"I sometimes think it's not enough to be concerned with just the restoration of a building. I also try to think about what needs it will serve. So I become an advocate for these existing buildings, and instead of just restoring them, I create a program for them that makes them more valuable than they've ever been to their community."
-- Theaster Gates, Jr., who has turned abandoned homes in his downtrodden Chicago neighborhood, Greater Grand Crossing, into an art library, a set of historical music listening rooms, and an African-American cinema museum ... and plans more such re-purposings.
Source: Walser, L. (2012, Spring). Theaster Gates, Jr. is restoring his community, one house at a time. Preservation, p. 8.
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