Emma Giles
Monday, April 6, 2026
Emma Giles
Monday, April 6, 2026
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SETTLED in a stripped out Coles supermarket which backs onto the Upfield path, Schoolhouse Studios has over the past half-a-decade become the artistic home for many Coburg creatives.
But plans for a major redevelopment of underutilised carparking space in central Coburg has plunged the future of the cherished arts hub into uncertainty.
Under the City of Merri-bek’s ‘Coburg is Here’ concept, the site where the studios currently sit would be redeveloped into new apartments and office space.
And while it will be years before the concept is realised, the operators of Schoolhouse want to ensure that the need to provide affordable spaces for working artists is considered in future planning of Coburg.
The studios’ director, Bron Belcher, explained that there was a mutual benefit to the community and artists having a space like this within the region.
“We want to make sure community and art-based utility is thought about in whatever the next consideration of Coburg is,” she said.
In the meantime, the artists within the collective are still working hard on their own creative practises.
The studios are home to artists who explore a variety of mediums from painting to pottery. There is space for everyone to learn and grow their work.
Painter Francesca Pezzimenti says Schoolhouse Studios has allowed her to build a community of artists while doing what she loves.
Pezzimenti is in the studios most days of the week, working on a series of oil paintings of women’s bodies for an exhibition later in the year.
“Coming here has given me such positive support that I’m happy to come here and work,” Pezzimenti said.
Other artists agree they have a place akin to a traditional office with space to socialise with likeminded individuals and create their works.
The non-profit studios began existence in Abbotsford in 2012. They relocated to Coburg from their previous site in Collingwood in 2020.
The organisation’s purpose is to convert vacant buildings within communities to provide an affordable space for artistic expression.
Today, Schoolhouse Studios Coburg houses 65 studios and more than 100 resident artists, a bar, gallery and event space, welcoming over 500 people through the building each week.
The space in the former Coles supermarket has been divided up into dozens of studios – even the loading dock is used for industrial-based artmaking.
The studios have given artists the space to work and often act as a community space for local groups like Melbourne Indie Voices to use as they desire.
Ceramicist and textile artist Maë has been a resident of the studios for two years and in that time, she has found immense support from her fellow artists as she works.
“Everyone is welcome here. Whatever background, whatever you’re into, you don’t find this everywhere,” she said.
Despite its positive impact on artists, the future of the Coburg space is unknown – with redevelopment on the horizon, the site is up for demolition.
Merri-bek’s multi-year revitalisation plans for Coburg aim to increase housing and improve public infrastructure by repurposing surplus land owned by the council – including the car park in which the studios are located.
“For the current draft concept for Coburg to be fully realised, this building would need to be demolished,” the council said.
Belcher is proud of what thas been achieved so far at Coburg.
“We’ve always understood that Schoolhouse was going to be redeveloped and have been really grateful to get to use the space,” said Belcher.
Regardless of the site’s status over the coming decades, it is presently a place cherished by its residents.
Pezzimenti and Maë share their appreciation for the opportunities Schoolhouse Studios has given them and hope that it continues.
“We need to value creative people, because it’s the energy and the soul that gives so much to the community,” Pezzimenti said.
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