Art Gallery on Pendleton Square turns lemons into lemonade to showcase Pendleton, Anderson, Clemson artists

During the summer of 2014, Lou Koppel, retired physicist, Pendleton resident and sculptor dreamed of creating a cooperative for local artists working within a 30-mile radius of Pendleton, South Carolina to show and sell fine art.

Twelve artists from the community – assembled from the rich artistic pool of the area – opened the new cooperative’s gallery doors in the fall of 2014 in space next to the Village Bakery and Café. They took what had been many different businesses, opened up the space, painted, ordered hanging systems and found success.

The learning curve to forming a business was steep but the shared vision was there. Then in the early morning hours of January 11, 2017, a three-foot wide hole was torn through the side of the soft historic brick building when a car plowed into the gallery’s exterior. Artists were forced to remove the entire contents of the gallery, which had been so lovingly created two years earlier.

Physicist-turned-sculptor Lou Koppel’s dream of a local artists’ cooperative was about to be reborn from what could have been the end of the gallery. Like all repair of old buildings, this was not to be a quick one. Fortunately, a space on the square next to the Islander Restaurant became available. It was larger, more open and even boasted a pale gray carpet that would not need redoing.

After receiving the key just nine days before Pendleton’s annual Spring Jubilee art festival, every artist dove in to clean, paint, build pedestals, install shelving and lighting, and hang wire systems.

Art Gallery on Pendleton Square opened its doors for the second time bright and early the day the festival commenced on April 1, 2017, turning lemons into lemonade.

The Art Gallery on Pendleton Square features beautiful and unique works of fine art and craft by 25 local artists, including jewelry, fiber art, stained glass mosaics, furniture, paintings, pottery, photography, mixed media, woodturning, sculpture and more. You’re invited to enjoy special artist demonstrations, wine, soft drinks and Hors d’oeuvres on the Second Friday of every month from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Want to go?

Art Gallery on Pendleton Square, 150 Exchange Street, Pendleton, SC, 29670

Hours: Tuesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.; Sunday 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. See the Art Gallery on Pendleton Square Facebook page for summer hours and holiday closing information.

Visit artgalleryps.org or call 864-221-0129 for more information.