'Locally Made' opening in Le Roy

Posted by Howard Owens on July 1, 2009 - 5:57pm
Tagged in
Printer-friendly versionPrinter-friendly versionSend to friendSend to friend

When I drive through the Village of Le Roy, I see nothing but potential. It's a quaint "downtown" -- couple of blocks set against a scenic creek and a sense of history.

It's a shame there are so many vacant store fronts in Le Roy.

So, when I got this announcement today from Janice Revier, I was quite happy.  It's great to see a pair of entrepreneurs investing in Le Roy:

Take a walk down Main Street, number 70 to be exact (between the Wiss Hotel  and Townsend Oil), and you’ll find a new shop in town – “the Locally Made shop.”  This venture, started by Colleen O’Connor from Stafford and Jan Revier from LeRoy, will be a teaching gallery, displaying and selling items made by artisans from Genesee and surrounding counties.

It expects to be open starting July 10th and while in its infancy, it currently has some hand-woven products, hooked rugs and mats (traditionally hooked, not latch hooked), handspun and hand-dyed yarns, and some knit items. While this inventory is currently made up of fiber-related output, the goal is to have more artisans from different quality crafts represented –  artwork, pottery, jewelry, basketry, quilting, photography and any other  medium which blends well with the store’s other merchandise. Applications  to be represented at the shop will be available at the store itself or you can email locallymadeshop@aol.com for information or a copy of the application.

The shop will be open Fridays and Saturdays, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and other times by appointment. Ultimately. they expect to have some supplies related to their handwork available, possibly an evening gathering where you can bring your project to work on, a small lending library of related books and magazines, and to conduct classes when there is enough interest. In the meantime, drop in and say hello and watch an heirloom being created. Any and all encouragement will be greatly appreciated and just maybe this can breathe a little life into downtown LeRoy. At least “the Locally Made shop” is 
going to try.

Posted by Lorie Longhany on July 1, 2009 - 7:25pm
After speaking to Jan, I'm very excited to be adding my artwork to this locally owned venture. I agree with you, Howard. LeRoy is pretty special! Art in a community can be a strong economic driver and can bring revitalization. I'm grateful to these two women for deciding to take a chance here. LeRoy has all the charm needed to reinvent downtown as a small art community.

Jan does incredible textile work and she will add so much to the local art community. I look forward to participating.

I would also like to add my own shameless self promotion. I'm having my annual art show at Silver Lake titled "Lorie Longhany and Friends" and it includes a number of my art students from Genesee County. If your heading to Silver Lake for the 3rd and the 4th stop in to the Hoag Gallery in the Silver Lake Institute at the end of Wesley Ave.

Artists that will be participating:
Kim Argenta -- watercolor and jewelry
Joan Iannello -- acrylic landscapes
Dave Rice -- pen and ink and acrylic
Anne Konkel -- acrylic florals and landscapes
Virginia Curry -- acrylic
Rosemary Wagner - acrylic
Regina Abdella - acrylic
Joan Feeley - acrylic
June Kanaley - acrylic
me - pen and ink and acrylic
And maybe some of my art students from The Greens.
Most of these artists are seniors that have just recently discovered painting.
Posted by Andrew Erbell on July 1, 2009 - 9:20pm
If these ladies really want to make a splash with their endeavor they should cajole Mark Presher into having some of his work in-house, maybe offer a class or two even. He's probably LeRoy's best known artist.
Posted by Peter O'Brien on July 2, 2009 - 3:23pm
"Modern" art or actual art that represents what it is supposed to?
Posted by Bea McManis on July 2, 2009 - 4:08pm
Modern Art is one of many genre' that people enjoy. It isn't an abomination but an actual art form. Good luck on the new endeavor. It sounds like it will be a rousing sucess.