An Archway studio space which welcomes artists from all over the world is appealing for donations to help keep it afloat.

The Bomb Factory, housed in a Victorian warehouse, is home to 17 studios and 30 artists, from recent graduates to a Turner Prize winner.

But “prohibitively expensive” business rates are preventing development, including more exhibitions, artist talks, open workshops, mentoring schemes and open studios.

The Bomb Factory, so called because the building was used as a munitions factory in the Second World War, was opened in January last year by artist and founder Pallas Citroen.

Pallas, who lives in Archway, wanted to create a cultural hub that was affordable for artists priced out of east London.

She is positive about The Bomb Factory’s future despite dire warnings of a collapse in the number of studios in the capital as east London becomes increasingly attractive to property developers.

“It’s a bit of a tragedy,” Pallas said. “Once you take those out of the equation you take a huge part of the cultural energy away. London will become anonymous and homogenised. We are losing studios in bucket loads.”

The Boothby Road studios have already built up partnerships with Central Saint Martins art school, which has a campus in Archway, and runs workshops with sixth-formers at Acland Burghley School.

“I feel very positive about the future. We want to create somewhere that’s part of the community, somewhere that people can come and visit,” Pallas added.

Thanks in part to a sympathetic landlord, a new five-year lease has just been signed, but as a not-for-profit organisation The Bomb Factory is still vulnerable.

Profits from the sales of artists’ works are its only source of income.

• Keywords
  ARTISTS, CULTURE, MONEY
• Geographical keyword
  BOOTHBY ROAD
• Persons keyword
  Bomb Factory [Artists' studios], Pallas Citroen