Apporachable Art

Enjoy the work of local artists in unexpected places.

// By Jim Mahaffie

A 2023 study by SMU DataArts measured the most arts-vibrant communities across the United States. It was a data-driven measurement of communities of all sizes, looking at public support and engagement, local arts organizations, visitor bureaus, and other ways of promoting cultural enrichment and fostering creative expression, ensuring that the arts remain an integral part of communities. Jackson Hole came in #1 for small cities. 

We ranked highly in numbers of artists, arts and culture employees, and nonprofits, arts dollars spent, and public support, too. 

That’s remarkable for a small mountain town, but Jackson Hole is a top art market, with hundreds of working artists, a longtime culture of creativity, and some 35 galleries selling huge canvases and sculpture—with accompanying high prices—located on and around the Town Square. 

Most of these artists will tell you they started displaying and selling out of their own homes, valley cafes and restaurants, and on websites, Instagram, and Facebook. They worked their way into galleries and higher prices over time. If you want to discover a Jackson-based artist before they get big or see art in a setting that isn’t a traditional gallery, here are some places to check out. 

Over at Cowboy Coffee, just off the Town Square, “we sell quite a bit of art off our walls, and most artists do very well, selling more than half the work they hang,” says co-owner Pete MacIlwaine. “We have watched several folks hang in our shop for their first ever art show and then go on to be featured in galleries and have very successful art careers.” The business has hung artwork—mostly by valley artists, but with a few from nearby cities like Lander, Bozeman, and Idaho Falls—on its walls since it opened in 2012. MacIlwaine  says pieces range from $100 to a few thousand dollars and the waitlist of artists is usually close to two years out. “We rotate work every two months,” he says. “We love the energy the artwork brings to our space, and especially the local vibe it helps put off.” 

Carrie Wild is a local painter and represents several artists in her Town Square Gallery Wild studio. She also supplies The Kitchen and Gather, both downtown restaurants, and the Four Seasons hotel with works to hang on their walls by artists she represents. “It’s fun to share art and give people access to it in different places,” she says. “And I think partnerships like this are important and inspiring. Food and art together make everything better. It’s a feast for the taste buds in every way.” 

Laurie Thal’s delicate glasswork has been juried into the prestigious Smithsonian Craft Show and gifted by the U.S. government to foreign dignitaries, but isn’t available in any local galleries; she sells it exclusively at her studio on the Village Road in Wilson (and you can sometimes find her at the Art Association’s Summer Art Fair). But it’s best to go to her studio, where you might also get to watch her at work or enjoy a tour. “My studio has a showroom gallery that always has work displayed with quite a bit of art for sale,” Thal says. “It’s not displayed in town because galleries have a competition clause. They don’t want me to sell from my studio as well as their gallery. I find that people love coming to the studio to meet the artist and see where the work is created.”

Alex Pope opened ArtShop at Dornans at the Moose entrance to Grand Teton National Park in May 2022. The shop offers prints, photos, ceramic art, sculpture, textiles, cards, and more from over 50 local creatives. One of Pope’s primary goals was to offer more approachable local art for the tourist crowds streaming in and out of the park. Her experience working in downtown galleries revealed to her that many valley visitors seek out local art and out-of-the-way places to find it. “There’s a big reason why we called it a ‘shop’ and not a ‘gallery,’” she says. “We want to be as inviting as possible for people on trips and headed to and from the parks and airport.” 

Pearl Street Bagels in Jackson rotates art from local creatives on its walls. “I can’t speak to what motivated [the original founders] to set it up that way, but I am happy to tell you why we have continued the practice,” says current owner Heather Gould. “It keeps décor fresh and interesting and gives regular customers something new to look at. It adds to the community feel and helps give local artists a spot to be seen and, because we don’t take commissions, they can deal with buyers directly and potentially generate income without a big investment on their end.” 

Pearl Street Bagels used to do monthly shows, but Gould says that became untenable. “Our artist waitlist was often two years out. Now, we have six shows a year, and I keep the waitlist much shorter. That has seemed to work out well.” 

“We have lots of art on the walls around our cafes,” says Ali Cohane, who, with her husband Kevin Cohane, owns Persephone Bakery Café, which has locations in downtown Jackson and on the Westbank, in the Aspens. Artwork is not for sale—just for display. “I love the history of cafes as places where artists sat, met, and conversed. Art and cafes have always been intimately connected, and I wanted my places to reflect this. I believe it’s as important as the croissants we bake and the coffee we make.” 

“My cafes are aesthetically driven because I believe beauty brings inspiration to people’s days. I studied art and design myself in school and I wanted aesthetics to be a large part of what we built.”

With the attraction and mystique of our mountain town, there’s plenty of Jackson Hole artwork available online, too. Etsy is the global marketplace for unique and creative goods. It’s home to a universe of special and extraordinary items, with handcrafted work in many mediums. Search “Jackson Hole” and you’ll find hundreds of prints, posters, vintage maps, clothing, photos, stickers, and more. Jackson Hole-based artists on the website include GrandTetonDesign (photos), TetonStudio (charcoal and pencil works), KrisBatchelderART (hand-cut paper collage), and PalindromeStudioShop (Wyoming-themed illustrations). Not made by a local maker, but something we still love is a scented candle called “Smells Like a Jackson Hole Ski Trip.”

Artists appreciate every opportunity. “I’m attracted to space and serenity and quite crowd averse,” says Kris Batchelder, a paper collage artist whose works can be seen at ArtShop and other nontraditional places around Jackson and found on Etsy. “I find it refreshing to be apart from the chaos of Town Square. Moose (where ArtShop is located) is such a fun location too, and a great excuse to make an experience of shopping rather than fight the crazy crowds of downtown.” JH