About Us

Globe Studios is a not-for-profit arts and culture organization providing safe and affordable working spaces to artists and arts organizations based in Waterloo Region. We are located in the former Bonnie Stuart Shoe Factory in downtown Kitchener. As an incorporated not-for-profit organization, Globe Studios is governed by a volunteer board of directors.

In 1988, a small group of artists from the University of Waterloo Studio Fine Arts program leased a large space with tall ceilings and vintage factory windows in the Globe Furniture Company factory building near uptown Waterloo. Known for its production of wooden church pews and school desks, the artists named their collective for the historic factory site they shared, Globe Studios. But the collective would not settle here for long. After a history of upheaval, in 1999, Globe Studios made the leap to purchase their own space. A significant portion of the former Bonnie Stuart Shoe Factory building in downtown Kitchener was purchased; a one floor building with good bones teaming with potential for new creative spaces. Globe Studios was renovated and retrofitted for artists from potters, painters and sculptors to printmakers to jewelry artists to name a few. In 2020, Globe Studios recognized and met the needs of a shortage of studio space within Waterloo Region, and purchased the remaining portion of the factory building. With more than 40 studios and spaces for artists and arts organizations, Globe Studios has become a secure and enriched community of artists and arts organizations who work, collaborate and support one another within our region.

Acknowledgement of Support

Globe Studios gratefully acknowledges the generosity of the City of Kitchener, the Ontario Trillium Foundation and Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation for their financial support.

Land Acknowledgement

We gratefully acknowledge that Globe Studios is located at 141 Whitney Place in Kitchener, Ontario, on Block 3 of the Haldimand Tract, on the traditional territory of the Neutral and Anishinaabeg peoples. Block 3 is part of the six miles on each side of the Grand River that was ceded by the chiefs of the Mississaugas of the Credit Nation, and was granted to the Haudenosaunee of the Six Nations by the Haldimand Proclamation of 1784. Today, this land is home to many First Nations and Métis people, and acknowledging them reminds us of our important connection to this land where we live, work, and learn.