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Show Chamber Member Profile Darrell. The bronze represents about 50 percent of sales these days and about half the gallery's customers are Salt Lake and Park City residents. resi-dents. At this time the gallery presents art mostly for the serious buyer, but an additional room is being remodeled and expanded this summer that will carry art work in the lower price range arid many local pieces that are of interest to visitors. Always reliable, the Mey- er gallery is open year round with the exception of a week or two in April and October, from 10:30 to 6:00 Monday through Saturday and 1-6 Sundays. Visit this lovely shop at 305 Main Street or call them at 649-8160. The Chamber appreciates tfie quality and uniqueness of the Meyer Gallery and thanks them for their ongoing on-going contribution to both the Arts and Business communities of Park City. We welcome your Chamber membership. gift shop. But, the pull of Park City and the life long interest in art brought them back to reopen the now widely known and respected Meyer Gallery four years ago. Neither Darrell or Gerry has any formal background or training in art but over the years a very real interest has developed into a firm knowledge know-ledge and acquaintance of some of the finest traditional and Western Art and Artists in the country. They now represent about 25 artists, many nationally known, and "one of the things we take pride in," says Darrell, "is that we know and care about each of our artists. We feel that the reputation we establish with our artists is equally important as that with our customer and through this personal relationship rela-tionship we know we can rely on them to be with us." The gallery offers a unique combination of art forms from the widely known and respected bronzes of Clark Bronson and Edward Fraughton (a Park City native) to the beautiful lithographic studies of Indian women by Navajo artist R.C. Gorman, pottery from the pueblo Indians of New Mexico and watercolors by a number of artists including K.C. Wilson, wife of Salt Lake mayor Ted Wilson and a special series by Harold DeMont Olson painted in Park City in the late fifties. "We like to think that the store reflects our personal taste and personality," said III: 1 i J f : mi j jr ; by Shirley Smith "The Hanging Room Gallery" Gal-lery" next to the Bucket on Main St. featuring Park City and Salt Lake artists modern dance classes by Charles Woodbury (of the Ririe Woodbury Dance Co.) an annual invitational art show in the Blue Church and a cluster of artists studios on Sandridge. A projection of future plans for the arts in Park City? Could be, but these were all realities in the mid and late '60's and Darrell and Gerry Meyer of Meryer's Gallery were an integral part. It was the artistic climate of the town in those days that was the driving force behind their venture into the gallery business. "When we lived here in the early 60's," says Darrell, "many of our neighbors on Sandridge were artists. One evening we gof together and started talking about doing a V Park City Arts Festival. This . was long before the, days of. the -street festival and for several years we held an invitational show of 30-40 artists in the Blue Church" (the church was owned at the time by Charles Woodbury, of the Ririe Woodbury dance co. in Salt Lake and he used the facility for modern dance classes) "The festival went so well that Gerry and I felt we could like to have a place on the street where local artists could show their work more than 2 days a week" and thus in 1966 was born "The Hanging Room" in the building that is now,the Weatherbeater. Two years later the Meyr ers purchased the old, bank building at the top of Main Street and moved to what is nowjthe present location of Meyer Gallery.The beautiful arches in front were part of the original bank and the glass work was specially ordered from France in the late 1800's. The inside of the gallery still contains the ponderous old bank safes. In the next two years they continued to operate the gallery, still showing mainly Park City and Salt Lake artists, "who loved and painted Park City and wanted the town to .remain the way it was." The end of the sixties brought a closing of the gallery while the Meyers purused other things. Darrell continued in his job with the state working as a parole officer with juveniles sentenced sen-tenced to the state Industrial School, a job he still holds; and Gerry worked as an LPN ; in the intensive care unit at Holy Cross Hospital. The family, Darrell, Gerry, daugher Susan, now 17, and son Dirk, now 14, by this time had moved to Salt Lake City and for several years leased the gallery site as a GERRY AND DARRELL MEYER |
