E.P. woman opens HeARTspot gallery
EAST PROVIDENCE – Jennifer Gillooly Cahoon, a city artist and 20-year veteran teacher in the East Providence school system, will host the grand opening Saturday of her new HeARTspot Art Center and Gallery on Pawtucket Avenue.
The event to be held from 6 to 9 p.m. is free and features paintings by Gillooly Cahoon, live acoustic music by local band Scarlett, a soft opening of the new gift shop, food and beverages.
Gillooly Cahoon has been working around the clock for the past nine months to get her new gallery ready for tomorrow’s opening.
“I liken it to giving birth to my first child, minus the pain,” she quips.
The event is doubling as the grand opening party for the newly opened art center, which will feature a classroom space, a gallery and an artist consignment shop. Programming will include classes and workshops for children and adults, paint and wine nights and periodic gallery openings featuring the work of local artists.
In addition, Gillooly Cahoon is in discussions with local agencies to develop programming for children and families in the foster care and adoption care system. Also, parents of those with special needs are being consulted to determine what kind of programming would benefit their children most.
Gillooly Cahoon says she is dedicated to the idea that art is for everyone and can be used to help achieve a sense of calm and mindfulness.
“Whether you’re young or old, artistic or not, typically-abled or differently-abled, there will be something here for you,” she says.
Gillooly Cahoon is also committed to giving back to the community. The night of her grand opening she will launch a campaign to raise money for low income East Providence students to make it possible for them to take classes for free with a goal of donating one class for every two donated by members of the community. By the end of her first year, she hopes to be able to gift 20 free classes to K-12 kids with the guidance of her former colleagues teaching in the school system.
Gillooly Cahoon is a fulltime artist and self-taught painter from East Providence with a background in sculpture. She attended Rhode Island College in the 1990s, supplementing her art education in both England and Italy. She worked as a public school teacher for nearly two decades.
Mainly known for her ethereal portraits of well known individuals with a twist, Jennifer was described by art critic Don Wilkinson as “a high priestess” who creates paintings “which are expressionistic with an eye for detail (and) and eye for the eyes, the gateway of the soul.”
She is an active board member on both the East Providence Arts Council (EPAC) and of Gallery Night Providence.
Since 2012, Gillooly Cahoon has had multiple solo shows, recently including the University of Rhode Island Providence Gallery and The Robert Hunt Gallery of New Bedford as well as having been included in multiple group shows in the Southern New England area. In addition, she had a hand in the creation, organization and launch of two new art festivals in Rhode Island including “the looff” Arts Festival and The Hunt’s Mills Festival, both of which take place in East Providence.
HeARTspot Art Center and Gallery is located at 1970 Pawtucket Ave.