Well here we are, it has been a minute since i have wrote to you all. The HeArt Box is turning 4 on August 5th and I felt it a good time to come out of hibernation. I have been busy working away and focusing on my work, stepping back a minute from curating and organizing to move at a pace that has no deadlines, timelines or needs. Just taking the time to exist, make art and enjoy!! For those of you who know and have visited The HeArt Box, you are familiar with the ebbs, flows and changes this little gallery goes through. For those of you who are not familiar with me, us, the space. The HeArt Box is a tiny little gallery and studio in the heart of downtown Flagstaff. We exist as a contemporary art gallery at times and others a full time working studio for myself, Jill Sans, and other resident artists. The HeArt Box has created space for emerging and established artists here in Northern Arizona and beyond state lines. I am so proud of this little space, a little hidden gem tucked behind The Artists’ Gallery and a few steps away to the busy motions of Aspen Alley.

The Birth

I suppose it is time to talk about how this all began. I often think of the annual marking of existence for The HeArt Box as a birth, a birthday. This truly has been a labor of love, pain, hope, dreams and some serious manifestations. In 2018 I stepped out on a ledge, the temptation to jump into the unknown, surrender and trust that the direction ahead would know the way because I had no clue. I wanted to create a space for artists in Flagstaff, myself included as I was an emerging artist as well and hungry to exist. There was a need here for a dedicated space for art, contemporary art, the kind of art you may not see in a coffee shop. The artists that no one knows, the underground and the unexpected. It was never my intention to do this fully on my own but it landed in my lap with just a few weeks to run with it, to create an identity and hold space for birth. To open the doors to a community with no plan just faith, the constant words repeating in my head “just trust” “try”.

I had a background in art already, coming form working and co-owning a fast paced Tattoo & Piercing studio, giving me the knowledge of art & business, a combination people will often tell you don’t mix. When I first started college back in 1995 I wanted to study Art & Business but failed miserably on the business side of things. It took over 10 years of first hand knowledge to get it, a general understanding of the day to day things such as taxes, licenses, marketing and such. But there is a heart beat to a business, a life of it’s own that develops through time. It needs some guidance, steering of the ship but also some letting go, letting the flow move it along. There is an allowance of who the business wants to become.

So with all that said, I put on my pants of courage and opened the doors on August 3rd, 2018. I had very little art to adorn the walls, no time to plan a show. I had a conversation months back with another Flagstaff artist, Adam Jimenez about creating street art style, murals of sorts on the fly on my beautiful large wall. So when you have no plans, you roll with what is at your finger tips so we did it. Adam organized other artists, I provided the space, paint and the magic happened. From the minute the doors opened people rolled in smiling from ear to ear, drawn to the energy of it all. They wanted to be a part of something, making a mark as, proof of existence; there was no holding community back. All night, people rolled in, we were riding some serious energy waves. Later in the evening other artists showed up, to my surprise artists of local celebrity status were here just doing there art thing. Art walk ended but the magic making didn’t stop until the wee hours of the night. A night I will never forget. Organic support, roots of new beginnings nourished and The HeArt Box was ready to fly.

Adam Jimenez and team of artists painting away on the exhibition wall.

After that artists flooded in to be a part of this, to show their work. The HeArt Box became a space for artists to be seen, heard and valued. Many exhibitions, workshops and gathering to come. The HeArt Box was the space to see something new, unexpected, fresh. A place to connect.

You see I needed to create something that was alive. I feel that art is energy and takes on a life through it’s creator, the artist. When space is held for that, the viewer will feel it too and connect. The story of the artist can be told and resonate with others. To be a voice of inspiration, hope and paving ways. We all have the ability to create, we create every single day many different things in many different forms. I named this space The HeArt Box because it represents our humaness, the heart existing in our little human boxes. The stories we have to tell are important, we must share, reflect and learn from each other. The heart is also the most powerful organ in our bodies, it is where I tend to dwell, I do my best to live from the heart space and I know that art has the ability to encourage others to do the same.

Jill Sans, wearing one of the only HeArt Box shirts ever made. Maybe more??

Through the Pandemic Years

Everything was moving along, I could feel the movement of the arts in this town about to explode. Artists carving their own ways and leaving trails behind for others. We were growing!! And then the pandemic came…

Towards the end of 2019 was the year I decided to take on another artist, a residency in it’s infancy with Linden Eller. Both of us emerging, we helped create and inspire each other in our work. So many big ideas coming to a silent hault. In 2020 I had exhibitions already lined up, Heather Ferguson traveling all the way from Rome, Italy to have her show Subtle Signs of Life on March 6th to then find it shut down the week after. Linden moved on, I moved studio home and had no idea what to do next. I had just started curating shows at High Country Conference Center on the NAU Campus, it was so awesome to connect The HeArt Box artists to another venue. The Viola awards were so much fun that March of 2020, I had just finished hanging Holly Troy’s incredible oil paintings in the hallways and then closed doors. I often thought of those paintings alone in an unfamiliar world to them.

After connecting with other artists we decided to try a virtual artwalk on Instagram Live, myself, Rebekah Nordstrom, Tamara Hastie, Erin Lockward and Linden Eller. In theory this was going to be an amazing event but when we went live everything crashed because i think the whole world was on there doing Live, we had to adapt quite quickly and this soon became the ways. It seemed so scary to go live, who would do that? But soon social media would soon become a vital tool and platform, I never thought I would ever be in front of the camera so much but I was, this then spawned me getting braces finally after constantly looking at myself on screen.

Let Happen 2020, Jill Sans and Linden Eller

I re-opened the gallery in June 2020 with the help of Rebekah Nordstrom and Tamara Hastie. We showed up every day keeping the doors open, masked with a smile. We tried. Our first exhibition back was Katie Vernon’s Odd Flowers. Man this show was so incredibly beautiful, no one got to really see it in person but we went live with virtual art openings. After going live that night I looked at Katie and mentioned we should grab a drink, typical for opening to celebrate. We walked through downtown to find what we could take to go but everything was closed, it was one of the many eerie nights of this time. Myself and all the artists, we kept on trucking. Kept up with the virtual openings, it was pretty intimate to say the least. I am still so proud of everyone for continuing to show up during that time, collectors supporting, audiences tuning in, everyone participating in any way they could. Adaptation was key, planning was strange and life just became weird.

I kept it running as the traditional gallery through 2021, retail space and all. Limiting exhibitions to longer periods of time, giving myself some rest and a way to ride the ups and downs. Continuing to get art out there as much as I could. Connecting to new collectors, one painting from Holly Troy’s Dreaming in Cyan made went the furthest, all the way to Greece, after spending some unexpected extra time waiting in a shipping container I suppose. Patience and trust!!

At the end of 2021 I was exhausted and needed a change. In no way was I ready to let go of this incredible space but maybe some serious rest, a pause. Jessica Worthington came on board as resident artist and we decided to move into 2022 closing the doors temporarily to the public and focusing on our craft. To do the work, make the work, paint, paint and more paint.

And Here we are now

Approaching 4 years of existence and many coats of paint later, I feel myself and the space ready to come back to life, to plan, build community and grow. It takes so much work to hold space for others, to plan in a world that changes upon second after second. I have missed everyone, the times we have opened up for First Friday have been incredible as we all get out there more. It is so important.

Rebekah Nordstrom, One Hundred: The (Un) Essential Series | August & September 2021

This year we also got to celebrate a wonderful acknowledgement by Creative Flagstaff of Rebekah Nordstrom’s exhibition August/September 2021 for One Hundred: The (Un) Essential Series, she won a Viola for Excellence in Visual Arts. WOO HOO!! And so there are more shows coming, fall is gonna rock and roll. The times the gallery will be open will be limited but I am always here and available. This space is so important to me and to others. It is important to share, to connect with each other and create. I am hoping for new connections, more art to share and bigger expansions. I think I am ready for this little box to shine. A space for one to connect with heart, to remind oneself of this human experience. We are all in the things together. Art does this, art is important and vital for evolution. We are all creators in may different forms and I hope to show you more of that.

I truly cannot express enough how much gratitude I have for all of the support, in so many ways I never thought was possible. To all the artists, friends and family, collectors, community and visitors; you all made four years happen.

As we approach 4 years, which feels like not much time and also all of the time; I am hopeful . I am full of dreams again. I am ready. Please join us at The HeArt Box on August 5th from 5-9pm. There is going to be so much beauty. Are you ready?

Jill Sans with painting, Grace | June 2022

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As we move forward we will release calendar dates and special events as we have them lined up. Best way to keep in the news of all the upcoming things is to sign up for our email newsletter. We look forward to sharing with you.

The HeArt Box turns 4!

The Birth

Through the Pandemic Years

And Here we are now

Stay Connected

The Heart Box Gallery + Studio