Grid Center Support Fund

Hello! Throughout the past year, we were the team behind Grid Center - a cultural center / D.I.Y. venue in the center of Prague. Our goal was to provide a space for artists of all backgrounds and all levels of experience, and throughout the year, we had the immense pleasure of hosting artists from all over Europe and beyond - 60 live acts, over 120 DJs, 5 drag shows with more than 30 performers, 15 jam sessions, 10 pop-up markets, 46 workshops, and countless informal events - barbecues, film and photo shoots, recording sessions, birthday parties, film screenings, thesis project presentations, and anything else that we could provide a space for.

Our core team consisted of four people. Between the four of us, we worked every day to make sure that the bar was stocked, that all the light and sound equipment was working properly, that shifts for our volunteers, bar staff, door staff, security, and cleaning staff were scheduled, that the space was clean before each event, that the furniture was laid out according to the needs of each event, and that the (charming yet old) building wasn’t falling apart - all for up to 5 events a week, and all while planning the events for the following month.

We were able to make the space financially sustainable for a while, with an average of 300,000 - 350,000 czk (12,500 - 14,500 EUR) in costs every month. However, after sudden and significant increases in rent, electricity, and gas, we realized that it was not realistic to continue renting the space. We made a decision to leave the space in August and left in November after the required 3 month notice.

In our time there, not only did we not make a profit from the space, but we didn’t pay ourselves for our work - we did it out of love and out of a desire to maintain a place that was very important to a lot of people. We all put everything we had into this project for the past year - physically, emotionally, mentally, and financially - and now we need to ask you for your help.

At the moment, we are faced with a large amount of debts that piled up over the last few months of operating the space, so we are here to ask for your help. After that, we plan on hosting a series of events to raise the rest of the funds that we need, featuring some of our favorite local and international guests that we had at the space.

Finally, we want to thank you all for your continued support throughout the past year. It was a huge pleasure to create a space for you all, and to meet so many talented and passionate people in the process. Bringing people together over art and creating a platform for everyone to share and connect is what drives all of us, and with a little bit of help from you all, you can help us make sure that we’re able to continue doing so in the future.