BUCKHANNON – If you’re aiming to shop small while supporting local arts and artisans, look no further than Artistry on Main, where you can find unique, handmade gifts for this holiday season.
President of Artistry on Main Christine Keller said the gallery itself is a 501(c)3, and all purchases made at the gallery go to the artist.
“It’s one-of a kind, handmade gifts, it’s local money that stays in the economy,” said Keller, who owns Chrizart Creations handmade jewelry. “You’re helping small business for sure, because the gallery itself is a nonprofit, and we work as a place for the artists to sell their work – they’re getting 100 percent of their sales.”
The gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m.
“There’s are a lot of holiday items within the shop right now, like soaps that are scented, baskets, jewelry and everything is pretty well-stocked right now,” Keller said. “We usually have Santa and gnome pottery and just a lot of handmade one-of-a-kind of gifts, which is a good thing.”
The gallery welcomed Wendy Clark to the gallery this year, and she creates a plethora of weaving crafts, Keller said.
“She’s got beautiful scarves in there, dish towels and even yarn, and if you want to crochet, she has hand-dyed yarn that she has made,” Keller said. “She came in this year. We were pretty full up, and then we lost two, and people haven’t come to jury in much lately even though we did advertise for that because we do have a space [for more artists] open right now.”
The gallery typically offers art classes, but those have slowed down due to the pandemic.
“We can’t do classes because we can’t have people in the back, so we have we’ve had a few classes, but it’s been hard because we have to limit it so much. We can only have six people in the classroom, which sometimes doesn’t make it worthwhile for the teacher,” Keller said.
The gallery does require customers to wear masks and only four customers are allowed inside at a time.
Keller said she would buy any art in the gallery as a gift, including chairs by Tom Lynch, pottery by Cherry Falls Pottery, handmade soaps with no added chemicals and the pieces of several jewelry makers like herself. Artists interested in joining the gallery can visit Artistry on Main’s website and fill out an application.
