Arts + Culture
On Salt Lake City’s Westside, a 125-year-old landmark is entering a new chapter. The Art Castle, formerly the historic 15th Ward Chapel for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has long stood as a symbol of the neighborhood’s layered history. Built in 1900, the Victorian Gothic revival structure has served as a chapel, a playhouse, and — most famously — a world-renowned recording studio used by artists such as Dolly Parton, Elton John, BB King, and Eminem. Now, thanks to the Utah Arts Alliance (UAA), the building is being transformed into a center for creativity, community, and cultural preservation.
When Poplar Grove resident and researcher Nan Weber began looking into the history of her own neighborhood, she wasn’t expecting it to turn into a decade-long endeavour. But one building — an out-of-place mansion near the Jordan River — caught her attention and eventually pulled her into the life and work of one of Utah’s most influential architects: Richard Karl August Kletting.
Weber’s work later became a major contribution to Richard K.A. Kletting: Utah Architect and Renaissance Man, written with preservation architect Alan Dale Roberts, FAIA. But the project started much smaller — with simple curiosity.
“I bought my little frame house, which was [built in] 1902,” Weber said. “And I was really curious about the workers that worked in all these single-dwelling homes. Then I came across the Fisher Mansion… and I thought, well, this is really different than the rest of the architecture here.”
From that point on, Weber was hooked.
A local park in the Fairpark neighborhood is welcoming back neighbors of all ages after recent renovations. Madsen Park, located at 9 N Chicago Street, has evolved from once-empty land donated by private citizens to a full-fledged park. Now, it’s received upgraded amenities including a new playground and open green space.
Cafes that seek to build community offer much more than just a good cup of coffee. They create a space where people come to connect, share, and create. These places don’t only serve coffee, but they serve their communities by making everyone feel at home. And that's exactly what's been brewing at Culture Coffee.
On August 1st, Culture brought the community together with coffee, art, and good vibes at their first-ever local night market.
A dance group established in 1997 continues to thrive and make moves on the Westside and beyond in Salt Lake valley as they explore becoming a 501(c)3 organization. The move is coming with its own challenges, but Westside Dance has overcome many other trials as they expanded over the last 25+ years.
Art is powerful. It can transform how a place looks and feels, but it can also transform our own personal emotions. Wall art — murals — hold this type of power in the place we live in. But we often pass murals without really understanding their meaning. We don’t really consider how the artist isn’t just simply adding color to a blank wall, but they are transforming the space by creating an experience for those who engage with the art.
On June 28, The Other Side Donuts (760 S. Redwood Road) will celebrate its one-year anniversary from 9 am to 8 pm. The Salt Lake City business is a social enterprise of The Other Side Village.
Summer means adventure, road trips, late nights, and early mornings enjoying the weather. There’s something about those summer nights that makes everything feel a little more exciting. And with summer approaching, it’s the perfect time to check out what’s happening locally and possibly discover new hobbies.
All artists from Salt Lake City’s Westside are invited to a mini art festival
The 8th Annual Mural Fest, sponsored by the South Salt Lake (SSL) Arts Council, is quickly approaching. It will be held May 10 from 4-8pm and will feature the unveiling of 13 new murals throughout South Salt Lake. Participating artists from around the world are scheduled to begin their work on May 5 with final completion of each mural occurring at the festival.
70 years – that’s how long Rose Park Baseball has been supporting Westside youth through the iconic American sport. On April 12th, the latest season kicked off at Riverside Park.
Local chef Miles Ellis recommends Fairpark’s Culture Coffee for the food, drinks, and community — and the music and arcade games aren’t bad, either.
A community festival and interfaith roundtable aim to foster unity and build connections between Rose Park neighbors.
Salt Lake City’s Department of Public Lands is seeking input from Westside residents on the future of the Peace Labyrinth Open Space.
Love Your Block mini grants give Westside residents funds to complete community improvement projects. The next application period opens in January.
A mural series in Rose Park celebrates women whose legacies are contributions to Salt Lake’s Westside. Meet each one of them here.
A new art project to beautify traffic infrastructure has received funding in Fairpark. The only thing missing is the artwork’s topic, which community input will determine.
Salt Lake City seeks input to help design and place a new public art piece that celebrates the Westside’s cultural impact on the city.
Two Salt Lake City glass artists are sending their pieces on a world tour. The pieces, depicting elaborate scenes of honey bees and ocean life, raise awareness for eco-consciousness, and will be permanently housed in a new facility at Thanksgiving Point after the world tour.
Local non-profit Better Days and artist Bill Louis will unveil four murals of historically significant Utah women in the Rose Park Community Garden this June.
A new public mural dedicated to the memory of Jessica Schroeder, a loved and dearly missed educator at Riley Elementary School who passed away in 2021, has found its home at the school.
The Seven Canyons Trust is soliciting proposals for a public mural to be painted next to the Folsom Trail at 25 South 1000 West.
LoveDANCEmore explores the culture of the Utahn human experience through an unexpected medium.
This November, Salt Lakers have a great opportunity to show their love for the city’s parks. An $85 million bond is on the ballot to improve existing parks and build some new ones.
The Guadalupe neighborhood has been around since the mid-1800s and has grown from agricultural plots with small adobe houses to railroad-based commercial warehouses to the current residential neighborhood we see today.
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