Curate Gallery now open in Edwards
New gallery offers a wide range of artists, styles and price points
Curate Art Gallery/Courtesy photo
Can art make you happy? That’s the thought behind Curate, a new art gallery in the Edwards Village Center.
“That’s our whole intention, for people to fall in love with art because truly art adds the finishing touches to a home,” said Cynthia Pillsbury, co-founder of Curate Art & Curiosities. “When art speaks to you, whether it’s the colors used in the painting or subject matter in the photograph, it can spark joy and make you content, put you in a better mood and create more happiness in you and your family’s life.”
Pillsbury and friend McKinley Lee created the idea for Curate to help fill a void they felt was needed in the Vail Valley art scene. Pillsbury came from San Francisco and Lee came from Virginia where there were more styles of art to choose from and a wider range of price points. To test the market, they did a pop-up gallery in Edwards last spring featuring 11 artists. The concept took off and once the space across the street from the Edwards Post Office and next door to the relatively new Yeti’s Grind coffee shop became available, they took the opportunity to set up shop.
Curate Gallery/Courtesy photo
“We want to be a place where people can stop by and say hi and we want to be a part of the community,” Pillsbury said. “We want art to be accessible and want people to not feel intimidated to walk into an art gallery. Buying art should be a fun process,” Pillsbury said.
Curate is showcasing 17 artists from across the nation and one artist from Spain.
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“McKinley and I both love color, we are drawn towards that and abstract art, so that influence definitely plays a part in the way the gallery has been shaped,” Pillsbury said.
Curate Art Gallery/Courtesy photo
Artists from New York, Virginia, California, South Carolina, Kansas, Wisconsin and more are being featured. There’s an artists who used to live in Vail, Starr Marchand, who has art that gives a nod to the skiing lifestyle and there is also artwork that showcases your favorite bars in Vail as seen through the eyes of Tricia Donovan. Stop in to see which local places are brought to life on canvas.
In addition to art, there will be pottery and rugs for sale.
“We work with a woman who is from Turkey and she is a single mom of three girls and is supporting them with her rug business. We will have these unique rugs, but they aren’t $10,000, these are under $1,000 and they are really cool, one-of-a-kind and very special,” Pillsbury said.
“We are doing a lot of interior designer outreach because we want to be a resource for designers in case their clients have hired them to do everything, including buying art for the home, so we want to be a local resource for them,” Pillsbury said.
Curate Art Gallery/Courtesy photo
Curate is also showcasing the artists at The Hythe, the recently remodeled Marriott in Lionshead. Local designers Highline Wood Art will have their modern three-dimensional works on display just off of the main lobby.
In addition to offering art that is more accessible, Pillsbury and Lee also feel the need to support individual artists.
“That’s what’s so great about this community, everyone likes to support each other and artists and their craft. I have a lot of good friends who own businesses here and everyone is just very supportive because they know you are putting yourself out there. That is something about a small community that I love most,” Pillsbury said.
Curate Art & Curiosities will be open Wednesdays through Saturdays and by appointment Sundays through Tuesdays. Follow them on Instagram using the handle Curate Vail Valley.
