Laster, who grew up nearby, ultimately bought the city-owned building and set about transforming it into 5 Points Art Gallery and Studios.
Now, she lives in one of the venue’s two second-floor apartment units. She works out of one of its nine lower-level studio spaces (alongside Della Wells and several other local creatives). And she curates the exhibits in its main-fl oor gallery.
To date, Laster has organized large-scale group shows, small one-person retrospectives, and everything in between while striving to spotlight work by artists of color and other marginalized artists. “That’s the goal of the gallery,” she says. “I’m trying to push the boundary of what’s seen and expected of us.”