Griffin Art Gallery to move to downtown Johnson City

Downtown Johnson City's Main Street is getting a bit more artsy. Griffin Art Gallery, currently located at 109 E. Main St. Suite B in Jonesborough, is getting ready to make its way to downtown Johnson City. Curators and co-owners Debbie Griffin and James Griffin said the decision stems from their original mission to highlight the works of local artists. "We opened [in Jonesborough] four years ago, and very quickly we realized there was a need in the community for artists to be able to have a place to display their work," Debbie said. "Artists started coming to us, and we started doing shows every two months with different themes. We got the chance to meet so many artists in the town and the surrounding area, so we began to feel very much like a community gallery." The new location for the gallery is 1,800 square feet, which is more than double the space of its original location. Debbie and James said deciding to make the move wasn't originally their plan. Instead, the husband-and-wife duo had announced in August that the gallery was shutting its doors. However, the two said the location in downtown Johnson City became available, and after wrestling with the idea to keep the gallery doors open, Debbie and James committed to bringing Griffin Art Gallery to Johnson City. "James and I went back and forth, back and forth," Debbie said with a smile. "Do we want to do it, do we not want to do it? For like a month, we just went back and forth and back and forth, and everything kept sending us in that direction." The bigger space of the Johnson City spot is also something the couple considers perfect for their gallery, with large street-facing windows and more room to fill with artwork. James added the gallery already has interest from several new artists to display their work, and current artists participating in the Jonesborough gallery are eager to display their creations in the new location. "It seems to be, overall, very positive and very exciting," he said with a chuckle. "We've had some people say, 'Oh, we're going to miss you in Jonesborough,' but that hasn't been the predominant feeling. It's mostly been 'Wow, exciting. Bigger space, I don't have to go up stairs.'" The location in Johnson City also provides more accessibility for gallery visitors, being on ground level, and is more convenient for Debbie and James to operate since they live in downtown Johnson City. Debbie added that agreeing to move the gallery also comes from the district's growth and artist support. "We live here, and we can walk here," Debbie said. "We also love what we see happening here, like the expansion and explosion of new businesses. It seems very alive here." The Griffin Art Gallery will remain open in Jonesborough until Nov. 7, and Debbie and James said they hope to have the gallery open in Johnson City by mid-November. The gallery is located at 240 E. Main St. and will be open Wednesday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. As they continue preparing for its move, though, the married couple said they're equally excited to make Johnson City a place known for its art and the people behind each piece. "We're hoping that maybe along with our gallery, another gallery might come along, maybe another one, maybe a couple of them," said James. "If that happens, it's going to become an art town, which in a way it's already started to become." "I'm excited about making new connections and meeting new people, and bringing something new to this town that it doesn't have," added Debbie.