East London arts organisation Bow Arts has purchased its first ever building, with the aim of creating 70 new affordable studios for artists, designers, and makers.
The building, Three Waters, overlooks the River Lea as it approaches Stratford. Three Waters sits where the three waters of Bow Creek, the River Lea, and Limehouse Cut meet at Bow Locke, which is a stone’s throw away from Bow Arts’ first home in Bow.
The purchase ensures Bow Arts’ legacy and ongoing support for east London’s artists, as well as its provision of sustainable and accessible creative opportunities for the area’s young people and communities, as all the charity’s current buildings (including their current Bow Road HQ) are rented.
Owning Three Waters ensures Bow Arts can continue its almost 30 years of creating opportunities to work, learn and enjoy the arts across London, as well as supporting creatives to further their career and professionalise their practice with guaranteed affordable art spaces and lifelong access to the arts in east Londo.
Bow Arts’ founder Marcel Baettig said: ‘Affordability and sustainability are at the heart of Bow Arts and buying this building gives us a permanent home in east London, it also creates permanent affordable space for artists which means that they will be more creative, more experimental and have more impact, creating inspirational environments where artists and communities can interact, learn and grow together for generations to come.’
Three Waters will open in early 2023.