1 day Ago
Maybe it’s to buy a cute top or nicknack, maybe it’s to browse landscape oil paintings or maybe it’s just to enjoy a nice conversation with a new face, at least that’s what’s possible when you visit Frank and Kerri Glass’ backyard and garage. Known as the Woodland Park Garden Gallery in the heart of town two blocks west of Memorial Park, the multi-use space offers an unofficial hangout spot for any local passerby. “When the big door’s up, I’m open,” Frank said.
Glass, who spent 50 years painting everything from Mercedes automobiles to commercial signs, uses the garage as his workshop and gallery where he spends his retirement oil painting landscapes. A Bob Ross shrine in the corner of the garage evidences the devout nature of his passion, but not just for painting itself — teaching it too. It was a job teaching military members entering civilian life how to paint cars that brought Frank and his wife, Kerri, to Colorado from Texas in 2018.
Since then, Frank and Kerri have transformed their personal residence into a neighborhood hub where musicians like Ray De Mers come to hangout. De Mers plays a jazzy jam on his guitar next to Frank’s easel—he’s one of the several that wander in and out of the gallery on the sun-filled September afternoon. Frank rolls up the garage when events run at Memorial Park, such as the Woodland Park Farmer’s Market, or during pleasant weather days when he’s in his studio.
That’s how he sells his paintings and how Kerri gets foot traffic selling clothes and vintage goods she describes as “shab-chic” in her nook of the garage. “I was a flea market brat,” Kerri said, when asked about her knowledge and interest for antiques. Kerri’s eye for highly sought after antiques and vintage items is a boon for the couple’s flourishing hangout spot but that might change soon.
She’s been scheming with likeminded vendors and crafters to sell wares at a different location in town in hopes to free up space in the garage for Frank’s growing art business. Frank, sitting down in the lawn furniture beside her after flipping burgers, reminds her there are a lot of ifs before that can happen. “This will still be here,” he said.
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