Coastal Carolina University, in partnership with the city of Myrtle Beach, has expanded its Cube Galleries art project to Myrtle Beach’s Arts and Innovation District. An extension of CCU’s on-campus Rebecca Randall Bryan Art Gallery, these mini art galleries feature local artists’ and students’ work in glass-paneled cubes for public viewing.

The Myrtle Beach Downtown Development Office recently hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new cube in Nance Plaza. There are five cubes located throughout CCU’s campus and one cube in front of the Conway visitors center on Main Street.

Much like the Free Little Libraries that have popped up in neighborhoods throughout the country, CCU’s Cube Galleries bring contemporary art to the people where they are. The University’s Cube Galleries were inspired by the Art Viewing Boxes of artist Jackson Martin, Suzanne Dittenber, Luke Whitlatch, and Tiger Strikes Asteroid Greenville placed in and around Ashville, N.C.

“As we begin The Cube Galleries’ third year, it is incredibly exciting to have this expansion into the Myrtle Beach Arts Innovation District come to fruition,” said Yvette Arendt, associate professor of visual arts and foundations area coordinator at CCU. “Connecting CCU and the visual arts to our entire community is one of the goals of The Cube Galleries.”

According to Arendt, The Cube Galleries have hosted more than 16 different group and solo exhibitions, with a full schedule of alumni and award-winning artists to be highlighted this year. The galleries have featured work in various mediums, from ceramics to printmaking to painting and even a site-specific performance art piece. Visitors to the galleries can look forward to collaborations with CCU's Charles Joyner Institute for Gullah and African Diaspora Studies, highlighting their work with local high school students, and installation artist, Jordan Sheridan, will push the physical boundaries of the cube spaces near the end of the Spring 2024 semester.

“The success of The Cube Galleries is really shown in these satellite spaces,” said Arendt. “Coastal Carolina University, Conway, and now Myrtle Beach, are bringing the visual arts to the community, where the people are. The cubes open conversations and invite the public to experience art in ways they may not have considered before.”