As raw space was transformed in October 1980, the first ten artists of the newly developed Artists West Association presented their work to the public during Art Week in Waltham, Massachusetts. After a year of searching for effective working space and community, the second floor of a historic mill building beside the Charles River was given new direction and purpose. Where once workers and machines processed textiles from raw materials, sculptors, fiber artists, painters, printmakers and photographers found space and time to create works of art.

Today, the fifteen studios of Artists West Association continue to be a place for possibilities. Surrounded and part of the artists of the Waltham Mills Artists Association, AWA is a community-- a diverse, creative hive, where long stretches of solitude and focus encounter bursts of inspiration and lively exchange. A sanctuary, with good light and great vibes. The space itself is a historic medium which supports our dreams, our work, and the productive continuum of making in this place.

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UPDATES

April 12, 2017

Changing of the guard

We say goodbye to AWA members, Dina Shaposhnikova and Victor Rucinski, as they move on to bigger and better things—we wish them luck!  Luckily for us, we get to keep them as Waltham neighbors, and their studio has been taken by AWA’s newest member, Lynda Schlosberg, who already fits right in (more on her soon). I reached out to Dina and Victor to ask them to share some photos of their studio and time here—you’ll find them below—our fifteen studios, each unique, take on the character of the occupying artists, and yet also quickly become almost unrecognizable when they change hands. We will miss Dina’s collages gracing our hallways and Victor’s vintage sound systems that proved endless fascination. Thanks for being part of AWA, guys, and welcome to the ranks of AWA alumni.








Annual Open Studios

Annual Open Studios
First weekend of November every year!