Little Majestic studios: Marrickville Creative hub set to close doors after $150k rental hike

A creative hub shared by dozens of artists has fallen victim to Sydney’s rental squeeze, prompting the long-term owner to warn the city is “at risk of losing its cultural identity”.

A sharp rental hike is set to force a leading arts hub in Marrickville to close its doors, amid warnings the city’s creative community is being “priced out” of Sydney.

Renters and first home buyers are not the only cohort facing pressure to secure affordable real estate in Sydney’s hot property market as artists warn soaring rental costs are leaving many unable to secure places to create their works.

Little Majestic art studios in Marrickville is the latest victim of the rental squeeze, with the long-term owner confirming the site will be shuttered in coming weeks following a large increase in the building’s rental costs.

The 913sqm space on Sydney St has 24 studios and operates an artists’ collective with about 30 artists sharing the space, each contributing to the rent and other overheads.

Owner Camilla Lawson, who founded the space back in 2019, said the shared-collective model has helped keep operating costs low.

The studios have operated since 2019.

That was until she discovered the $150,000 annual rent would be doubled – meaning the space has now become unaffordable.

“I’m the sole leaseholder and I took a huge financial risk and a huge legal risk to take this on,” she said.

“There are about 30 artists – a majority of them make a living from being an artist. I have made a living from being an artist for the last 30 years and support my family that way.

Camilla Lawson.

The studios have been used as a home for many artists, including this work by local artist Gawaa Lundaa.

“All the artists are contributing to the rent and the outgoings of the space, which makes it affordable.

“There isn’t much else out there that’s affordable in Sydney at the moment and it’s been a struggle to find anywhere, even in Marrickville.

“Many of the artists have now had to put their work into storage and I’m now exploring relocating to regional NSW.

A photo inside the studios.

“These spaces are actually very important financial spaces for artists to make a living, and without them the city’s at risk of losing its cultural identity.”

The impending closure comes as many other Sydney artists struggle to secure affordable art space.

A City of Sydney study last year found the number of artists in Sydney fell by 11.6 per cent between 2016 to 2021, despite the number of creatives in other capital cities such as Melbourne and Brisbane increasing over the same period.

The studios have been used to create artwork, including Mardi Gras floats.

Inner West councillor Justine Langford said new residential developments in the inner city had resulted in the demolition of many affordable spaces previously used by artists.

Ms Langford is calling for the council to investigate using council-owned properties and spaces that could be made suitable for artists.

Over the years, Little Majestic has been home to various designers and makers across the industries of film and television, graphic design, theatre, writing, fashion and music.

A spokesman for the NSW Government said: “The availability of affordable creative spaces is under pressure across Sydney with the rezoning and redevelopment of light industrial land adding to that pressure.”

“As part of the state’s first arts, culture and creative industries policy, Creative Communities, the NSW Government has committed to providing a strong and effective network of spaces for creatives through a combination of direct public investment, new sources of investment for the sector and regulatory reform,” the spokesman said.