A local art gallery featuring multiple art mediums is celebrating 10 years of showcasing local artists and their work.
According to Dancing Tree Gallery owner and operator Darlene Calwell, eight other artists show off their work alongside her pottery. She adds that because pottery started off as a hobby for her, she never thought she would get as far as she has with a business selling pottery.
“The town has been fantastic supporting me. It’s something that is not easy to do because pottery takes a lot of time to perfect,” said Calwell. “It is not an easy thing to make even though it looks very simple and there’s lots to know about it.
“To be able to produce it enough and good enough for the public is satisfying. I get a lot of feedback of people using my work every day.”
Calwell says pottery began as a passion when she was a child, and that passion grew until she either needed to go big or quit.
“Putting pottery out for sale elsewhere under commission, there ain’t a whole lot of profit left once the commission is taken off,” said Calwell. “So, it’s either do it for yourself, or I was going to quit.”
Calwell says she ended up finding a space to sell her pottery. Figuring she was good enough at it, she decided to commit to selling her work.
Because pottery is made by hand, Calwell says her favourite part of owning and running the business is seeing people get attached to the uniqueness of the art.
“It’s not put through a machine, it’s got life to it and you know somebody took their time to make it,” said Calwell. “It has to feel good in your hands. Pottery is tactile, you’ve got to touch it and you’ve got to hold it.
“Once you hold it and you drink your coffee out of it, you go back and use that mug again and again. You get attached to it and it just makes you feel good.”
Calwell thanks the public for their support of the shop over the last 10 years.
With files from Hussam El-Ghussein, Vista Radio
