I never thought Nosreme Baltimore would be a nonprofit organization, and I never thought we would be doing public art projects. I’m just an architect and artist at heart who loves doing work for communities and people. I also never though my architecture theses would last as long as it has. I graduated from Temple University in 2013 with my Bachelor of Architecture, during my thesis year we had to determine what would define us as architects. I started off with something that wasn't true to me and then finally I went to art, something that I was always ashamed of as an architect because I could never draw a straight line like everyone else. I spent so much time perfecting a light hand with a 2B pencil. But once I decided on it, I was so excited. My thesis was titled "The Small Apple: Negotiating spatial boundaries between artist and public" It referenced projects like City Lounge outdoor space of Gallen, Switzerland. "Collaborative processes by artists and architects lead to establishing challenging and engaging wider relationships in the public realm between artist and it's local community." - Go 2013 Ariana! 13 years later, this is so relevant to all of my beliefs today and it took 4 years of running Nosreme Baltimore to finally get to this point, but now that we're here, we're only refining. I started my first job in architecture in Philadelphia back in 2013. It was then that I started writing the business plan for Nosreme as part of a Temple University pitch bowl. At the time it was called "Food & Art: Where worlds collide" - I wanted to create a space in a vacant storefront of Philadelphia that had an art gallery and restaurant because I always loved the idea of bringing people in spaces where the experience creates its own language and brings people from different backgrounds together. That business plan was turned down SO quick, the reviewers' comment was "only hippies would go here." I spent more time creating renderings and making the document aesthetically pleasing that I did on the actual operational numbers. It wasn't until 2019 when I lived in Copenhagen for 6 months that I started to believe in my idea again. There is a space there called Absalon. The Danes are very direct, when I would go for a run, no one would wave back. - I know that's a random statement, but in a country where no one talks to strangers its the little things that matter. When I stepped into Absalon it was quirky, there was a daily dinner service where everyone ate a family meal at the same time and there were daily arts programs like figure drawing classes and making boobies with ceramics that were geared towards adults - which I love because adults need mental health programming too. After I left Denmark, I believed in Nosreme again and started my master's at MICA in 2022 to pursue how to actually run a business. Two weeks before finishing my master's at MICA, we hosted our first pop-up event at R. House. It was an ode to Copenhagen. I didn't know what was next but I loved that we sold six pieces of artwork to a new audience of potential collectors and created an experience of community with strangers. Now we're building the infrastructure I always imagined, paid commissions for Baltimore artists, a residency that brings the world here, and community gatherings that still feel like that first night at R. House. I didn't know it would take 13 years, forty countries, a thesis, a rejected business plan, and a master's degree to get here. But I'm glad it did. It took exactly that long to get it right. - Ariana Parrish, Founder & Executive Director of Nosreme Baltimore | 
