BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT: Wildflower Studios and Gallery, Sara Peterson Gallery, Avant Print and Frame
Nate and Sara Peterson have begun an artistic adventure through three new connected businesses which promote the arts in downtown Kingman. Wildflower Studios and Gallery, Sara Peterson Gallery and Avant Print and Frame most recently opened, with a grand opening celebrated last week for Avant Print and Frame and Sara Peterson Gallery.
Sara’s vision for promoting art in downtown Kingman began in 2015 with Kingman Center for the Arts (KCA) and Beale Street Theater. The property at Second and Beale Streets was purchased with the intention of being a community art space. It started as the home for the non-profit company, but had to undergo major renovations to get the most use out of the space.
“The non-profit was able to merge with the Art Hub in the beautiful historic building on Fourth and Beale Streets, opening up more opportunity to have art organizations anchoring each of those city blocks,” said Sara. “It is all part of the continued mission to further bolster the Kingman art community.”
The new businesses – Wildflower Studios and Gallery, Sara Peterson Gallery and Avant Print and Frame – are a continuation of a larger vision that has grown to include companies under KCA, and the new companies at Second and Beale.
Wildflower Studios
“At the same time that I was working on building the non-profit, Mary Forozowsky had started Sister’s Gallery and we were on parallel paths,” Sara said.
Mary is now the director of Wildflower Studios and Gallery, with 37 years experience in business and art education and therapy. “Mary is dedicated to providing the best art education experience that Kingman has to offer to art students of all skill levels,” added Sara.
Wildflower Studios and Gallery, which opened its doors Feb. 1, provides a space for expertly instructed art education including visual arts, crafts and dance. “We provide a wide variety of creative education experiences for all age ranges and skill levels. All art students receive their sixth class at no charge after purchasing five art classes,” said Sara.
“We hope to add more instructors as the business grows. We hope to see a growing variety of art classes offered at Wildflower,” Sara added.
They are working to develop more opportunities for local artists to exhibit and sell their works through Wildflower Studios.
Sara Peterson Gallery
The Sara Peterson Gallery is an impressionism gallery featuring Sara and other established artists. It opened in tandem with Avant Print and Frame on Jan. 26, and recently celebrated its grand opening on Friday April 2.
Jay Butler is the Marketing Director at Sara Peterson Gallery. Jay has more than 20 years of experience in marketing and business and a love for art and fencing. “Jay seeks to provide Kingman with an excellent fine art gallery experience in historic downtown Kingman” said Sara.
Sara added, “We have beautiful original art beaming with color and inspiration here.”
Avant Print and Frame
Avant Print and Frame provides archival quality custom framing and preservation services, as well as large format printing for photographers and artists seeking high quality color output.
“We have a great team at Avant Print and Frame and offer custom framing, and art and image reproduction,” said Sara.
John Erickson is the Master Framer at Avant Print and Frame. John has 20 years of experience in custom archival framing. “He has a refined eye for picking the perfect frame, matting and glass to attractively accentuate the framed content,” Sara added.
Sara continued, “We hope to be the locally recognized destination for high quality art and photography reproduction and museum quality framing.”
“People ask me if there is competition between the Art Hub and what we are doing over here. We are all on the same team. The more art, the better! It will be amazing when the theater is completed, to have three major art anchors in downtown Kingman,” she continued.
“We are also excited to bring back First Fridays with other downtown Kingman businesses. We will continue to collaborate with KCA to ensure First Fridays are successful over the coming months,” Sara said.
“We look forward to earning the trust of our community and demonstration our passions for the arts through all three businesses. We are so very grateful and excited to share the experience of creativity with downtown Kingman,” Sara said.
Wildflower Studios and Gallery is located at 204 E. Beale St. Hours vary depending on the class schedule, which is posted on their website. Students may book classes online through their website or with the Vagaro mobile app. Contact them by calling 928-352-4723 or going to their website https://wildfloweraz.studio; on Facebook search wildflowerstudiosandgallery; on Instagram search wildfloweraz86401.
Sara Peterson Gallery and Avant Print and Frame are located at 208 E. Beale St. Hours for both businesses is Monday. Noon to 4 p.m.; Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Customers are able to purchase original paintings and open edition prints from the Sara Peterson website at https://www.sarapetersongallery.com.
Contact Sara Peterson Gallery and Avant Print and Frame by calling 928-352-7128. Online go to https://www.avantaz.org; on Facebook and Instagram search avantprintandframe and sarapetersongallery.
READER SPECIAL
Avant Print and Frame is offering The Standard readers 50% off their first custom frame when they mention The Standard at purchase.
