celeste
Tucked away on South Ashland Avenue between High and Euclid, near John’s Run/Walk Shop, is a new shop with a novel approach for showcasing local artists.
The Collective opened its doors in August. Shoppers and art enthusiasts alike can find handmade items from 16 local artists and artisans who have come together to provide an alternative to the traditional art gallery concept. From paintings and photography to home décor, jewelry, felted wool, turned wood and vintage items, The Collective fills a void in Lexington’s approach to displaying and selling local artists’ work. It is as much a gift shop as it is a gallery.
The idea was conceived by Celeste Lewis, a Lexington native who is a local artist, art gallery manager and familiar contributing writer to Business Lexington’s Pleased to Meet You series. Lewis and her husband, Barry Dennis, returned to Lexington a couple of years ago after living 20 years in Wyoming and Utah to raise their two children. While out west, Lewis used her fine arts degree from the University of Kentucky to work as a gallery director for Robert Redford’s Sundance Institute in Park City, Utah. Lewis credits that experience to providing her with the opportunity to expand her skills in gallery exhibition, retail sales and class offerings.
As Lewis reconnected with fellow artists in Lexington, she had numerous conversations about the local art community. Some common topics continued to surface in those discussions: a shortage of galleries in the community, limited space in which to display the work and a customary commission structure that dissuaded or prevented many artists from showcasing their work in a gallery. Lewis conceived the idea for a collective approach where both emerging and established local artists can come together to display and sell their work while sharing the costs evenly.
“The goal was to create a gallery that didn’t require anyone to quit their day job, to find a space in a great location, to offer great marketing and display, and to create an experience to showcase art to everyone,” Lewis said.
Lewis found the retail space in Chevy Chase. In need of a major transformation, her architect husband used his expertise to refurbish the space into an inviting environment to showcase the artists’ work. One of the changes included replacing the carpet on the steps inside the gallery with a collage by Lewis of artistic, fun phrases and photos from magazines and postcards to help set the creative tone of the space.
The Collective, with the tagline “artist-made for you,” is not a consignment store or a space for booths of artists. The store is set up as a retail store with the artists’ work integrated throughout. Lewis describes it as “an eclectic collection that works together.” The art will be changing often, and the artists will help work at the gallery as volunteers, but Dennis, a self-employed architect, can be found staffing it most of the time right now.
For the artists, the concept of a collective gallery was enticing. Lindy Huber of Seldom Scene Farm raises alpacas, llamas and sheep. She uses her animal fiber to produce felted wool items. Her wearable art is sold in a couple of specialty shops in Woodford County, and she attends a few art fairs each year. She likes the concept of The Collective because “it offered me a way to sell my goods without investing a lot of time,” she said.
Adrian Centers of Bavarian Woodworks works full-time at UK and creates turned wood as a hobby and creative outlet. For him, The Collective allows him to sell his work in a gallery environment without paying a standard commission to the gallery. Centers continues to hone his craft and credits Lewis and her encouragement for allowing him to expand his creativity from making practical items to art pieces.
“With her vast experience with artists and galleries, she has insights and instincts I’ll never have,” he said.
The Collective has been welcomed into the neighborhood by the Chevy Chase Merchants Association and long-time Chevy Chase business owners who have shared tips on addressing issues such as parking, traffic and hours of operation. The store opened just in time for the Chevy Chase Street Fair in August, which provided an opportunity for the gallery to introduce itself to the public. A grand opening event is expected to be held sometime in October.
The Collective is located at 321 S. Ashland Ave. and can be reached at (859) 368-0830.