Today we’d like to introduce you to Greg Hill.
Hi Greg, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I grew up in Corona California. It was hard being a creative person and living in a place where there wasn’t much to do artistically. I tried many times to escape Corona and the Inland Empire. I lived in Oregon for a while and Los Angeles. Traveled around a lot, and got to experience and engage in a lot of things that shaped and fed my passion for the arts. I inevitably moved back to Corona to be close to family, and although I will admit I begrudgingly did so initially, it wasn’t long before I was able to see beauty in this place that I had tried to escape so many times. maybe I had enough time away from it, or maybe it was because I wasn’t the same person that came back to it. I met Tiffany (my partner and co-owner of the Artist’s Collective) and she was an artist and we started talking about putting together a place for artists. Like myself, she grew up in Corona and there wasn’t much nurture for her creatively either. We just thought that it could be exciting if we were able to create a space that was accessible to everyone, from any walk of life. A place where there is no elitism and everyone is welcome. So that was the beginning of us starting the Artist’s Collective.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The biggest challenge we have I think is getting the community around where we’re at to be aware that there is a gallery made up of local artists. We book the space out for events, parties, and things like that, we have classes for children of all ages as well as adults, and we work with V&G Charcuterie (Stacey is the owner and what she puts together is so impressive and professional) on events and workshops so we’re starting to do pretty well seeing as how we’ve only been open since January of this year, but getting people excited and passionate about the gallery is challenging in this area. But I have always believed that a movement can start anywhere.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
We are a collective made up of local artists and artisans. We try to keep everything in our store made local. We offer children and adult art classes but really what we are is a place for anyone and everyone to come in and forget about the pressures of the outside world. We encourage everyone to come in and draw or paint, for just hang out. If you have your own art supplies you can come in and stay as long as you want and we won’t charge you a dime. Otherwise you can buy our canvas or DIY crafts and paint in our studio. Still, you won’t be rushed out. We book the space out for events, we have a locals only gallery, we do workshops, sip and paints, V&G Charcuterie does a Charcuterie workshop on the last Friday of every month. We just want to be a place that is all-encompassing when it comes to the arts. The thing that sets us apart from others is that there isn’t really anything like this in Corona. We are artists ourselves and we are just trying to create a place that we’d love to come to and create. I wish I had a place like this when I was in High School where I could just hang out with my friends. It would have saved me from a lot of trouble. That’s what I am most proud of. I want people to just come here and feel at home especially if they may not feel like they’ve got anywhere they belong.
We are regularly adding services and they can all be seen on our website at www.artistscollectivecorona.com.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
Dive in head first and get ready for a crash course. I really believe that’s the only way to really learn. At least for a slacker like me.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.artistscollectivecorona.com
- Instagram: artistscollectivecorona
