Miranda’s Hearth envisions a new approach to arts organizations, developing financially sustainable spaces and approachable community programming where creativity is accessible to all. With the long-term vision of creating a community art hotel, Miranda’s Hearth is looking to leverage underutilized spaces for Artist Studio’s, and over time develop a network of Artists Studios with the Art Hotel as its epicenter. The unique challenge of the project was to determine what are the characteristics of potential space that make it financially sustainable, approachable to the community, and accessible to all. Adaptiv worked with Miranda to create a strategic design vision. The strategic design vision includes space programs, prototypical layouts, and a feasibility tool for assessing ROI on potential spaces.
Miranda’s Hearth
Essex County, MA
September 2020
Community, Education, Institutional
Study, Feasibility, Assessment Tool, Prototype
The program for the artist studios was developed from market research as well as questionnaires completed by the current Miranda’s Hearth Community. In order to understand the ideal scale and size of the overall studio, the building program and schematic plans were developed for both small and midsize spaces. This planning tool allowed for the team to understand the maximum number of artists they can serve while still creating a sense of community within the space.
The Feasibility tool provides high-level insight into the size of the spaces that will be part of the artist’s studio based on the square footage of applicable space. It allows for a quick analysis of the rent that can be recouped based on the number of leasable spaces. Using an assumed, yet adjustable ratio, the tool provides areas for each program. The user has the ability to manipulate the ratios of the spaces once the output has been generated to ensure that the appropriate number of studio and support spaces are achieved.
The program was used to generate prototype designs to determine the ideal size and configuration for the studio center. Adaptiv looked at layouts at a variety of footprints, determining that there is a sweet spot in size. If a space is too small, there is no room for community gathering spaces, and when a space is too large, it may have too many occupants and lose the sense of community.
The backbone of Miranda’s Hearth is the community it creates. To ensure that this principle is the guiding force of any design, the ideal size of the project was determined in its ability to have community gathering spaces such as a gallery, kitchen and common space, and classrooms. This is balanced with providing a high-quality space that allows for ample natural light, clear circulation, and flexibility to modify the studio spaces to suit future needs.
Integrate Community
Provide Access
Respect Context
GOAL 4: Quality Education
