Despite living no more than 20 minutes away from Fergus my entire life, I am somewhat ashamed to admit that I didn’t really discover it until my early twenties when a friend moved there, finally prompting me to explore the town properly. Quaint and personable in a way that called to me more than I had anticipated, I enjoyed walking the shops of “main street”, or spending a few hours walking along the river. It never occurred to me in those early days of exploring and discovering that St. Andrews Street was missing anything. Yet, now that I’ve been to Local Pieces Gallery, it fits so well, I find myself wondering how it had taken Fergus so long to have a space dedicated to local art.
Would it surprise you to know, now that you’ve seen some photos of the range of art and artists (the youngest of whom is a 16-year-old), that none of this would exist if it wasn’t for a vape shop?
Whether you’re surprised or not, it’s the truth. Owner Luke Marshall happily claims vaping to be his true passion and originally got the space for his shop, County Vape after parting ways with a previous business, Dragon Vape. For those unfamiliar with vaping, it can actually be a fairly social activity, with the shops creating community hubs, similar to a local bar (dare we say Cheers! for those hoping to leave tobacco behind them?). It was through this community that Luke got to know a few artists and started thinking about using his space to help the community further. All he needed to have a vape shop and a gallery was two separate entrances, which he already had.
Enter Covid Stage Left. As many stories of late go, unfortunately the plans that had been made in late 2019/early 2020 got more complicated. Luke moved his vape shop downstairs, serving from the back entrance (where County Vape currently makes its home) and everything to do with the “gallery” seemed to be at a standstill. That first Christmas (December 2020), they sold a few paintings done by owners of neighbouring businesses and crochet made by Luke’s former brother-in-law, who also manned the till during this period. However, Local Pieces Gallery didn’t really come into existence until Tony De Luca, owner and creator of About Face Jewellery (who you may recall from our last issue) called Luke to ask if he was doing a Christmas Market the next year (2021). Tony had to talk Luke into it, however, the rest of the story is, as they say, history. Especially as Luke will happily credit all of Local Pieces Gallery’s success from that point on to Tony’s management and involvement. Beyond Tony, Luke is also thankful for the involvement of Heather Martin of Firework Designs, who has taken the lead in providing art lessons in the gallery.
There is no one way to get involved with Local Pieces Gallery. As with most things Luke does, it’s a very organic process with many people often finding out about them through word of mouth, coming into the gallery, or being involved in any of the events in which Local Pieces has participated. When asked if there are any criteria for being involved, Luke says that you can usually get the gauge of people from speaking with them. He also claims that this experience has definitely reinforced his belief that just because he likes something, doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone will. Sometimes some of his favourite pieces, the ones he thinks will sell well, are the ones that stick around for a while.
During the process of creating Local Pieces Gallery, Luke himself began exploring more in the world of creating in the form of paint pouring. Remember when we said that most of the things Luke does develop organically? Well, this one isn’t any different. Starting from watching some videos, it quickly developed into a series of experimentations. Even now, Luke is still playing with paints that he likes and styles of pouring, never quite sure what the creation is going to turn into until he gets there.
At the end of the day, Local Pieces Gallery is about the community, it’s a space to bring together local artists and engage with them. One of Luke’s favourite parts of the process has been meeting people, seeing the way that they light up at various pieces they see and things they might not see anywhere else. As a gallery, they’re always looking for new ways to bring art to the community. Two projects that are possibly (emphasis on possibly) on the horizon are a calendar showcasing some of their artists and perhaps a float for the Santa Claus Parade. Nothing is set in stone or has even been put in motion for either of these, but you just never know what you’ll see next from Local Pieces.
WRITTEN BY: JILLIAN KENT | PHOTOGRAPHY: CORY BRUYEA
