Locals enjoying the Free Store shopping expereince at their Art Exchange location for the final time. Photos by Gisela Merino.
The room was cramped. A small line of people huddled to the front of the shop listening to instructions on how many items they could take that day. It was the Long Beach Free Store’s final Take-Away day at the Art Exchange and everything, from the racks on clothes to the cupboards of cups and shoes, needed to go.
“It’s a little bit sad, but it’s not the first time it’s closed and it always comes back,” said Cindy Garcia taking book after book from the store shelves.
Normally, there is a one item exchange limit per visit. Given the current circumstances, however, members were encouraged to take whatever they liked and donations were denied at the door.
For approximately three years, the Free Store, part of the Catalyst Network of Communities, has offered locals an alternative to the commercial consumer model, providing a trading space of clothes and other belongings within the community. Moiseiff founded the Free Store as means to make connections within the community through sharing. It was a nomadic pursuit until a shop was established at the Art Exchange.
According to founder and director Sharon Moiseiff, the Art Exchange ordered the shop’s closure and removal by Oct. 5, saying that the space did not fulfill their mission of promoting art, artists and art education. The Art Exchange is a non-profit funded by grants and private donations that focuses on providing art programming to the neighborhood and providing working artists a place to work.
Art Exchange Chair Steve Elicker says that when the Free Store moved in, there were hopes that it would be more arts-focused, not the members-only free store he says it has become.
Moiseiff speaks with Free Store members on its final day.
“It’s not a question of whether we had art or not,” said Catalyst Co-Director Jewell Faamaligi. “We absolutely had art.”
According to Faamaligi, much of the shop’s artwork and furniture was contributed by local artists through up-cycling unwanted goods. Faamaligi recalled one in particular called Star Wars Day. Classes were held at the Free Store teaching children how to make small robot figures out of electronic waste. The Free Store has also held photography workshops as well as spoken word events and held art-related workshops and events in partnership with the Long Beach Depot For Creative Reuse, which is less than a block away.
“We want them here in the neighborhood,” said Depot founder Lisa Hernandez.
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Concerned for the relocation and down payment costs the Free Store will inevitably face, Hernandez launched a Gofundme.com campaign to raise funds for the effort. “I was like, ‘What? I have to do something!” she said.
The program is also environmentally charged, as it promotes recycling and reuse of household items to reduce commercial consumption.
“It’s this mentality of buying something and throwing it away before you even use it,” Moiseiff said.
Although the Art Exchange location gave community members a steady place to trade goods, the small shopping space posed many challenges onto the Free Store. Many large-scale donations, such as washing machines, were regularly turned away.
“Our vision is to get a bigger space. What you’ve seen today isn’t even a drop in the bucket,” Moiseiff said, surveying the clutter of second-hand possessions that would be packaged for later swaps and given to charity.
Faamaligi attributes the Free Store’s inability to meet the Art Exchange’s standard to their small location.
“We’re always adding things to our collaborative mission,” Faamaligi said. “We’ve always done as much as we can with whatever have, so the more we have, the more we’ll do.”
Moiseiff and the many patrons shuffling through the remaining inventory are optimistic about the Free Store’s future despite the forced departure from the Art Exchange.
“Every time we land in a new space, we [the Free Store] grows,” Moiseiff said. “Although a larger location would be nice.”
The Free Store program will continue through the 7-10 Swap and pop-up swaps until a new location can be found. Support can be sent through Gofundme.com.
Eds. note: This story has been updated with a response from the Art Exchange. A previous version of this story also incorrectly stated that the Art Exchange is funded by the City’s general fund. It is funded through private donations and grants.
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