Tucked away on the far end of Maine Street, Fort Andross now houses the College's new sculpture studio.
The sculpture studio, newly relocated to Room 314 at the mill complex, had formerly been on the fourth floor of Adams Hall. Due to construction on the building this semester, the sculpture class was "displaced from Adams," according to Professor of Art Mark Wethli. The Adams studio will be converted into faculty offices.
"The end of town was not a top choice, but space on campus is now at a premium," said Wethli.
The new sculpture studio, located beneath the Frontier Café and the Coleman Burke Gallery, measures 1600 square feet, making it a larger space than the former studio in Adams Hall.
Students this semester taking Sculpture I, taught by Adjunct Lecturer of Art Wade Kavanaugh, are the first to use this space.
The class meets twice a week for two and a half hour blocks, but the students frequent the studio even on days when they do not have class. Sam Modest '09 and Loretta Park '11 both said they visit the studio roughly four times a week.
Modest travels to the studio on his bike to attend class. He said he also bikes down to work for several hours each week outside of class.
"I actually like being able to get off campus," said Modest. "It's fun to come here late at night. Brunswick is pretty quiet, so it's always interesting to see who's out in town."
To avoid the 15 minute walk, Park takes Bowdoin Security's Safe Ride van, while other students in the class either carpool or bike.
Due to the relaxed environment in the studio, Park said she does not mind that Sculpture I is the class she does the most outside work for. There are constantly students in the studio for company, and there is always music playing, according to Park.
Kavanaugh, who taught the same class in Adams Hall during the spring semester of the 2006-2007 school year, prefers the Fort Andross studio to the Adams studio.
"There's the café, the gallery, and the river nearby. It has lots of light and ventilation, and there's a courtyard outside to melt plastic," Kavanaugh said. "I think it's a gift to be off campus."
Associate Professor of Art James Mullen also sees the positive side of the sculpture studio's location at the edge of town.
"It creates a great sense of community," said Mullen. "There is a bonding that occurs in going to that clubhouse together."
Wethli anticipates the relocation of the studio to last for at least a few years.
"The best solution would be a full-on arts facility, where all of the art department is in one building," he said. "But I don't see that in the foreseeable future."