The Trials and Tribulations of New Space!
Building the Flagship Gallery for Goods for the Soul By Karen Akst SchecterBuilding a new and beautiful flagship gallery, one worthy of the art work and functional creations it will host, was sometimes fun and exciting, other times daunting and overwhelming, equal parts amazing and frustrating, usually all at the same time!
So, while we were still refining the concept for the new venture, Jay found us some space right in downtown Mount Kisco, the shopping hub of Northern Westchester. Way too many good food choices around us, and fabulous parking in the rear; in other words, perfect! And it was, or so we thought, clean and ready for us, with just a bit of painting and a few design touches.
The space as we first saw it.
And then we brought in the amazing architectural design team of Ruth Bushko and Linda Dishner, two of the most talented, creative, and easy to work with women that we know. They listen. They respect timelines and budgets. They come to your home when you are babysitting your 18 month old granddaughter, don’t want to leave her, but have to make snap decisions! Most important, they are not afraid to challenge what they perceive to be mistakes even as they listen.
They claimed they were almost done!
And listen they did. They listened to what we wanted to do, the community we hoped to create, and the respect and love we have for the work that we display. They brought in a great team: a carpenter, a painter, and an electrician. We laughed, we argued, we bantered, and we got it done. The result: a major overhaul of the space. New ceilings, new floor design, new lights, new shelves, new counter, new – new everything.
Shelving units arrive – creations next!
Yay us!
And when the window and back door signage went up, and the shelves were delivered, we didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry – either way, from joy!
As Linda said, “Yay us!”
The end result: a gallery that takes our breath away, that makes us smile, that invites community. A gallery that has aesthetic sense, and that allows us to fulfill our promise to deliver goods for the soul.
COME SEE FOR YOURSELF. . . .
