On Friday, December 13, 2019 from 6-8 pm we will be holding our annual holiday shindig. Adding to the festivities, we will take the occasion to celebrate our thirteenth anniversary as a gallery that presents the work of primarily Boston-area artists to the public. Everyone is invited join us for food, drink and our annual Holiday Sale, which will continue through Sunday, December 29.
Over the years artists and customers have asked questions about the gallery’s founding and mission. What does the name mean? How did you start? What’s the scope of your work? With all that in mind, I would like to take the opportunity to present a short history of 13FOREST Gallery and of how it has evolved over time.
In the beginning (2006): our first, tacked-up sign in Medford
Our storefront today, in East Arlington’s Capitol Square
In late-winter 2006, my husband Marc Gurton and I established 13FOREST Gallery shortly after he had been hired by photographer Lisa Tang Liu to serve as the accountant for her 500-square-foot Pigmentia Gallery, located at (surprise!) 13 Forest Street in Medford, Massachusetts. By the fall she decided to give up the gallery so we took over the lease with the hope that, should we be able to keep the lights on through Christmas, we could try to build a gallery business. We wanted to highlight our unusual position as the only gallery in Medford Square, so we adopted our street address as the name of our new business venture.
After two years in Medford we saw an opportunity to join an up-and-coming commercial district of East Arlington, which was soon to be named Capitol Square. After some renovations and the addition of shelving and moveable walls, what was once a dry-cleaning establishment on Mass Ave became our new home in February 2008. On February 29 (Leap Day) we opened our new gallery space with an exhibition titled Leap to celebrate both the day and the risk we had taken by moving to a new town. Will anyone come? It was a question every business owner asks before unlocking the door. That evening, people did indeed come, and in numbers so large that a line (and a party) formed outside the door.
From the start our mission of serving local artists has not changed. Today we present the work of over 100 artists, nearly two-thirds of whom are women. This includes painters, printmakers, photographers, sculptors, ceramicists, glassblowers, jewelers and fiber artists. We also open our space to musicians, singers, lecturers, filmmakers and a host of other people whose form of artistic expression is immediate and experiential. As a business we are, of course, glad when we sell artists’ works; however, we are also pleased when customers lend their observations or find joy in the work we present.
As our thirteenth anniversary has approached, people have asked about our favorite moments in the gallery. It’s a difficult question to answer, as there have been many for us and for the artists we work with. These are some of them, each representing a lot of work by many people: surviving the US economic collapse of 2009, making art publicly accessible to customers and visitors through exhibitions, conversations and commissions; winning the WGBH “Best Art Gallery in Boston” Award - twice; seeing the careers of artists expand into publications, museums, schools and universities; establishing close relationships with business associations, public-art organizations, cultural councils, museums, universities and political organizations; and, finally, orchestrating an annual pop-up gallery in Provincetown. When I think about it, the list doubles and then triples.
Larger than life: Marc featured as part of the 2016 Storefront Stories project in East Arlington
Gallery Director Caitee Hoglund and me hanging new work by Kenji Nakayama
Running 13FOREST Gallery has made us aware of the immense amount of artistic talent in the Boston area. Our only regret about the gallery is that it’s not large enough for us to put more of it on display. The artists with whom we do work are intelligent, open to new ideas and dedicated to communicating them through the means they know best. They amaze us with the constantly shifting expressive paths they choose to forge. All of this commands our respect and over time it has led us to form great friendships with our community of artists and the wider artistic community of which they are a part. Our mission has complexity, but above all else it is an intellectually and emotionally joyful endeavor. It becomes even more so when, standing in the gallery, customers come upon artworks that resonate with them even if it’s for reasons they cannot fully explain.
If you’re reading this article, you are part of the reason that 13FOREST Gallery has been a success. To bring this full circle, therefore, let us invite you once again to our holiday party. We couldn't have made it here without you.
Peace and the happiest of new years to you.
Jim Kiely
Gallery storefront during our annual pop-up in Provincetown at 444 Commercial Street