Century-Old Building Proves Picture-Perfect for Modern Studio in Racine

By P. F. Cummings

Even before she walked through the door of 510 College Ave., Camela Langendorf sensed the place was special.

As a photographer and owner of Images by Camela Studio, she knew the building’s six-foot windows would provide excellent natural light for her portraits. The ceilings were high (12 feet), and the warehouse-like space would provide much more work room than her current address on Main Street. But when she saw its exposed beams, brick walls, and maple floors dating to 1910, the building spoke to her in a completely unexpected way.

“The people of Racine need to be able to see this space,’” Camela decided. “It’s the coolest place I’ve ever seen!”

Visitors will be able to see for themselves, when Images by Camela Studio & Gallery hosts its grand opening on Saturday, Sept. 10^th.  But first, flash back to early 1900s, a time when cool described something completely different – perhaps the air rushing through the garage bay door that’s still visible on the building’s College Avenue entrance. Folks strolling on the street might have called the “horseless carriage,” displayed on a wooden turntable in the showroom window, the cat’s pajamas.  And keen would have been the word for the elevator that whisked automobiles from the first to the second and third floors for repairs or to park in its “executive” parking lot.

State-of-the-art was the intention of its owners, Brietzke & Pauli Co. The pair designed their building to showcase and service the day’s new-fangled machines, such as Racine-built Mitchell Car Co. autos and the Kissel Kar, from Hartford, WI. Packards and Studebakers took their places on the turntable in later years.  Everything a proud new-car owner might need, from tire repair to paint touch-ups, was supplied for more than 30 years through the doors of 510 College.

Over the decades, the building saw many transitions, says Mike Sucharda, its managing partner. Charles H. Brietzke, son of the original owner, continued his father’s other business, an electrical contracting firm, at the same location. The address also served as an office-supply store. More recently, Sucharda says, it housed a motion-picture digital-capture firm, whose feature work included scenes for “King Kong” and “The Matrix.” 

A renovation by , begun in 1999 and completed in 2000, was originally intended just to provide new office space and bring the building to 21^st century code. It ended up being much more, says James A. Bishop. Sr., the company’s vice president.

“The second and third floors were pretty rough,” he explains. Broken windows had allowed pigeons to make homes for themselves amid decades-old debris. Years and years of auto paint layered the third floor, where workers had sprayed the sides and undercarriages of cars.

As the clean-up progressed, the building’s owners decided not to cover over the bones of the building, but to bring them forward. Bishop, the project’s field superintendent, turned his attention to sandblasting white-painted brick walls. Wood floors that could be salvaged were sanded and polished. Old beams were re-supported with metal fasteners and new beams sandblasted and finished to match the age and color of the original Douglas fir. New windows were installed to fit their original openings. Reproduction period lighting, new heating, air conditioning, plumbing, and a kitchen were added.

Bishop says he and Katt Construction take a lot of pride in the project. “It’s one of my best projects,” he says, “because the owners didn’t cover up the neat stuff, but let us expose everything we could.”

Mike Sucharda agrees: “There’s not a human being who hasn’t walked into this building and said, ‘Wow!’”

Flash forward to 2011. The Bellwether Group, a communications company, Westwords Consulting, and the Wyant Law Office now share space with Images by Camela. The wooden turntable that once displayed the latest in automotive wizardry still sits in the Wyant Law Office. The elevator’s pulley can still be seen in the ceiling rafters, and motor oil stains dot the wood floors.

In Camela’s second-floor space, where mechanics once replaced worn spark plugs, the practical has given way to the aesthetic. Today, the hard surfaces of exposed brick provide backdrop, color, and texture for Camela’s crisp, but naturally expressive, portraiture. The polished maple floors add warmth. And, as she imagined, the inviting and open warehouse space offers plenty of room to capture lifelong memories for families and other large groups.

In a more intimate space now devoted to gallery showings, chandeliers give off soft light. White interior walls offer a canvas of their own for visiting fine artists, such as Phil Saxon of Racine. Saxon’s Post-Expressionist style and bold colors leap from the walls into the open-loft space. Visitors will be able to view seven pieces of Saxon’s work, which is shown locally, in Chicago, and nationwide, as the first in a planned series of gallery displays by prominent local artists.

Camela sees her new location not only as an ideal location to display artwork and photograph high school seniors, families, and business executives, but as a natural gathering spot for groups of all kinds.

“It’s an organic space,” she says. “I could see executive group-building sessions, synergy groups, and retreats here.” It is wired for wi-fi, projection, and other media and includes kitchen facilities. “On a social level,” she adds, “we can host receptions, family parties, and book clubs. The space is open and conducive to any group event.”

On Saturday, Sept. 10, Camela will throw wide the doors of her Images by Camela Studio and Gallery to celebrate its official grand opening. The reception begins at 5 p.m. Phil Saxon’s gallery showing runs from 7 until 9 p.m. and is part of the evening’s city-wide Art Venture, sponsored by Downtown Racine Corp.  Art Venture is a summer celebration of art, music, dance, and the culinary arts at several downtown venues. Camela says she hopes friends, clients, prospective clients, Art Venture enthusiasts, and those who just love century-old buildings will stop by to tour the space, enjoy Saxon’s artwork, and view samples of her best photography.  The experience just may prove to be cool, keen, and the cat’s pajamas.

If You Go

WHAT: Grand Opening of Images by Camela Studio & Gallery, in conjunction with September’s Art Venture, featuring paintings and drawing by Racine artist Phil Saxon

WHEN: Studio and Gallery opening begins at 5 p.m., Art Venture showing, from 6 to 9 p.m.

WHERE: 510 College Ave, 2^nd floor

COST: Free

INFO: Go to Imagesbycamela.com or call 262-498-4075 for more information