Re-opening
Littlewood Co-op hosts reception in new home
Yuma’s Littlewood Fine Arts and Community Coop has finished setting up its new location and will hold a grand reopening ceremony for the public Saturday.
“All the art has been hung. Every light bulb has been changed, oh my God!” exclaimed Lia Littlewood, president and founder of the organization. “Our flagstone is painted outside, the stage is done. Yeah, we’re super excited.”
The celebration will kick off with a “glitter blessing” from the Sisters of Perpetual Bliss, an LGBTQ-friendly “order” which also appeared at the local Pride celebration in June.
A Yuma County Chamber of Commerce ribboncutting will follow at 6:15 p.m., which will lead into further opening remarks before the doors are formally opened at 6:30 p.m., for a night of live music, food catered by Taco LaShelle and mingling with other attendees.
Littlewood, an accomplished muralist and painter, said she’s also going to debut her first “human art installation.” She she didn’t offer much more detail.
“It’s basically a little surprise to the community, but it’s all about (a) positive message,” she said.
Littlewood and husband Isaac Russell launched the organization in April 2017 near the corner of 2nd Avenue and 15th Street, in the shell of a former refrigeration supply business.
It quickly turned into a hub of artistic activity, offering classes for children and adults, as well as studio time for those who joined the co-op. The gallery space and back patio hosted public events, artistic, recreational and some with a political bent.
Yet it was underfunded, to the point where the co-op had to release the “saddest email we’ve ever sent” in November, announcing it would be forced to close if it could not get enough memberships to support operations on an ongoing basis.
“People realized, ‘these guys are serious, they’re not making any money on this place, they’re spending their own money on this place,’ and everybody stepped back up,” said Russell, who manages business relations for the nonprofit.
“A lot of people said, oh, I forgot to do that, of course I will support this. It’s working well. We’re not always in the black, still. We can always use more monthly supporters and community supporters,” he said.
Then came an opportunity this spring to rentto-own the former law office of John Jongeward and Associates on Main Street, which came complete with a garden area they could use for concerts and events, leading to the closure of the former location on May 15 to accommodate the move.
“We’re super excited to join the historic downtown family,” Russell said. “There’s a burgeoning arts corps that’s growing down here, and we’re super excited to be just down the street from the Art Center and some of the galleries down here, those are our brothers and sisters in art. And it’s just wonderful for Yuma.”
He said the community has made the co-op’s existence possible, and he wants Yuma to know “this is their place for positive self-expression, in any form.”
Littlewood said the new location has already seen more foot traffic than the other ever did, much of it coming over from the recently opened Red Moon Ale House and the Regal Main Street Cinema across the street.
After the grand reopening, the co-op’s operating hours will be 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, and the schedule for its art, yoga and other classes and will resume Tuesday, as well as studio time.
As for Saturday night concerts, “we’re booked almost every night until October, which is amazing,” she said.