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A living workspace for artists to create, experiment, and exchange ideas.
Behind the doors of Carroll Square in downtown Washington, DC, F Street Arts is home to a collective of independent working artist studios. The studios occupy a unique space where contemporary creative work coexists with historic architecture, reflecting both the city’s past and its evolving cultural life.
Carroll Square is a modern office and retail complex that thoughtfully incorporates preserved 19th-century townhouses. Within this setting, six dedicated artist studios span nearly 6,000 square feet and are home to more than a dozen working artists. Painters, photographers, jewelers, video artists, and mixed-media practitioners maintain active studios where work is created daily.
The studios are located on the second and third floors of 923 F Street NW and are accessible through two adjoining entrances, one with elevator access and the other by stairs. Together, they form a quiet but vital creative presence within the downtown corridor.
F Street Arts is managed by the Downtown Artists Coalition, an organization formed to help safeguard affordable, long-term studio space for artists in Washington, DC. The coalition supports the continuation of a working artist community in the heart of the city, ensuring that creative practice remains an active and visible part of downtown life.
History
A building shaped by time, work, and continuity.
Artists have lived and worked in Washington's old downtown since the early 1800s. Prominent past artists include Gilbert Stuart, Rembrandt Peale, and Mathew Brady. F Street was downtown’s commercial hub, and it also helped support a flourishing arts community.
The block on F Street surrounding Carroll Square still reflects the city’s long history as a center for commerce, transportation, and daily work, with buildings dating back to the late 19th century. Originally constructed in the 1890s, the townhouses that now form part of Carroll Square were leased to small retail stores selling a variety of products.
During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, art studios were clustered in a number of buildings around the F Street corridor, including the Carroll Square townhouses, along with the Atlas, LeDroit, and Victor buildings. Unfortunately, a number of artists were displaced from these other buildings during the 1990s as the area was redeveloped.
Nevertheless, the tradition of artist studios in the 900 block of F St. continues to thrive. In 2007, the Carroll Square office and retail building was built to include six art studios and a public art gallery. Rather than erasing the past, the redevelopment preserved the original facades and incorporated them into a contemporary framework, allowing the buildings to remain active and relevant within the downtown corridor.
The history of F Street Arts is not defined by reinvention, but by continuity. While the work created inside has changed over time, the purpose of the building has remained consistent: a place where people return each day to make, refine, and sustain their practice within the evolving fabric of the city.
