Art and Community: 64 Harvard
by MJ Jordan
This is part of a series of blog posts written by students in an Elon University First Year Writing course. For the course, students wrote profiles of people, places, and events that contribute to LGBTQ+ life in Alamance County.
On a quiet street in Graham, North Carolina, tucked between storefronts that come and go, sits a space that feels less like a business and more like a heartbeat. At first glance, 64 Harvard looks like an art and framing shop, but the moment you step inside, that definition dissolves. Paint-speckled tables, a DIY workspace, and a wall of empty frames waiting not just for art, but for stories; everything here suggests something deeper. It’s a place where people come not only to display their work, but to be seen.
The name itself is a clue. “64 Harvard” isn’t random, it’s a memory. It was the address of a small framing shop in Boston where the owner, Reneé Russell, once worked. “It was the only job I’ve ever had where I felt like a normal human,” they recall. At that shop, hiring wasn’t about résumés or experience; it was based entirely on handwriting, a test of character rather than credentials. The people there were like-minded, collaborative, and kind. “It was a beautiful moment in time,” Reneé says. “I wanted my space to be that for someone.”
When they opened 64 Harvard in Alamance County four years ago, that was the only vision they carried with certainty, not what the walls would look like or what art would hang, but how the space should feel. It needed to be a refuge for the curious, the expressive, the ones seeking belonging through creation. Slowly, person by person, that vision took root. “I’ve seen it so many times,” Reneé says. “People walk in unsure, and then they realize this space is theirs, too.”
“People walk in unsure, and then they realize this space is theirs, too.”
Inside, artists might bring canvases for framing but leave with something more. Conversations turn into collaborations, and sometimes, friendships. The shop has become a meeting ground for local creators, especially those who don’t see themselves represented in traditional galleries. Here, self-expression isn’t curated or critiqued; it’s welcomed. For many LGBTQ+ artists searching for community in Alamance County, 64 Harvard has become a quiet sanctuary, an affirming space where identity and creativity can coexist.
The DIY Framing at 64 Harvard (Credit: MJ Jordan)
Building such a space hasn’t been easy. “From the community side, people love it,” Reneé explains. “It draws people in.” The challenges, instead, have come from the city; regulations, misunderstandings, and being seen as a different kind of business in a landscape accustomed to the conventional. Yet even those obstacles haven’t shaken the mission. If anything, they’ve clarified it: 64 Harvard isn’t here to fit in, but to expand what community can be.
Art Vending Machine (Credit: MJ Jordan)
To Reneé, art is more than decoration, it’s a form of language. “I think it’s huge in so many ways,” they say. “It lets you share information, learn things, get exposure.” Within these walls, a painting isn’t just framed, it’s honored. A piece of pottery isn’t just wrapped in paper, it’s protected. Every object carries someone’s courage.
And the future? It’s still unfolding. A long-term dream of launching a mobile framery is now within reach. The recently added DIY space, where people can create rather than just display, may soon expand into workshops, classes, and collaborations. There is no “finished” version of 64 Harvard. By design, it’s always becoming.
In a county where safe, creative spaces can feel scarce, 64 Harvard offers something quietly radical: permission. Permission to explore identity. To make something messy. To belong.
