Entry No. 5 — the Anchorage file — filed under: converted church
The Nave (the old Church of Love)
A 60-year-old derelict Baptist-then-Korean church that artists activated as the 'Church of Love' before it became The Nave, an arts commons. Its weirdest legacy is on the building itself: a giant 3-D steel shadowbox mural designed by Drew Michael and cut by Garrett Perkins that glows like a lantern in winter, plus a polka-dot asphalt 'Twister mat' ground mural by Kerby McGhee out front. Old Sunday-school rooms are now cheap artist studios.
The move: Stroll the exterior to find the steel shadowbox mural and the Twister-mat asphalt out front, then catch an opening, workshop, or Spenard Second Saturday art-walk event inside the converted nave and peek into the warren of artist studios.
📍 Before you go The Nave sits on historic Spenard Road in the Spenard neighborhood, southwest of downtown Anchorage; it's the old church building, and there are parking lots on both the north and south sides. The exterior murals are free to walk up to anytime, so anyone can swing by, but the building's interior is event-driven, opening mainly for exhibitions, workshops, and the monthly Spenard Second Saturday art walk (held on the second Saturday). Time an inside visit to one of those. Winter pays off too: the steel shadowbox lantern reads best after dark in the long northern nights. Spenard's offbeat bars, diners, and other studios are walkable along the same strip, so make a loop of it.
- 📍 Spenard
- 💸 Free
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoor or outdoor
Where: 3502 Spenard Road, Anchorage, AK 99503
Hours: Event- and exhibition-driven; check thenavespenard.com or Spenard Second Saturday for openings. Exterior murals viewable anytime.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: adn.com · forecastpublicart.org
last checked: 2026-06-06