In the continual renovation of West Durham, only one thing stays the same: things change.
The challenge, said John Schelp, president of the Old West Durham Association, has been trying to enhance safety and appearance while maintaining the local feel of the shops.
The newest addition to Ninth Street--an art gallery and studio appropriately named Studio--may do just that.
Studio is veteran entrepreneur and aesthete Pete Wyman's fourth such venture. The others, located in South Florida, include one on trendy Lincoln Road in South Beach. Sick of aesthetically empty "McMansions" and the slick world of Miami, Wyman (Trinity '80) returned to the city where he earned his art degree from the University 26 years ago, planning to open a more "user-friendly" shop.
"Usually, you see the art on a white wall lit by track lighting, and it gives you no information about how it will look in your living room," he said.
So instead of a chichi gallery, Wyman opened a store with plants, shelves and tables. In effect, he opened a living room customers can use to try out their art before they buy it.
Wyman's "user-friendly" mantra even extends to prices and scents. Wyman stocks small gift items, shells, furniture, jewelry and original artwork in an effort to appeal to a more economically diverse demographic. To avoid giving customers headeaches, Studio only carries candles and potpourri in one scent, Judy Havelka's marmalade.
Studio's grand opening Friday, Sept. 29 will feature the store's wares, fiddle-playing by Chapel Hill's own Sarah Nagell and refreshments catered by George's Garage.
Original work by several local artists will be auctioned off with 100 percent of the proceeds going to the Jimmy V Cancer Foundation. In a refreshing change from traditional media-seeking charity auctions, Wyman has a personal interest in the foundation. Both Wyman's mother and one of his close friends passed away from cancer.
Although Studio has technically been open for two weeks, business has been "tentative" according to Wyman. He's not worried, though. He says he has a good feeling about the way the store will be received-and he's not the only one.
"We're delighted that Studio is opening on Ninth," Schelp said. "Now folks can walk from the Studio on one end of the street to One World Market on the other and see a little bit of everything in between."
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