Who We Are

Living Arts Collective (LAC) is a co-creative space for innovative artistic expression, embodied movement, dance, education, healing arts, and community building. We are individuals creating a space for the exploration and development of artistic freedom and peaceful living.

Durham’s vibrant history and love of the arts fuels our vision for collaborative and dynamic art. We hold an open space for voices of all ages, races, religions, genders, cultural backgrounds, shapes, sexual orientations, and educational backgrounds to be heard. We hold alliance with those who have been marginalized and welcome people of all colors, identities and giftings; black, brown, queer, transgender and people with disabilities.

LAC’s vision is to nourish the authentic essence that lives in each of us. Our classes offer a foundational knowledge in rhythm, embodiment, and improvisation arts, while allowing space for the unfolding and unpredictable creative process. As the LAC’s offerings have grown, our net of teachers and practitioners has widened to include: forms of embodied movement, earth-based medicine, salt therapy, meditation practices, and bodywork. To learn more about offerings at LAC, check out our classes and events.

The teachers, event producers and participants of functions at LAC agree to participation guidelines that speak to realities, challenges, and joys of sharing space. We recognize the importance of communication and are committed to practicing integrity. These participation guidelines include our We Statements (below) and Braver Spaces Policy.

The following are a list of “We” Statements which LAC aims to uphold and operate by.

We are a community of individuals creating and holding a brave space for whole person wellness and peaceful living.
We are a community that moves in solidarity while celebrating the diverse nature of our eco-system, reflected through age, race, gender identity, ability, giftings, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, political perspective, educational and class status, family structure and religious beliefs.
Bigotry is not welcome here. We are working towards a world free of discrimination based on race, class, sex, gender, size, sexuality, physical or mental ability, appearance, social standing, etc. As difficult as it may be, we will do our best to hold each other accountable when we perpetrate these discriminations.
We are committed to take actionable steps for disassembling the centuries of racism deeply rooted in the nation’s systems and institutions. We take deep responsibility for how we attend to our privilege and bias within this unjust ecology and move in solidarity with those who have been marginalized.
We commit to centering the experiences of those who are more marginalized among us, specifically people of the Global Majority, Black, Brown, and Indigenous people, LatinX and people of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.
We offer a holistic, safe, clean, sustainable center that provides services, products, and programs promoting physical, nutritional, emotional, intellectual, spiritual, economic, environmental, cultural, and civic well-being.
We agree to work together, synergistically and holistically, and to create a center rooted in hospitality where neighbors are respected and members of the community are welcomed warmly.
We work to honor principles and practices of sustainability in all that we do. Our governing principles are grounded in the spirit of collaborative, cooperative, consensus-driven decision-making.
We strive to make decisions based on positivity and courage rather than fear and negativity and commit to communicating disagreements in a constructive way that serves the common good of the community.
We are dedicated to creating a vibrant and harmonious community that honors diversity, strengthens cultural traditions, and seeks and celebrates common ground.
We honor and seek to strengthen the traditions and cultures of our community.
We strive to reduce our costs to maintain reasonable prices for the community. (see community share program, referral nominations, student and military/veterans discounts on homepage)
We work together to create an environment that is a source of help, unity and inspiration for all.
We seek to understand and dismantle all kinds of oppression present within our community.