All about art

Jeni Hegsted’s passion for the arts shines when she shows off the spacious Emerge art gallery in downtown Coeur d’Alene. A creative visionary, Hegsted sees enormous potential to cultivate an artistic revolution in the Lake City.

And she’s got plenty of like-minded, talented people backing her ambitious cause.

Emerge is a collective art experience supporting all forms of art—from poetry to pottery, photography to painting and everything in between. Its mission is to engage the community in creative outlets while offering a platform for established and emerging artists.

“The whole heart of Emerge is a team of people and artists and board members and volunteers that are all working extremely hard to bring this vision to life and continue to see it grow and become sustainable,” said Hegsted, founder and executive director of the nonprofit organization.

“First and foremost, we’re a support system for aspiring artists but we also offer a great deal of programming, really for anyone who’s looking to explore the arts,” she said.

While Coeur d’Alene is well-known for its support of the arts (the city’s long-established Arts Commission and the Arts & Culture Alliance encourage performing and fine arts, as well as the placement of public art citywide), Emerge provides an important extension to the arts community, Hegsted said.

“Definitely Coeur d’Alene is an arts-driven community but Emerge fills that need for artists looking to have space in which they can take risks and do more conceptual work,” she said.

Over the past year, more than 200 artists from across the region and with varying skills have been involved with Emerge. Sponsoring annual “Pop-Up Shows” at alternating locations around the Lake City, Emerge does an annual call for art and last summer attracted 100 applicants.

“It’s always done at a different space downtown,” Hegsted said. “It’s a complete takeover and we turn the space into an art show for one night.”

Emerge’s mission is to be the community resource for those individuals seeking to learn art skills and for artists seeking to share, create and show work.

“We explore all of the visual arts and we also have programs for literary arts like writing and poetry workshops,” Hegsted said. “And we incorporate performance arts as well.”

Funded through grants, donations, studio rent from small spaces within the gallery and nominal fees for arts classes, Emerge operates on a shoestring budget and would not exist without generous community support.

For example, finishing touches are being made on a major renovation of the 4,000-square-foot Emerge studio made possible by a $15,000 donation from Spokane Teachers Credit Union. Work includes new lighting, retextured walls, new paint, and construction of a small stage that will be used for a variety of purposes, including small musical events, theater and poetry readings.

“They (STCU) had been looking for a way to contribute that would have a lasting impact on the arts community and having the gallery renovated was something they felt strongly about,” Hegsted said.

Nurturing the talents of artists at all skill levels, Emerge offers classes and workshops and provides an opportunity to submit work for rotating shows in the gallery.

By providing a platform for artists to share their work, Emerge creates an opportunity to engage with other artists and the potential to collaborate on larger projects, Hegsted said.

“We’re working with artists who are exploring how to make art their career and so that happens in a variety of ways,” Hegsted said. “Sometimes that’s producing and selling their work in a gallery space ... or a lot of artists are teaching classes.”

Emerge participates in local Art Walk events on the second Friday of every month from 5 to 8 p.m., with rotating monthly shows featuring participating Emerge artists.

The art collective relies on the distinct insight and skill of local artists, patrons, and neighbors to not only support but shape and influence Emerge’s identity as a community art space, Hegsted said.

Born and raised in Coeur d’Alene, Hegsted, whose artistic forte is pottery, has had a lifelong passion for the arts and said founding Emerge seemed like a natural fit for her aspirations.

“Growing up, I could see that something like this was in my future because I always gravitated toward the arts,” she said.

To volunteer, donate, enroll in classes or learn more about being involved as an artist, contact Emerge at emergecda@gmail.com or classesatemerge@gmail.com.