Downtown Manhattan offers artists and art lovers new access and opportunity through new gallery spaces
During August and September, Spark is featuring conversational-style articles focused on new and growing businesses in Downtown Manhattan, Kansas. Get to know this energetic and dynamic part of the city of Manhattan through this series.
Heather Hnizdil, the Art Coordinator of Downtown MHK Art, which manages the gallery spaces 409 Gallery and Underground Collective Gallery, is no stranger to the entrepreneurial world. After two years getting her Poyntz Avenue-facing coffee shop, Flight Crew, up and running, she and the Downtown Manhattan Inc board saw a new opportunity to develop Downtown Manhattan as an art hub.
In addition to being a business owner, Heather is also an artist. The impressive floor-to-ceiling mural of a plane on the wall of Flight Crew is an example of her skills as a visual creative. The 409 Gallery and Underground Collective Gallery, which opened in June this year, is a creative collaboration with Downtown MHK Art and the Downtown Manhattan Inc board. Heather and her team have created a unique platform for local artists to display and sell their work. In this interview, Heather shares her motivations for the galleries, along with its distinctive approach, and their vision for the future of art in Downtown Manhattan, KS.
Tell us about yourself and your downtown business.
Downtown MHK Art is me, Heather Hnizdil, the Art Coordinator, Gina Snyder, and Danielle Parsons. It’s basically a committee offshoot from the Downtown Manhattan Inc board. I am on the board and the acting Art Coordinator for the board. The spaces we’re using for 409 Gallery are donated to us by Blake Bauer.
What is the backstory of 409 Gallery and Underground Collective Gallery and what motivated you to get started?
Gina Snyder has had this hope to bring more art to downtown, and when I got on the board, being an artist, we kept talking about how we can bring art to our area. There has been initiatives for many years, but never in such a tactical form as actually having spaces to hand art. When DMI moved into their current space at 409 Poyntz, Gina spoke with Blake Bauer, the building owner, and he offered up two long hallways as spaces to display art. From there, it was just asking a few artists to show, and the ball has begun rolling.
What is your goal with the gallery spaces, and what makes them unique?
Our hope is to serve local artists by providing a space to hang and sell their work from, and serve local individuals interested in art by providing an opportunity to purchase local art. We are always looking for artists and have a calendar on which we can plan as far out as we’d like. Like a traditional gallery, we have two month shows and artist receptions within that time period.
As we really do want to serve artists, we don’t take commission. We are so grateful for Blake’s generosity on allowing us to use the spaces, and we want to continue that forward to the artists. This is a much better deal for artists and buyers alike. The artist takes home every dollar they make, and the buyer is not paying a large overhead amount that the artist will never see.
What are some plans that you have for the gallery spaces in the future?
We had our first artist reception for Jacob Sanderson and Steven Mosier in July, and even with the rainy day, the turnout was great. We have some shows coming up that will be amazing to have downtown, so watch our posts on our Instagram to keep up to date on what’s happening in our spaces. We really hope to begin creating a connection between local artists and local Manhattanites.
We are also working behind the scenes to get a real art walk started in Manhattan. When I came on the board, I wanted to be involved in Third Thursdays. While they’re a great event downtown, as an artist, they’re not how I wanted to show my work. So I am working to get things organized for a seasonal art walk for artists and individuals interested in coming to really enjoy an evening of quality art.
Through August and September, visit 409 Gallery and Underground Collective along the south side of Poyntz Ave between 4th and 5th Street to see the latest exhibit by Pablo Diaz Carballo.