Warwick Valley Art Works celebrates grand opening

WARWICK — Town of Warwick Deputy Supervisor James Gerstner, Village Mayor Michael Newhard and members of the Warwick Valley Chamber of Commerce joined owner and curator Valerie Lacey for the official grand opening of Warwick Valley Art Works Showcase & Gallery on Monday, Jan. 27.

Art Works, located at 2 Oakland Avenue which is diagonally across from Railroad Green, opened on Nov. 23. The gallery is stocked with an eclectic assemblage of high-quality pieces created by local artists and artisans.

Lacey, a Warwick Village resident, searched for an ideal location to showcase these works in a consignment gallery. And since first opening, the number of artists represented has grown to 40, with new artist submissions always welcome.

The wide array of items available at various prices includes books, cards, drawings, jewelry, mosaics, mixed media, music, paintings, paper, photography, poetry, pottery, sculptures, stained glass, stonework, textiles, wood carvings and turnings, and more.

After losing her nine-year position with a not-for-profit a year ago, Lacey, an artist and writer, decided that it was time to concentrate on her creative endeavors.

"I had to do something meaningful by following my life's passion to create and to be able to share that love with others," she said. "The Art Works gallery affords me the opportunity to pursue that dream as well as provide other local artists with a much-needed venue, which is just as satisfying to me. I love it when an artist tells me that they are newly inspired because there is now this venue. That's what it's all about - sparking creativity in another and having it all come back when someone comes in, admires the result, and takes their treasure home with them."

Lacey is a member of Sustainable Warwick and structured her business around the requirement that nearly all of the 40 artists represented by Art Works are local.

"The importance of sustainability and supporting local seems to be a common mindset of the participating artists," she said. "Tourists love to hear that the skillfully-turned bowl they just bought actually came from a Warwick tree."