Let's Talk Why

A new co-op. A new for-profit model. And a very old building. It's a lot of work and stress.

So why are we doing this?

Find out below, but first take a tour of the building:

Why MaybeItsFate?

Creating a cooperative isn't about creating a utopia, nor some socialism or communism-esque alternative to free market social spaces.

Before the 80/20 model idea, before the LCA for-profit co-op was created, before 1425 Story Ave was picked as the space... there was a notion about people needing connection.

Think about a time in your life when you encountered something by chance that was so profound, both in the chance of the happening and in the power of the connection, that it made you wonder what was behind this collision. Call it serendipity, call it divine intervention, call it a wild statistical oddity -- these moments can shake us, wake us, and make us hunt for more. Another trip, another book, another meeting with the new friend.

MaybeItsFate's name comes from the belief that we feel most alive when we connect to something powerful. Sometimes these connections are with ideas, or a person, or a place to name a few. For some us, it's hard to manufacture a large enough surface area for the chance encounters. By that, I mean there are time constraints, or money constraints, or location constraints that impair the opportunity to stumble into new idea, people, or places. Think of those most isolated: artists stuck alone in studios, retirees, people new to Louisville without friends, parent of young children who never get out. The list goes on.

Even before the pandemic, western culture was entering peak "hyper individualism," long after the sociologist Robert Putnam explained the Bowling Alone phenomenon in the late 90s about the breakdown of community gatherings and rituals in the U.S. -- churches are fading, and so are the Elk Lodges, bowling leagues, scouting, and you get the picture.

Post-pandemic, there's a groundswell to fight the tide. Many people seem to be craving more connection, more offline community, and more civic engagement.

That's where MaybeItsFate was born: How can we use art to instigate interesting people to regularly gather and provoke interesting conversations? That's the mission behind our mission -- to figure out the answer to that question.

And wouldn't it be great if this proves to be fun, that we all own the damn thing together?

FOMO Alert:

Lance G. Newman II at Louisville Visual Art, 1538 Lytle Street in Portland -- "A Thousand Words" (a few works shown above) is one of the stronger solo shows in recent memory. Each piece in "A Thousand Words" was created using found objects, pastels for color and Black&Mild Cigar paraphernalia.

Follow Newman on Instagram @mr.spreadlove.

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