When Shira Lane moved from the Bay Area to Sacramento with her family in 2016, she was unsure of what she would do in the city. It was only a year later that she created the vendor market Upcycle Pop, impressed with the talent she found in the city.
Today, Lane’s vendor market idea has evolved into Atrium 916, which she is the founding director of, located in Old Sacramento. Here, she aims to foster creativity and provide resources for artists in an effort to create a sense of community and advocate for a more environmentally-friendly Sacramento.
“I’m always blown away by artists’ creativity,” Lane says. “I’m blown away by their capabilities, and I believe that if you bring together artists that have the same values, it’s like magic. If we could create a space that could attract artists with the same values of sustainability and community and kindness, imagine the things that we could do.”
Lane founded Atrium 916 in 2021. It’s a nonprofit (legally under the name Up Kindness Inc.), creative innovation center for sustainability that provides resources to local artists. The organization partners with artists to sell their art both in-store and through its online marketplace, Lane says, with 70% of profit going toward artists and 30% towards the nonprofit. She added that artists can also potentially display their art at Atrium 916’s gallery for two months.
However, the art sold and displayed there must be environmentally friendly, made of repurposed material with packaging that can be brought back and reused, Lane says.
Lane has always been passionate about the environment. As a child born in Australia who traveled back and forth between there and Israel where her mother is from, Lane raised horses and fostered animals, developing a close connection to nature.
She says she wants the Atrium to educate the public, including artists, on how to practice sustainability. The Atrium acts as a circular economy marketplace, where products are made from ecofriendly materials that can then be repurposed after being used for their intended purposes. Lane says she tries to do everything she can to help the environment, no matter how small the action may be.
“How can we continue to have an economy that flourishes but just not design it stupid?” Lane says. “Right now, we’re on a linear economy which means we extract, use and dispose so we’re depleting our resources and having a heap of trash that we don’t know what to do with. We can design better.”
Lane came to the United States when she was 28, moving to Los Angeles with a bachelor’s degree in performing arts from Beit Zvi School for the Performing Arts, in an effort to create English-speaking content. Although she had acted and done producing work in Israel, Lane says she became disheartened with the acting community in LA.
However, Lane got into documentary work and began to interact with nonprofit organizations, exploring topics like the food industry’s impact on the environment. She says that the deeper she got into documentary filmmaking, the more she grew concerned with environmental issues.
Katy Karns, co-owner of photography business Glow Studios, which is housed inside one of Atrium 916’s three studio spaces, says she, along with her business partner Camille Adams, utilize repurposed material for props and set pieces. Karns says practicing increased sustainability was something the two had considered more after obtaining the studio space.
“I always strive for it but the reminder is nice to have,” Karns says. “Having a chance to do something about it like talking about those programs and seeing how people interact with those programs again, I think little by little it’s like, I’ll be sustainable one day, you know? It really is a process.”
Laurel Marana, Atrium 916’s gallery director, says artists who are unsure of how to implement ecofriendly practices into their work can schedule a meeting to discuss how to create art in a sustainable way and how to adjust their artistic process to do so.
Lane says she tries to help artists get their foot in their door by assisting those who have never sold their own work prior, or haven’t had art displayed in galleries before. The Atrium assists these artists through its digital marketplace, where they can view their sales through an online dashboard.
Marana is also an artist, specializing in creating surrealist sculptural art with upcycled material. She says being part of Atrium has also allowed her to become more confident as an artist and business owner.
“Atrium has really pushed me as an artist to get my business started and developed,” Marana says. “Having a brick and mortar has really been a catalyst to my business and my art process. I’m kind of just getting set up over there right now but it’s definitely been a really awesome learning experience.”
Lane’s desire to amplify local artist’s voices and educate others extends beyond Atrium 916’s walls.
The Atrium is producing a six-episode television series funded by the Sacramento Metropolitan Cable Commission and SMUD called “Citizens of Planet Earth” which is currently in post-production. Lane says 104 local creatives were involved in the program, which will air on KVIE in 2025; each episode will focus on a different kind of waste, ranging from fashion to electronics, and then present an artist demonstrating a solution to the problem raised.
Lane has also been involved in the implementation of Senate Bill 54, The Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act, which requires producers to invest in source reduction, creating recyclable packaging material with reduced plastic. Lane says she was invited by Heidi Sanborn, one of SMUD’s board of directors to be part of the working group for implementation of the bill and provide her input.
Lane says she believes creatives should be present during public meetings and involved in these decisions to provide solutions that policymakers may not consider.
Yennie Zhou is a set and fashion designer who makes pieces through unconventional material like chicken wire and milk cartons. Zhou, a refugee from Vietnam who grew up in a small village where resources were scarce, says she was shocked by the amount of waste produced in the Unites States after she moved here.
She, like Lane, believes the City of Sacramento could ask creatives to be involved in solving important problems in order to produce creative solutions. Zhou, who is passionate about homelessness, says she thinks artists could also get involved by creating portable housing through reused material.
“The City can maybe incorporate some of the artist’s ideas, invite them to come over to the meetings and educate people on how important that is,” Zhou says. “If you help the others, or you recycle the materials at the end of the day, it benefits everybody not just this neighborhood or that.”
Lane says she hopes that the city can provide more opportunities for artists to not only support themselves but help highlight what makes Sacramento unique by making it a place where creativity, economic development and sustainability meet.
“I feel like just giving them a platform is important, and why I really want to fight [is] that there is financial support and political support for them in this region, because that’s what makes a city cool,” Lane says.
“I’m always blown away by artists’ creativity,” Lane says. “I’m blown away by their capabilities, and I believe that if you bring together artists that have the same values, it’s like magic. If we could create a space that could attract artists with the same values of sustainability and community and kindness, imagine the things that we could do.”
Lane founded Atrium 916 in 2021. It’s a nonprofit (legally under the name Up Kindness Inc.), creative innovation center for sustainability that provides resources to local artists. The organization partners with artists to sell their art both in-store and through its online marketplace, Lane says, with 70% of profit going toward artists and 30% towards the nonprofit. She added that artists can also potentially display their art at Atrium 916’s gallery for two months.
However, the art sold and displayed there must be environmentally friendly, made of repurposed material with packaging that can be brought back and reused, Lane says.
Lane has always been passionate about the environment. As a child born in Australia who traveled back and forth between there and Israel where her mother is from, Lane raised horses and fostered animals, developing a close connection to nature.
She says she wants the Atrium to educate the public, including artists, on how to practice sustainability. The Atrium acts as a circular economy marketplace, where products are made from ecofriendly materials that can then be repurposed after being used for their intended purposes. Lane says she tries to do everything she can to help the environment, no matter how small the action may be.
“How can we continue to have an economy that flourishes but just not design it stupid?” Lane says. “Right now, we’re on a linear economy which means we extract, use and dispose so we’re depleting our resources and having a heap of trash that we don’t know what to do with. We can design better.”
Lane came to the United States when she was 28, moving to Los Angeles with a bachelor’s degree in performing arts from Beit Zvi School for the Performing Arts, in an effort to create English-speaking content. Although she had acted and done producing work in Israel, Lane says she became disheartened with the acting community in LA.
However, Lane got into documentary work and began to interact with nonprofit organizations, exploring topics like the food industry’s impact on the environment. She says that the deeper she got into documentary filmmaking, the more she grew concerned with environmental issues.
Katy Karns, co-owner of photography business Glow Studios, which is housed inside one of Atrium 916’s three studio spaces, says she, along with her business partner Camille Adams, utilize repurposed material for props and set pieces. Karns says practicing increased sustainability was something the two had considered more after obtaining the studio space.
“I always strive for it but the reminder is nice to have,” Karns says. “Having a chance to do something about it like talking about those programs and seeing how people interact with those programs again, I think little by little it’s like, I’ll be sustainable one day, you know? It really is a process.”
Laurel Marana, Atrium 916’s gallery director, says artists who are unsure of how to implement ecofriendly practices into their work can schedule a meeting to discuss how to create art in a sustainable way and how to adjust their artistic process to do so.
Lane says she tries to help artists get their foot in their door by assisting those who have never sold their own work prior, or haven’t had art displayed in galleries before. The Atrium assists these artists through its digital marketplace, where they can view their sales through an online dashboard.
Marana is also an artist, specializing in creating surrealist sculptural art with upcycled material. She says being part of Atrium has also allowed her to become more confident as an artist and business owner.
“Atrium has really pushed me as an artist to get my business started and developed,” Marana says. “Having a brick and mortar has really been a catalyst to my business and my art process. I’m kind of just getting set up over there right now but it’s definitely been a really awesome learning experience.”
Lane’s desire to amplify local artist’s voices and educate others extends beyond Atrium 916’s walls.
The Atrium is producing a six-episode television series funded by the Sacramento Metropolitan Cable Commission and SMUD called “Citizens of Planet Earth” which is currently in post-production. Lane says 104 local creatives were involved in the program, which will air on KVIE in 2025; each episode will focus on a different kind of waste, ranging from fashion to electronics, and then present an artist demonstrating a solution to the problem raised.
Lane has also been involved in the implementation of Senate Bill 54, The Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act, which requires producers to invest in source reduction, creating recyclable packaging material with reduced plastic. Lane says she was invited by Heidi Sanborn, one of SMUD’s board of directors to be part of the working group for implementation of the bill and provide her input.
Lane says she believes creatives should be present during public meetings and involved in these decisions to provide solutions that policymakers may not consider.
Yennie Zhou is a set and fashion designer who makes pieces through unconventional material like chicken wire and milk cartons. Zhou, a refugee from Vietnam who grew up in a small village where resources were scarce, says she was shocked by the amount of waste produced in the Unites States after she moved here.
She, like Lane, believes the City of Sacramento could ask creatives to be involved in solving important problems in order to produce creative solutions. Zhou, who is passionate about homelessness, says she thinks artists could also get involved by creating portable housing through reused material.
“The City can maybe incorporate some of the artist’s ideas, invite them to come over to the meetings and educate people on how important that is,” Zhou says. “If you help the others, or you recycle the materials at the end of the day, it benefits everybody not just this neighborhood or that.”
Lane says she hopes that the city can provide more opportunities for artists to not only support themselves but help highlight what makes Sacramento unique by making it a place where creativity, economic development and sustainability meet.
“I feel like just giving them a platform is important, and why I really want to fight [is] that there is financial support and political support for them in this region, because that’s what makes a city cool,” Lane says.
This story was funded by the City of Sacramento’s Arts and Creative Economy Journalism Grant to Solving Sacramento. Following our journalism code of ethics and protocols, the city had no editorial influence over this story and no city official reviewed this story before it was published. Our partners include California Groundbreakers, Capital Public Radio, Outword, Russian America Media, Sacramento Business Journal, Sacramento News & Review, Sacramento Observer and Univision 19. Sign up for our “Sac Art Pulse” newsletter here.