ARTISTS setting up studios in a village at the foot of Wutong Mountain near the border between Luohu and Yantian districts have complained about rising rents since the Luohu District Government said it would transform the village into an art town.
While improving the environment and raising the profile of Wutong Mountain, the decision had inspired the villagers to raise rents, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported Thursday.
The rent started rising at the end of last year, said an artist, identified only as Lu.
He said there was strong demand for apartments in the village after the announcement.
My landlord even did not tell me about the rent rise in advance and demanded a 100-yuan (US$15) rent increase, Lu said.
Some artists were considering moving out, the paper said. I went to Dapeng looking for a new place for a studio, with lower rent, said artist Jiang Yinfeng.
The rent rise has driven up living costs for artists, most of whom had moved to the village from art industrial parks in the city, Jiang said.
If artists are driven out because of high living costs, the art town will become a vacant shell, said another artist named Chen.
Artists in the village have set up an association to represent them in the rent issue.
Artists began opening studios at the foot of Wutong Mountain in 2000. (Li Hao)
