Coshocton Art guild gallery, gift shop finds a home in Roscoe Village

COSHOCTON — Coshocton County has a long history of being an artists’ haven, as it is noted for being the birthplace of promotional advertising and once having the second most concentration of artists in the U.S. outside of New York City.

That tradition continues today with the Coshocton Art Guild, which has opened a new gallery and gift shop in Roscoe Village.

The gallery is in the former Toll House, one of the first buildings restored for the recreation of a canal era town, and was last home to Hillbippie Clay.

“This was kind of the beginning for Roscoe Village and now it’s kind of the beginning for the art guild,” said Mayor Mark Mills. “I want people to get involved with arts and grow our community on that angle.”

Members of the art guild also have the Foothills Studio and Gallery nearby the new shop. Jack Hunt, art guild president, said the entities are separate. The art guild is a non-profit and artists pay to have spots in the gallery.

The guild has 56 members with 22 currently having works on display for sale. Some are from adjacent counties. Hunt said they used to be mostly painters, but have expanded to include photographers, jewelers, textiles and more. Two musicians recently joined the guild, Hunt said.

“We wanted to grow the art guild. The mission of the guild is to cultivate and support artists. The artists here really need a place to show their stuff. It’s fun to make art, but you really need to show it to people,” Hunt said. “The whole thing is about supporting artists and culturing younger artists, trying to grow the ranks of local artists.”

Hunt said a future goal is to hold workshops, especially for children.

Barbara Hill is the gallery manager and said it’s probably been the first time since the 1950s a collective such as theirs has had a prominent community placement.

“It’s good for everybody to see that artists still exist here and are doing well,” she said.

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The Coshocton Art Guild Gallery and Gift Shop is at 408 N. Whitewoman St. For more information, call 740-545-4032 or go to the guild’s Facebook page. The gallery is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday to Sunday.

Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with close to 15 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @llhayhurst.

This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Coshocton Art guild gallery, gift shop finds a home in Roscoe Village