Creative Community Model for a New World

Creative Energy Field

The world is not a friendly place for creative people. I mean—it mostly never was.

We went from traveling town to town with a hat in hand to performing for kings and patrons at their pleasure. Then came a revolution: we realized we could turn media into a source of income for ourselves. We formed unions, copyright offices, and royalty organizations. For a while, we built something close to stability—sales, revenue, a middle class of artists. But it didn’t last.

Disruption came. Respect for creative labor collapsed. Exploitation crept back in. And now we’re right back to passing the hat—only now it’s virtual, algorithmic, and harder than ever to get anyone to look up.

For the past several years, I’ve pushed against this. Loudly. I’ve fought for fair pay, joined strikes, compromised where I had to, and dreamed of something—some model, some system—that could support creative work in this new world.

And recently…I found something.

I’m not even sure what I found. But it has an interesting flavor. It’s rough, hopeful, and captures my attention.

A Short History of Incubators

Incubators first emerged from the startup world, designed as spaces to nurture fledgling tech ideas with mentorship, early-stage capital, and access to essential networks. They offered young companies a place to grow, fail fast, iterate, and connect with investors. Over time, the model expanded beyond tech, branching into media, social enterprise, and sustainability. And now, finally, it’s reaching the creative sector, offering artists, musicians, storytellers, and makers the same kind of structural support entrepreneurs have long enjoyed.

Why Chicago?

A couple of years ago, I moved to Chicago. I needed a reset. A change in rhythm. It felt like a city where creativity was still alive in real ways—local, collaborative, grounded. Music venues. Small theaters. Late-night cafes where writers still scribbled in notebooks. I liked the vibe.

And then I heard about 2112, a creative incubator housed in an old sprawling warehouse on the west side.

I’m deep in the middle of building Song in Space—an audio drama, a world, a platform, a mission. I needed a home. Not just a desk and Wi-Fi. I needed resources. Players. Studios. Lawyers. Performance spaces. Animators. Sound wizards. Social media-wise folk. I needed community. And somehow, 2112 had it all.

What’s Inside the 2112 Creative Community

2112 is located inside Fort Knox Studios, a massive creative hub on Chicago’s west side. And it’s not just a workspace—it’s an ecosystem.

Inside, you’ll find everything a working creative could hope for:

• A fully equipped content studio for shooting, streaming, and experimenting.

• Editing bays that are always humming with projects in progress.

• Production spaces where ideas move from concept to execution.

• Conference and breakout rooms are ideal for pitch meetings, script read-throughs, or quiet planning sessions.

• A lofted lounge space where spontaneous conversations can spark unexpected collaborations.

• A full kitchen stocked with water, coffee, and snacks—because you can’t create on an empty stomach.

• Educational programs and weekly networking events, where industry veterans share what they’ve learned.

• 1-on-1 mentor hours with pros who’ve been in the trenches and know the way forward.

It’s not just a facility. It’s a living, breathing space built for people like us.

More Than a Place

But more than the gear and the goodies, there’s something else here. A glimpse. An idea. A feeling that maybe we can build something together, not just a project, but a creative community model for a new world.

I don’t have the complete blueprint yet. But I know I want to be part of it.

And if you’re out there, hat in hand, wondering what comes next, maybe you should take a look too.