About
Our Mission and Policies
Mission Statement
Cherry Pit Collective is a communal studio space for artists, makers, and creatives, where the work and vision of women are emphasized and celebrated. Members work together to support and promote each other through a shared workspace and jointly share work, costs, benefits, and risks. Monthly programming includes classes and events for skill sharing within our community and to foster collaboration over competition. All are welcome to apply for studio spaces and to attend our events, but female-identifying artists and members of other marginalized communities are prioritized.
Land Acknowledgment
As a community, we recognize our building is located on the ancestral land belonging to the people of Kiikaapo (Kikapoo), Wazhazhe Mazhá (Osage), Kaw (Kansa) and Očhéthi Šakówin (Sioux). We honor with gratitude the land itself and the people who have and continue to steward it.
Cherry Pit Collective Safer Space Policy
Cherry Pit is a fun space to celebrate creativity and share knowledge, resources, and uplift local artists! We also need to have some foundational rules to navigate interacting with others so please read the following information below before entering the Cherry Pit space.
The Cherry Pit Collective strives to be a supportive, kind, and welcoming space that works towards having an environment of open-mindedness and willingness to learn from others, all under the umbrella of respect for each other’s identity and beliefs. The goal of the Cherry Pit members and the safer space policy is to provide guidelines to have a space that is both physically and mentally safe for all who enter.
1. Be respectful to others by being aware of your language and actions.
Cherry Pit membership prioritizes women and non-binary people but all are welcome to our events, classes, and open studios. Please avoid making assumptions about others and respect everyone’s name, gender pronouns, expressed identities, and experiences. Cherry Pit will not support any language or actions that are racist, sexist, transphobic, homophobic, classist, nativist, ableist, xenophobic, or any form of harassment. Any person that acts in such a way will not be tolerated and will be asked to leave. Cherry Pit holds the rights to permanently ban a person from events, classes, and the space if actions are severe enough.
2. Consent Policy
When entering Cherry Pit remember to follow simple guidelines of consent. This starts with asking, listening, and respecting others' physical space along with not pressuring others to give more information or emotional energy than they are comfortable with. Ask before initiating physical touch or entering into a heavier topic or emotional conversation. Remember the absence of ‘no’ does that mean ‘yes’ wait for a clear confirmation of consent before proceeding. Not everyone is comfortable with physical touch even as simple as a friendly hug.
3. Conflict
There is bound to be an array of conflict when working with others. Both sides of the conflict should allow each other to speak on their own emotions and perspective of the situation by using ‘I’ statements and not accusatory language. Please try to meet each other with validation on hurt, with respect to allow everyone to be heard, and an open mind to work out a compromise where both parties can be satisfied. Please note that proper apologies do not come with excuses or include the word ‘but’. Also that some people will not agree or like each other and that can lead to an agreement of not engaging with each other in shared space which should be respected by both parties. If participants begin to have conflict please know that there are Cherry Pit members who can be moderators.
If you feel like any of these guidelines are not being followed or you would like to discuss someone’s behavior that made you uncomfortable please let a Cherry Pit member know so we can work toward the best course of action. Please be aware that the Cherry Pit is run by a group of artists so issues that happen in the Cherry Pit space will need to be discussed as a collective before moving forward with a plan of action.
Please email CherryPitCollective@gmail.com with the heading "Safer Space"