On November 30, VCU hosted the “VCU 50: Commemorating History” symposium, reflecting on the many challenges and opportunities the university has faced since its founding half a century ago. During the session “History of Art and Place at VCU,” art history alumnus Richard DiCicco (BA ’14)—the Arts Writer for the VCUarts Communications Office—presented his research on the Masonic Temple. In the 1970s and ’80s, the building provided studios to more than 50 VCUarts professors and alumni before they were evicted by the city. Below, he offers an abridged version of his symposium presentation.
Designed by Baltimore architect Jackson C. Gott and completed in 1893, the lavish Masonic Temple at the corner of Broad and Adams was the designated meeting place for Richmond’s Freemasons for eighty years. And from 1973 to 1982, the building was home to prolific award-winning artists—until they were kicked out by the city in an effort to found a new arts district.
Most of these artists were VCUarts professors and graduates who had a strong relationship with the Anderson Gallery, and their eviction was well-documented in the city’s papers. But during my research into our school’s 90th anniversary, I found that the Temple’s story remained a mystery to many in our community. Despite the building’s listing on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register, neither resource provides any information on the site’s history after 1971. It’s time we updated our records.
When the Freemasons vacated the building in the early ’70s, the Temple was purchased by Dr. John Russell Good, who offered up its cavernous rooms as cheap artist’s studios. Though more than 50 artists would come to work at the Temple over the next decade, the inaugural group included VCUarts professors Morris Yarowsky, Jim Bumgardner (BFA ’58), José Puig, Sal Federico (BFA ’66) and Myron Helfgott, along with Jeff Davis (BFA ’70) and Bruce Behrman (BFA ’70).
Tragedy struck the artists instantly. On November 15th, 1973, during move-in preparations, Puig forced open an elevator shaft and fell to his death.
But they pressed on.
For the near-decade that the Masonic Temple was in active operation as a kind of artist’s commune, it maintained a bohemian character. The third floor was host to a boxing ring, where residents slung punches on Wednesday nights. Shattered windows drew in pigeons as dead ones tumbled to the ballroom floor. The toilets clogged, a pay phone rang on and on like a shuddering heartbeat, and drifters lingered on the front steps.
Despite the derelict aesthetic of the Temple, it was absolutely beloved by artists for its expansive work spaces and unique atmosphere. Someone was always around, day or night.
It wasn’t long before the city began envisioning a unified arts district on Broad St with the Temple at its center. In the early ’80s, the mayor called on the nonprofit Richmond Federated Arts Council to develop the project. By 1982, and after much deliberation with the local arts community, the city purchased the Masonic Temple with a federal grant of $175,000. With no plans to allow the artists to stay in such cheap studios, the Arts Council let the group know that they would have to leave.
Cover of the “Alumni of the Masonic Temple” catalog, 1983.
In June 1983, the Anderson Gallery mounted a mournful exhibition titled “Alumni of the Masonic Temple,” featuring the work of many evicted artists. That September, in a turn of bitter irony, the Arts Council ceased raising the millions needed to build the arts district. Richmond had elected a new mayor, and the incoming administration had no interest in continuing the previous mayor’s costly urban development project. By 1984, the city sold the Masonic Temple.
Of course, there is much more to this story. But even in brief, what happened at the Masonic Temple is worth commemorating because it’s the truest and most naked example of the push and pull between those in the community who create and those who organize. When it comes to making art in urban spaces, that conflict will always emerge as we weigh the value of artistic authenticity versus commercial viability, and personal integrity versus community service. As VCUarts grows, what can we do as an organization to manage that balance—if there is one?
The Masonic Temple provides us with a case study. If the Richmond Federated Arts Council listened to the artists honestly and accommodated them, perhaps more people would know about the Temple’s astonishing history.
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