Well it’s the holiday season and I was fortunate enough to have time off this week. I mainly relaxed and spent time with my family and friends. That doesn’t mean things haven’t been happening behind the scenes at Clientele. We are very close to announcing some awesome things, but not close enough to mention them now, sorry for the tease. I did want to take some time and talk about what has been going on since our last show, what’s planned for the next month, and share my thoughts over our first year of existence. I also posted a pictures from a few events that went under the radar this year. Finally, I also posted a picture of my dog because, we was living his best life this week.

Forever Achieving More

Artwork by Vondel Bell – 9/28/19

Renovations

Our main focus since Coven has been completing some more renovations. I am going to skip the details of our projects and focus on the reason for all of the renovations and additions: Clientele needs a beer license. I know I’ve said this before, but when we opened our doors last year I didn’t really think it would be successful. The community support since then has been utterly amazing, and it’s forced me to re-evaluate how Clientele operates. I truly think Clientele can be a community hub for creativity. A place for our areas artists and musicians. That means getting my car and tools out of the way, having normal business hours, and making actual money. After looking at other avenues, selling beer is the best way to turn a profit. This idea has worried a few people so I want to reiterate that Clientele is not a bar, nor will it ever be. It is a maker space….that you can drink at. The focus will always be on the art on display and for sale. That is a promise. Getting a beer license requires several things including: a second bathroom, three bay sink, and a hand washing station. It’s been a pain but will absolutely be worth it in the long run. So bear with us as we slowly work toward this goal.

Deck the Halls 2

The reason I say bear with us is because we have an event coming up! Deck the Halls 2 is December 14th and I’m incredibly excited to be a part of this awesome event. Last year we made $3000 for the Greater Wheeling Coalition for the Homeless! We have a great group of artists contributing this year and honestly, I don’t know what else I could say about how fun this event is that can’t be shown in the great video our friend, Greg Vargo, made last year.

Deck the Halls 2

Date: Saturday, June 15th
Doors: 8 PM
 
All funds raised go toward the Greater Wheeling Coalition for the Homeless

Forever Achieving More

Artwork by Vondel Bell – 9/28/19

Thoughts on our First Year

Looking back on this year, it feels like a blur and I can’t believe what we have accomplished in what feels like a short amount of time. We’ve had several sellout events, a live painting exhibit, a comedy show, several musical artists perform, and book releases. We opened as an off the cuff event space with little expectations and will close out the year working through things I never thought would be necessary. Things like an artist submission process, event submission process, how to collect commissions and run efficient events. I’ve learned a lot about running a gallery this year, but the main thing I learned was how little I knew. This is the real reason I am excited for 2020. We made it through 2019 despite my lack of preparation and know-how. That was mainly from the help and support of the community. Next year, we will be ready, and we have a few awesome things up our sleeves!