A couple from Montana purchased an old 45,000-square-foot middle school in Gardiner and have been converting it into a vibrant place to share art.
The Oregon Coast School of Art was founded in 2020 by Emily Free Wilson and Matt Wilson. Today, they are bringing their vision of an inclusive, creative art space to the Oregon Coast.
They said the school is a continuation of their lifelong passion to support artists and the arts.
The Wilson’s accidentally discovered the school when they were fishing on the river and noticed the large structure on the hill. They said it planted a subtle seed in their mind about what it could be.
But they didn’t take action until a couple years later, when they noticed the same building with a large “For Sale” sign next to it.
“We were like, ‘Let’s check it out.’”
Emily and Matt already had an established an art center in Helena, Mont. which they converted from an 8,000-square-foot funeral home. They thought they were content with their successful endeavor.
But the draw of the building in Gardiner called to them.
“After the tour, I walked out of here and I was numb with shock. I wasn't expecting it. I wasn't ready for it because the building fit our vision so well,” Matt said.
“We loved our community and what we were doing. But when we were thinking about our long-term future, it was a wonderful opportunity for the whole family,” said Emily, who also has connections to the Oregon Coast.
Today, the art school in Gardiner is an eclectic space that fosters creativity.
It includes several classrooms, a cafeteria, gym, stage and more. The top floor is being converted into artist studios for an ‘Artist in Residency’ program.
The founders are also converting an area of the school into an art gallery, and have a vision to attach an adjoining coffee shop. Other projects at the school include a dark room, spaces to make, heat and glaze pottery – as well as projects to make the school more ADA accessible.
The Wilson’s are already active in the community – and pride themselves on making the space available to everyone.
They discovered the Gardiner community already had traditions with Raku pottery, as well as poetry, so they are striving to keep those going. They’ve also hosted classes in a variety of mediums. Recent classes include abstract painting, ceramics, watercolor, dance, tie-dye and scrapbooking.
One of the goals for The Oregon School of Art is to bring artists from all over to live, work and teach classes at the school through their artist in residency program.
“I feel like we appeal to people who are early in their career who want to build their experience, as well as artists later in their career who are looking to reconnect,” Emily said. “We want there to be a lot of layers happening here at the same time.”
“A good mix of people really does lead to inspiration and collaboration,” Matt added.
The sky is the limit for the two creatives who are welcoming a community of artists into their space.
They also welcome community members from Gardiner and surrounding areas who have a desire to learn and share a variety of artistic mediums.
“The longer we have been here, the more we are discovering people who relate to this mission and the vision that we have – and they want to help. So we have a lot of wonderful people helping to make this happen. It’s just been incredible,” Emily said.
The Oregon Coast School of Art has a website which shares information about their latest programs and opportunities at: oregoncoastschoolofart.org.
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