Chautauquans browse items for sale Friday in The Gallery Store in the Strohl Art Center.
The Gallery Store housed inside the Strohl Art Center is an extension of Chautauqua Visual Arts’ mission to create an environment of artistic exploration and expression. In the physical space, as well as online, is a wide variety of work from local and global artisans every season. And there’s always something new.
“I think that there’s an excitement for people that come back every year to see new things,” said Gallery Store Manager Dawn Spicer-Dake who, since 2021, has been responsible for finding new artists and organizing the store accordingly.
“I definitely want it to feel more curated,” she said. “I want to give each artist’s piece some space to breathe.”
Dawn Spicer-Dake, manager of The Gallery Store since 2021, stocks the shelves with merchandise from brands like Maison 203; pictured here, Spicer-Dake is wearing a Maison 203 ring.
It is her belief that Chautauquans share her passion for discovering new art. In the beginning, when she took on the manager role, she had more popular classical art pieces in the store, reproduced on items like tote bags or pillow covers. But customers, much like herself, preferred the more independent artists’ original work.
Maison 203, a brand based in Italy, makes geometric yet organic 3D-printed jewelry. Joe Sturckler, based in Buffalo, creates uniquely detailed paper-mache airships. In celebration of Chautauqua Institution’s sesquicentennial year, the store collaborated with three different artists to commemorate the anniversary through art.
Spicer-Dake is always on the lookout for true artisans and small businesses that she finds exciting. Her search for works to feature in the store takes her everywhere, from Instagram to trade shows to wholesale sites.
“I just try to find things from artists that strike me,” she said. “If I’ve never seen it before, I’m immediately drawn to it.”
All of the sales from the store go back to Chautauqua Visual Arts. In this way, she said, the store promotes artists helping artists.
“I want to have relationships with the artists, because I want to help support their work and I want to promote it as best as I can — hopefully in a way that they would be happy with,” Spicer-Dake said.
Spicer-Dake has been an essential part of Chautauqua Institution long before managing The Gallery Store. She worked as the Institution’s housing coordinator, sourcing accommodations for everyone from interns to lecturers and performers. With no one to house during the Chautauqua’s online-only pandemic season in 2020, her job became temporarily obsolete, and she was asked to help with the store. According to her, the two jobs are not so dissimilar.
“It was like just that relationship-building between my colleagues, the departments and the property owners,” she said. “With this job, it’s kind of the same thing; just a different group of people.”
Eventually, she transferred to managing The Gallery Store full-time, and oversaw the transition to being open year-round and the creation of an online store and digital presence. Spicer-Dake credits her colleagues in the Chautauqua Visual Arts for supporting her from the very beginning.
“The first couple years, I wasn’t sure how the online store was going to take off, so I probably bought more products than I needed to,” she said. “That’s a lesson that I’ve learned over the past few years.”
Art has always been a huge part of Spicer-Dake’s life. She has a degree in communication media, and 20 years of experience working with different sets of artists and professionals. Her love for live music and the performing arts has also guided her curation of the store.
“Part of the reason why I just love being here at the Institution (is) because there’s so many different forms (of art), and the passion of the people that do it is just so inspiring,” she said. “It’s a great place to work.”
