made and natural life coming together in one space," Glantz says. "The whole atrium is transparent, so you can see through the building and look at the trees beyond. It brings nature into the building, too."
To the left of the atrium there's a row of large classrooms and studios lining the hall, each providing high-quality space for art students of any medium. For example, the main photography classroom has a full-size kitchen to practice some artsy cooking photos and videos.
And the ceramics classroom is really a collection of rooms that create more of a studio environment. In the primary production space, student work waiting to be put in the kiln lines the walls surrounding at least 10 large work stations. Down a short hallway there's another room just for mixing and using paints and glazes, another filled with buckets of wet clay that can be reclaimed for future use, and a third room where clay is fired into ceramic.
Off on the right are the two galleries that have yet to open, a line of offices, and the photography studio. The building's second floor is filled with more classrooms, and a handful of alcoves called "nests" where students can study or relax. Two spots on the northern side of the building peer between the top of the treeline all the way down to the river bank.
"The [student] energy and excitement has been high," says Cozette Phillips, SFCC's gallery program director and fine art instructor. "It's pretty jaw-dropping when you walk into the space, not only to have views to the Spokane River, but then if you look up you're seeing a really unique casting process of cast aluminum on our ceiling tiles." (Imagine an entire ceiling of aluminum bubble wrap that's been popped.)
"The building just literally sparkles, and that's kind of reflected in the students' energy, too," she continues.
But Phillips' favorite place in the entire building is the breezeway above the southern entrance. The bridge, like the two northern nests, has a clear view of the river, peers directly into the gallery and oversees the entire atrium space. Just that small impact of having a peaceful place to practice painting a landscape or even just stand and gaze into the distance can be vital to artists.
"When you give the artists in our community this type of facility, it will have impacts for decades," Glantz says, echoing Phillips' sentiment. "We also are now doing an artist-in-residence program in the building for emerging Indigenous artists that will have a continued impact here."
The new sƛ̓x̣etkʷ Artist-in-Residence Program, which prioritizes up-and-coming Indigenous artists, is the first of its kind in the region, Phillips says.
"It should be everywhere, and I think there are programs that are developing," she says, "but as far as I understand right now, we're the only college in the area that has a fully funded Indigenous artists-in-residence program."
The program was made possible through a Spokane Arts SAGA Grant, alongside other funding from private donors and the Community Colleges of Spokane. Applications for the program have since closed, and Phillips hopes to notify the selected applicant by Jan. 31.
That artist will have 24-hour access to the entire arts building from April 1 to June 18, plus their own office space and the opportunity to work with students in whatever way they please. This could include hosting lectures and workshops or even showing an exhibition in one of the galleries.
"We've got some really, really strong applicants, so it's gonna be difficult to make a decision," she says. "But, I'm hopeful that we can keep this program going year after year because there's just so many amazing artists out there that I'd love to bring into our space. I think our students and community will benefit from it as well."
Though sƛ̓x̣etkʷ was originally scheduled for completion in fall 2023, its construction fell behind by an entire year. According to emails about the project and construction change orders acquired through public record requests, it appears that issues in the design phase caused the delay. Change orders are common during construction as they're what companies file when they need to make updates to the project that will change its overall cost or completion date.
In most cases for this project at SFCC, the builders requested a change to the contract to account for issues that they claim the initial design didn't account for, such as electrical work, irrigation and water heating.
Of the more than 100 documents regarding the construction that the Inlander reviewed, only one requested more time — specifically an extra 23 calendar days for electrical work, according to the Oct. 27, 2022, contract change order. There's also a lack of clarity in the documents about the delay, as a final change order dated for Aug. 19, 2024, still lists Aug. 5, 2023 as the project completion date. (The construction company, Swinerton Builders, didn't respond for clarification before our press deadline.)
Yet, even with the delay, Phillips says she's worked hard to adapt and make the most of the situation.
"As artists, we're problem solvers — we look for creative solutions all the time," she says. "I think what's really helped me has been to approach [the delayed gallery opening] not like it's an obstacle, but just another way that we can pivot to support our students and faculty." ♦
