Jamie Parsell
From the busy streets of downtown Gatlinburg, Tenn., to the quiet town of Princeton, Roxie and Ryan Marsh are weaving a trail of creativity with their artwork. The couple, who recently moved to the area, are owners of Inspire Gallery, located on Mercer Street in Princeton.
Previously, the gallery was located at the Mountain Mall in Gatlinburg, Roxie said. But after visiting Culturefest, a late summer festival of the arts at Pipestem Resort State Park, Ryan and Roxie — they also got married at the festival — decided to move to West Virginia in September of 2009.
Both Roxie,18, and Ryan, 37, discovered their passion for nature and art as children. However, they didn’t meet until Roxie walked into Ryan’s store 3rd I Productions in 2008. Roxie called it love at first sight. Her husband agrees.
“We saw one another and something clicked for us. Our connection is great,” Ryan said, who closed his store to open Inspire Gallery with Roxie.
The decision to move the gallery from Tennessee to West Virginia was made for several reasons, Roxie said. While the couple made artist connections at Culturefest, Ryan had family in the area and both artists were looking for a slower pace of life. Plus, the economic downturn changed the nature of business.
“It was pricey to live in Gatlinburg and we were also living in our store. We wanted more creative time and wanted to do trade shows and exhibits. We needed a home base,” Roxie said.
The new gallery in Princeton is full of bright paintings, almost whimsical in appearance. Almost all the artwork has the trademark pattern of swirls from the husband and wife team.
“We do a lot of swirls,” Roxie said. “We are very intrigued by swirls, and eyes too. We like bright colors. There is no limit on colors.”
Along with paintings, the couple also creates sculptures such as candle burners, chess sets, incense burners and character collectibles. Currently, there are four different chess sets — Alice in Wonderland, Egyptian, Gothic and Celtic. A chess set takes one month to make, from the board to the pieces. All of the sculpture designs are unique because the gallery creates a mold and makes reproductions.
“We have a capacity to have an inventory that others don’t have,” Roxie said. So far, they have created more than 80 different pieces and more than 100 different prints. Both artists create prints from each painting. One of Roxie’s favorite paintings is called “In the flow.”
“I used a spray gun and layered the paint. Then I added glitter,” she said.
Roxie describes the couple’s work as spiritual, abstract and focused on nature. But she wants everybody to be able to identify with the art.
“Life inspires us,” she said. “A lot of things are created using emotions. We want the art to identify with anybody.”
The husband and wife team not only operate the gallery together, but they paint together.
Every season, the couple focuses on one painting. In their gallery, a fall, winter and spring painting hang on the walls. “R Peace” can be seen from the sidewalk on Mercer Street. The spring painting for 2009 was inspired by a favorite hiking trail in the Great Smokey Mountains of Tennessee. With a fiery combination of a yellow and orange sun, the painting casts a bright glow in the window front. While creating the spring 2009 painting, Roxie focused more on the background and Ryan did most of the foreground.
“ ‘R Peace’ is a favorite because it is bright, colorful and creative. My wife and I painted it together and it was a great experience,” Ryan said.
Inside the store, a 2008 fall painting, “Autumn Trail,” is full of swirling leaves that dominates one side of the gallery. As the weather starts to change, the couple hopes to create a seasonal painting for this spring. They have one winter painting called “Blizzard.”
Ryan said it takes love, patience and trust, but it is easy to work with his wife.
“We will take turns,” Roxie said. “Ryan will start. We don’t paint side by side. He adds something and then I will come and add something else. Our styles are so much alike that we can agree on what each other likes. We don’t have many differences.”
They both enjoy nature and one of their sculpture themes is the four seasons of weather. Before moving to what is known to locals as Four Seasons Country, the couple had already designed a sculpture series based on each season.
“It was a funny coincidence for us,” Roxie said, who is still learning to adapt to the weather.
A native of Tennessee, she said Princeton is quiet after experiencing the hustle and bustle of a tourist town. But she enjoys the interaction with customers.
“I like how you get one-on-one communication with people. You have customers come in and you can start a foundation with them,” she said.
Most of their customers in Gatlinburg were first-time visitors, honeymooners or tourists. So far, the couple have achieved their goals of becoming more active in exhibits and shows. They have traveled to festivals and trade shows. In April, they will travel to Las Vegas for a trade show. The couple hopes to help establish Mercer Street as an art community.
“We need more people and shops. We need a couple more artists working,” she said.
Ryan would like to help create a downtown area that is fun, creative and relaxing and give residents a place to purchase new, original and handmade items for their homes and business. Besides hosting their own artwork in the gallery, the owners also carry jewelry by Elgood Mt. Rainbow Glass, created by West Virginia resident Jeannette Justice, and Nana Glass by Nancy Aldridge. In addition to jewelry, Inspire Gallery also carries artwork by Cathy Horner of Johnston City, Tenn. Horner creates vintage collage art using images from old magazines, catalogs and books. Tamera Cain from Owenboro, Ky., paints turkey feathers, which are available at the gallery. For more information, visit the gallery on Mercer Street or call (304) 487-5567.
— Contact Jamie Parsell at jparsell@bdtonline.com
