The Mess Studio is a vibrant, downtown Kingston art space where community is built “with hands and heart,” through creativity, kindness, and shared meals. Founded in November 2009 by artists Mechele teBrake and Sandi Dodds in the Friendship Room at Martha’s Table, it began with “about four, maybe six people” around a small round table and has grown to welcome between 30 and 50 people a day, three days a week, in Gill Hall at St. Andrew’s Church.

From the beginning, Dodds and her co-founder knew that “making art was healthy,” but they also knew it was not accessible to everyone because of the cost of supplies and formal classes. They decided to create a space where anyone could come, bringing their own art supplies at first and relying on curiosity to draw people in: “We just came in, brought our art supplies into the friendship room and just started working, and we’d say, ‘We’re making art. Do you want to join us?’” Today, The Mess Studio offers free art supplies, coffee, snacks, and a nutritious lunch, supported in part by Lionhearts Inc, as a way to “build community through food and art.”

The Studio serves a remarkably diverse group of adults, including seniors and retirees, new immigrants, Queen’s students, people that are unhoused, and individuals connected with various support and social service agencies. Dodds explains that they intentionally created a space that is “diverse and inclusive” and not limited to any diagnosis or program: “We wanted to make sure that anyone who wanted to attend could attend, and that relationships could be built between people that might not ever have any other reason to come in contact with one another.” Art is not mandatory; some participants come for years before ever picking up a pencil, which Dodds still considers “success,” because belonging comes first.

For Dodds, the heart of The Mess Studio is relationship-building and dignity. She emphasizes that they never define people by a label or circumstance, saying, “We’re all people first,” and they aim to ensure that everyone “feels and experiences” that when they walk through the door. In this setting, people who might never share a room elsewhere learn to “not only tolerate, but become friends,” and many describe The Mess Studio as “the highlight of their week.”