We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Gayle Gross a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Gayle thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Parents can play a significant role in affecting how our lives and careers turn out – and so we think it’s important to look back and have conversations about what our parents did that affected us positive (or negatively) so that we can learn from the billions of experiences in each generation. What’s something you feel your parents did right that impacted you positively.

My parents were separated when I was two years old and then my mom worked hard for the rest of her life to put food on the table for eight hungry children. She probably would have liked to spend more time doing the fun things in life and I remember when she was able to take us to the farmer’s market and how much that meant to all of us. We didn’t always get to buy what we wanted but there was a love there that helped me appreciate the small things and how much of an impact they could make. It also helped me to be creative in how I explored the world. Walking in the forest was free. Packing a light lunch and hiking to the top of the hill to where I could look out over the town, the people and everything going on, made be observant. Sitting in my room to get away from my siblings encouraged drawing and dreaming about the future. Sure, I didn’t have all of the things my friends had, but I cherished those relationships and many times, I got to be involved in the things they did. It helped me to value resources and bringing people together for a common good. It is what I do now, everyday, with the gallery I own. And, the projects that have fallen into place always bring people together.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I got into the art world at a very young age, in fourth grade. I was given a drawing done by someone else and people thought I had done it. I was young and shy so I didn’t stand up and say, “It is not mine” but my family wanted me to prove that I could draw something like that. It was a picture of Snoopy and Fred Flintstone. What happened next even surprised me. I sat down and drew the exact images without a problem. From then on, I was an artist to everyone who knew me. And, I loved feeling that way.

Art is challenging on the business end because a sale happens when the eye of the beholder is captured. A person walks into a gallery and has to be drawn to one of many beautiful pieces. Then, they have to agree with the price. An artist is sharing a piece of themselves in their art. It is very personal and that has to speak to the buyer.

I moved to Teller County in Colorado 26 years ago and at that time, I had an airbrush business, painting goalie masks. I recognized right away that Teller County had many talented people but they worked mostly in isolation because their work was shipped and not done for locals. This was my life too. I painted goalie masks for hockey players and then they were shipped around the country. I didn’t really come into contact with other creatives.

I always wanted to bring a gallery to Woodland Park and it just happened without much warning in May 2021. I was looking for the perfect spot year after year and the doors never opened. Then, all of the pieces lined up: perfect location, gracious landlord, 19 artists who said yes, and the rest is history.

Reserve Our Gallery opened at the end of COVID-19 when people were ready for something new. We hosted monthly Galas right from the beginning. This was perfect for people to gather once again and they got to visit with neighbors, get a drink at the open bar and see beautiful art. It was win/win for the community after a tragic down time. The monthly Galas still happen and we’ve added monthly art shows and prizes to keep things fresh on the walls. People are always so happy to come into the gallery and they are thankful for what the space has brought to the community. There’s a vibe developing as things continue to expand. New relationships are developing with local organization like the Pikes Peak Arts Council and the Pikes Peak Watercolor Society. Locally, the gallery is a member of the Mountain Artists and I am the coordinator for their Mountain Arts Festival.

Reserve Our Gallery now has a partner space where artists work. It is called Westside Gallery and three artists share the space. This has been open since 2023. Another partner space opened in 2024, Destination Art School, which is where art classes are held. The instructors teaching at the school are better than I ever could have imagined. They display in museums and high-end galleries around the country and now they teach in Woodland Park. Scott Yeager, Tom Lockhart, Kent Kerns and Michael Gault are some of those instructors. People are flocking into the classroom to learn from them. Westside Gallery and Destination Art School are part of Reserve Our Gallery and the next NEW PROJECT in 2025 is the Woodland Park Art Gallery.

The Woodland Park Art Gallery is a citywide gallery inside multiple venues. Back in 2020 I started an art walk and it went by the windows of local businesses because COVID had made it difficult for the stores to be open and make money. The art walks were on Sunday afternoons and it was popular because artists set up outside of a store for people to visit with them. Then, people could walk inside the store if they chose to follow the health guidelines. The art walks were a hit! Now, the Woodland Park Art Gallery builds on that idea with “wall to wall art” stretching throughout town within the businesses. The art walks will return with an upgraded format!

The larger picture for developing the art culture is bigger than anything I’ve already done. It is Destination Art Pikes Peak, which showcases the art events and activities we have in Teller County. The view is now 30,000 feet as we look down on the towns of Woodland Park, Divide, Florissant, Cripple Creek and Victor. There are many steps to take before we all start working together on the larger mission but for now, Woodland Park is growing into the gateway to Destination Art Pikes Peak. We have a Plein Air Painting Competition and “All About Pikes Peak” Art Show celebrating three years in 2025.

I’m most proud of the creative community coming together to show their art. But, the best part is the locals who support the vision. People continue to come out and be involved in gallery functions and art classes. The projects are developing a strong foundation and this is proving to make dreams to reality.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Initially, every year was a pivot to determine the best course for Reserve Our Gallery. Every May the gallery was reborn until it had to happen every three months in 2023/2024. This was challenging to accomplish but it had to happen because the economy was tough and inflation was high. It was difficult for the artists to stay involved when their art was not selling very quickly so I had to adapt. To do this, costs for them were lowered and hosting art shows helped to increase revenue in a different way so everything could remain balanced.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

Artists made the investment in themselves and that’s how the gallery began. The artists paid “rent” which then paid rent on the space we use and it also paid for the Galas to happen. Our Galas in the beginning always had a live musician and a doorman to check people in. It was catered. This helped to get the gallery off the ground because a lot of effort was put into the “appearance” of what was happening. Every drink was served in a black mug, and still is. People were invited to attend a Gala and everyone wanted to be on the list. In order to get on the list, a person had to come into the gallery and sign up. Every resource was used and the artists were basically involved in making that happen.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://reserveourgallery.art
• Instagram: http://instagram.com/reserveourgallery
• Facebook: http://facebook.com/reserveourgallery
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gaylegross/