It never had its own name, its vision wasn't always clear and no one quite figured out its business model. But everyone involved agreed that it was cool.
On July 2, the Foam City experiment came to an end. Owner Paul Baldwin sold the alternative studio space/music venue to TR McCully, a local stained glass and furniture vendor, citing lack of support from the community as the main reason.
"The dream is over. No one cares," he said. "I'm going to cry just talking about it."
Baldwin said he had personally financed Foam City for more than two years. It never got the public support it needed, including studio rent from resident artists. Concluding that Lafayette lacked a requisite group of core supporters, Baldwin decided to pull the plug.
"It wasn't meant to be a museum. I didn't want people to draw watercolors," he said. "I was looking for people who were young and poor and looking for a place to do art."
Baldwin will now focus on cultivating the music lineup at Spot Tavern, among other things. He doesn't think a Foam City-type place can thrive in Lafayette, but he remains interested in new and interesting spaces in town.
What Foam City was can be hard to describe. In 2011, Baldwin, who also owns the Black Sparrow and co-owns Spot Tavern, bought an empty warehouse on 407 N. Third St. He wanted a multipurpose space that could serve as artists' studios, as well as a place for them to show and sell works.
Artists Zach Medler, Esteban Garcia and Aaron Zernack made Foam City their studio since its inception. Andres Arizaga Cordero, Aaron Molden and other artists used the space as well.