Kentucky Creative gallery and bistro officially opens

Kentucky Creative officially opened its doors with a grand opening on Tuesday.

“These are all local artists,” said gallery owner Jeremy Bryant. “Everything in here is from a Kentucky artist or crafter. Some are more local than others.”

Bryant said the one requirement the gallery has is the artist must have ties to Kentucky.

“This is all just from me posting on Facebook that we were looking for artists and craft persons,” said Bryant.

For now, the hours are ranging from about 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., but the hours may be expanding soon.

Kentucky Creative is full of artwork and crafts that are all for sale. It also contains a bistro and coffee bar.

The gallery was officially welcomed into the Southern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce during its grand opening.

Performing at the grand opening was fifteen-year-old Corbin High School student Emily Messer.

Messer said that she is a self-taught musician that performs a wide variety of music. She said she became involved with Kentucky Creative after her uncle, who owns a sign business, worked with Bryant to create some of his signage.

Some of the artists with work on display at the gallery were in attendance for its grand opening, such as Charline Marrinan and her mother Pam Marrinan.

Charline Marrinan said that she is a photographer, painter and she does scrapbook cards and gourds.

Both Charline and Pam Marrinan have work on display in the gallery.

They are located in Somerset, but said they became involved with Kentucky Creative through Mountain Heritage Guild members.

“It’s truly an honor,” is how Charline Marrinan described seeing their artwork on display at the gallery.

Bryant said now that the gallery is officially open he said that he feels a calmness.

“It started out just kind of a vision, and some people didn’t understand what I was driving at when I would talk about it,” said Bryant. “It finally came together.”

“I can see what I had in my mind and it is exactly this,” said Bryant.

Approximately 30 artists have work currently on display in the gallery.

William Mosley is the chef for the Bistro, said Bryant. While everyone pitched in to create the menu, some of the items were handcrafted by Mosley such as the Cuban sauce and the Italian sauce.

Bryant said artists or crafters who are interested in having their work included in the gallery, can call (606) 280-7740 or email info@kycgallery.com for more information about getting their work displayed.