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Artist Wants to Help Revive Tarpon Arcade

Mark Schantz/SUNCOAST

Artist Michelle Mardis, known for her series of dog portraits, hopes the gallery she has opened in the Tarpon Arcade helps spur a revival of the onetime downtown hub in Tarpon Springs.

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By Mark  Schantz | The Suncoast News

Published: November 7, 2008

TARPON SPRINGS - In tough economic times, opening a gallery in downtown Tarpon Springs could be considered a bold move for Michelle Mardis, a local painter who has become known for her series of brilliantly colored canine portraits.

Sometimes you have to be bold and think outside what others consider the norm, she said. You can't just wait for things to get better. You have to seize opportunity when it knocks.

She will hold a grand opening for her Gallery Blue, in the historic Tarpon Arcade, 210 Pinellas Ave., across from the Tarpon Springs Cultural Center, 6 - 10 p.m. next Saturday, Nov. 15.

The gallery will be open most days from 11 a.m. until about 5 p.m.

Her search for gallery space lasted three years. She could have opened in other places, like Dunedin, which has a flourishing arts community, but she wanted to be part of the cultural and artistic renaissance in her adopted hometown, said Mardis, a native of Fort Worth, Texas.

For downtown to thrive it must offer visitors more than antique shops, she said, and art galleries attract a different type shopper. So Mardis hopes other fine artists move downtown to create more of a cultural colony feel.

Mardis said she wants her gallery to be an active part of the downtown and help spur a revival of the Tarpon Arcade.

In its heyday the arcade was home to a hotel, retail shops and professional offices and the city's post office.

An Italian bistro plans to open in the Arcade and there is already a trendy hair salon, so things are getting better there, Mardis said.

When Mardis saw the available shops in the section of the arcade along Lemon Street, she envisioned it as the perfect spot for an eclectic fine-arts gallery.

Her paintings and works of her artistic friends, such as glass blower John McDonald and photographer Jana Epstein, will be spotlighted at the gallery.

The gallery will provide space for her to work on other series paintings, to go along with her dog portraits. These portraits could have a range of subjects, from tribal people to Hollywood stars, Mardis said.

Her paintings are taken to another dimension of creative tones, shades and brilliant colors. They don't necessarily conform to how everything is and how you expect them to look. For example a face or dog could be blue or vibrant shades of red. The intensity of her subject's eyes captivates the viewer and brings them into the painting.

She plans to invite artist friends to teach workshops on their expertise.

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