From the building of the Peninsularium immersive art experience to the potential of an affordable live/create space like Artspace coming to Tampa, big things are in store for the future of the Tampa Bay Area’s art scene. And now, House of Shadows Creative Gallery & Market (HoS) is a new hotspot to add to the mix.
House of Shadows, created by Proprietor Jose Gomez and Gallery Director Annie Rosse Gonzalez -- both artists themselves -- was formed as a place to showcase all types of art forms, with their building separated into four different areas (The House, The Black Box, The Darkroom, and The House of Shadows Market) to highlight anything from film to performance to photography and anything in-between.
“Annie and I have been artists and involved in local art scene for a while. In the last few years, we’ve been helping artists develop. To do this, we pulled together House of Shadows as an exhibition gallery. Everyone knows the St. Pete art scene and that Tampa is lagging behind in creating a rich artistic area. We’re from Tampa, so we wanted to not just cultivate an area for art, but one that allows artist to show based on the quality not just the salability of their work by showing performance art and things other than 2-D art,” Gomez says.
There’s clearly a demand for art spaces in Tampa, as their debut opening on May 15 saw over 400 attendees.
“Our gallery fits this idea of oddballs, the castaways of society, to create a neutral place where people can identify with the brand. We like to say the gallery’s aesthetic includes things that are dark, sexy, and cute. In terms of art, that might create a bit of an expectation, but our goal is to accept great art,” Gomez explains. “Our main business model is through artwork submission, so there’s not as much pressure to make sales.”
Though quality artwork from national and even international artists is the main priority for their exhibition space, their accompanying market is a set space to highlight art and wares from local artists. When exhibition events aren’t being held, HoS will be open as an event space for anything from nightly yoga sessions to other occasions.
“House of Shadows is somewhere in the middle of rouge, avant-garde approaches and a typical gallery or museum. We’re borrowing from both cultures,” Gomez says. “The idea is to bring in people who are just amazing artists who we can admire, who we can hang next to, and help to develop and put out there in the Tampa art scene.”
To find out more, visit the House of Shadows website.
Keep up-to-date with their latest events on Facebook.
Learn more about the Peninsularium and Artspace.
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