In November 2019, The New Local — an all-female art and maker collective — transformed the former Top Hat Supply on Pearl Street into an aesthetically pleasing storefront of unique wares. From marigold-dyed pillows by Edie Ure to handcrafted artisanal chocolates from Daydream Dessert, the diverse pop-up provided holiday shoppers one-of-a-kind items.
“The New Local was such a magical experience last year,” said Marie-Juliette Bird, the collective’s founder and artist behind Boulder-based jewelry line Blackbird and the Snow. “We created a hub of beauty where people discovered local talent and shopped locally. We made friends. We fostered a community. We became part of the neighborhood for a sweet moment.”
While this year The New Local will be purely virtual, it is still very much rooted in inclusion. An open call to makers across the state is currently in effect and will close on Nov. 24 with the collective’s pop-up site going live on Nov. 27. More information can be found at thenew-local.org.
Those jury-selected makers will not have to pay any fee to participate. All that is asked by organizers in return is cross-marketing on social media platforms. Much like its structure in 2019, The New Local is designed to showcase each individual creator and connect them with potential buyers.
“My vision, from the beginning, was to avoid profiting off of somebody else’s work as the business model,” Bird said. “Instead, we leveraged the beauty and craftsmanship of each other’s work to create a truly local market place. We shared expenses, brought in new customers through cross-marketing and, in the end, ensured each artisan kept 100% of her earned revenue.”
This year’s virtual holiday market will close on Dec. 31.
Each woman will have a gallery on The New Local’s website, showing her portrait, a brief statement and images of four pieces and products, available for sale online. Each artist will be responsible to ship out their own pieces to customers once a purchase is made and will collect all revenue.
While several of the artists featured in the original brick-and-mortar pop-up will return, Bird is also hoping to welcome many new creatives into the cyber space.
“Ultimately, people, especially Coloradans, don’t really want to give all their money to Jeff Bezos, or any corporation,” Bird said. “But Amazon is so easy. Local businesses, including ours, have to be just as easy as Amazon if we want to compete. That said, we have a considerable comparable advantage. When our customers buy from The New Local, they’re supporting friends, artists, neighbors, mothers, aunts and daughters in their own communities.”
The 2019 pop-up included botanically rich spa products from Moon Bath, leather pieces by Alexa Allen, ceramics by Laura Morningstar, fresh bouquets from Fawns Leap Botanical Arts and many others.
“We’re searching for the most compelling, original, beautifully made work in the state of Colorado,” Bird said. “If you are a fine artist or sculptor, you might want to consider scale and ‘giftability,’ which is to say work targeted towards holiday gift-giving. But, we don’t have any hard-and-fast rules. We’ll choose the strongest work that we think will sell.”
Since launching the open call, submissions from woman artisans throughout the state have been rolling in.
“I met Marie (Bird) years ago when my husband bought me one of her gorgeous necklaces as a gift,” said Laura Shape, founder of Denver-based clutch line Viv & Edie, who applied to The New Local’s open call. “She’s invited me to do a few shows with her in the past, but I never felt my work was ready. Or, at least, not in a state that I felt comfortable putting in a show. But this year, I’m finally ready and am excited at the prospect of showing my clutches alongside the beautiful work of all of the other talented women in Colorado.”
Prior to starting a clutch company, Shape worked as a graphic designer in Los Angeles. She dabbled in jewelry-making and statement brass belt buckles, before embarking on to handbags.
“After trying my hand at a few styles, I stumbled on these hard-sided minaudière clutches and I was hooked,” Shape said. “I can make them entirely myself by hand, which allows me to make each one completely unique. I don’t have to think about how to streamline them for production, so the sky’s the limit. Plus, the hard sides make them totally buildable. I can create unique sculptural embellishments to attach to them and they’re very sturdy. I treat them like sculptures and it’s a super fun challenge to use all of my accumulated skills in designing them.”
Shape is also working with clients to craft custom clutches and will offer gift cards.
The restrictions of the pandemic have also inspired Bird to extend the platform to females that don’t necessarily fall into the arts category.
“Given how hard 2020 has been on the restaurant and hospitality industry, we’re also carving out space for women-owned restaurants and bakeries this holiday season,” Bird said. “Our definition of ‘creative industry’ is pretty broad. Ultimately, we’re looking for women who want to showcase their amazing work.”
Bird, and artist Beth Van De Water, made The New Local into a nonprofit. In 2021, the creatives hope to see the pop-up’s presence in other areas with potential showrooms in Denver’s Cherry Creek and Aspen.
“By the end of last year, we knew there was something inherently special about our approach, something we could cultivate, scale and use to empower women in the creative industries, not just in Boulder, but throughout the state,” Bird said.
In the meantime, interested patrons can log onto thenew-local.org to learn more about this growing initiative.
“There are a ton of great ways to support The New Local — end-of-year donations, volunteering, corporate sponsorships, shopping our online platform,” Bird said. “We truly value each expression of support and are thrilled to bring a radically beautiful vision into the world, starting right here at home in Boulder.”
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November 19, 2020 at 06:23AM
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The New Local returns with virtual holiday pop-up featuring handcrafted gifts by local women - Longmont Times-Call
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