As the Studio Facilitator for RedLine’s REACH program, there are moments in my work when I can feel something shifting—when vision moves beyond idea and becomes lived experience.
The flourishing of RedLine’s expanded REACH Open Studio Program at Nest56 is one of those moments.
About RedLine’s REACH Open Studio Program
REACH (Re-Engaging Artists through Community, Health, and Healing) is RedLine’s long-standing initiative designed to support artists facing barriers to sustained creative practice due to housing instability, economic hardship, disability, or health challenges.
Rooted in trauma-informed care and peer-based community building, REACH provides:
● Free studio access
● Professional development and stipends
● Mental-health-informed creative support
● Pathways back into sustained artistic practice and public visibility
REACH operates from the belief that artists are essential cultural workers—and that stability, dignity, and care are prerequisites for creative contribution.
REACH Studio Satellite at Nest56
Studio Connect at Nest56 extends the REACH model, embedding RedLine’s values directly within a community-based creative hub. The program activates studio space, builds trust-centered artistic community, and integrates therapeutic and professional supports for participating artists.
What began as a collaborative effort between RedLine, TGTHR, and Penrose to expand REACH programming to Nest56 at Denargo Market has grown into a powerful, community-rooted model that centers creativity as a tool for healing, connection, and transformation.
This REACH Studio satellite serves residents of Nest56 and artists navigating hardship by offering consistent, welcoming access to creative expression. But what makes this work different is not just the programming—it’s the intention behind it. This is a space built on dignity, listening, and the belief that art is not a luxury, but a necessity.
REACH at Nest56 is led by RedLine’s REACH CORE artists: facilitator LeeAndra Lujan, and program coordination by Barry Lewis. Located in the heart of the Denargo Market area—within proximity to the historic Five Points neighborhood—the REACH Studio expansion exists not just as a space, but as a response to real community needs.
Throughout the week, the studio comes alive with activity—visual art, storytelling, social-emotional workshops, and peer-to-peer engagement. Artists are not only invited to create, but to lead, teach, and reclaim their voice.
Participants are not seen as clients, but as collaborators in shaping a creative ecosystem that reflects their lived experiences.
We’ve witnessed firsthand how powerful that shift can be. We’ve seen individuals walk in carrying the weight of transition and uncertainty, and through consistent engagement, begin to find grounding again. We’ve heard stories expressed through paint, through poetry, through movement—stories that might not have found space anywhere else.
We’ve seen community form in real time. And increasingly, others are seeing it too.
REACH Studio at Nest56 Wins 2026 Impact Award from the Urban Land Institute
This year, our collective work was recognized with a 2026 Impact Award from the Urban Land Institute (ULI)—an acknowledgment of what can happen when developers, nonprofits, and cultural leaders come together with a shared commitment to equity and long-term community investment.
The award reflects not just a successful partnership, but a new way of thinking about development—one that prioritizes people, culture, and care alongside infrastructure. This recognition belongs to everyone who has poured into this work:
The residents who show up and trust the space
The artists who bring their full selves into the studio
The partners who believed in a model that doesn’t always fit traditional systems
And the facilitators and coordinators who hold it all together day in and day out
What’s Next for REACH at Nest56
As we look ahead, we’re excited to continue growing this model and sharing it with broader audiences.
In September, we’ll gather at Fabrica for a special fundraising event and panel discussion, bringing together voices from across the region—including leadership from the RiNo Arts District and partners from Boulder—to explore how creative spaces like REACH Studio at RedLine and Nest56 can shape healthier, more connected communities. Because ultimately, this work is about more than one studio.
It’s about reimagining what support looks like. It’s about investing in people, not just projects. And it’s about ensuring that creativity remains at the center of how we build, heal, and move forward—together.
Support Our REACH Studio Expansion Today
The satellite expansion at Nest56 demonstrates how RedLine’s REACH framework can be successfully replicated outside the center’s walls—bringing stability, care, and creative infrastructure directly into community spaces.
This model strengthens artists, neighborhoods, and cultural ecosystems simultaneously, reinforcing RedLine’s role as a national leader in socially engaged, artist-centered practice.
“I came to RedLine to try something different. I found a learning experience where you can express creativity. We all have the potential within ourselves to teach others.”
When you donate to RedLine today, you can support REACH participants on their journey of healing, resilience, and reclamation through therapeutic art practices.
