Gallery presents new Artist of the Month series

Proud is a word that hardly describes how Wandering Turtle Art Gallery & Gifts store manager Rachel DiGregorio feels about the gallery’s new Independent Artist of the Month series, which is devoted to promoting artists who are not signed with major record companies. Digregorio calls the project her “baby.”

The idea for the series started in Portland, Ore.,  when an old friend heard a local musical artist in a show and insisted DiGregorio hear for herself. After an hour of listening to Matt Sheehy’s album, DiGregorio was sold.

“I was so impressed by his music and wanted to share it with everyone,” DiGregorio said. “When I presented Jaime Sweany, the gallery owner and director, with the idea, she told me to take it and run. This has become my baby.”

After an intensive brainstorming session, DiGregorio made a phone call to Portland in hopes of landing Matt Sheehy as the gallery’s first featured artist in the new Independent Artist of the Month series.

“Matt has been so amazingly gracious,” DiGregorio said.

The 30-year-old Portland, Ore., native started writing songs for his first solo album more than two years ago. The album, “Tigerphobia,” was released in June and has allowed Sheehy to establish his own sound as an artist.

“I would consider my music to be somewhat experimental,” Sheehy said. “I like to stir around melodies with different sounds.”

Although Sheehy has finally made a name for himself in the music industry, he remembers the last three years, which were nothing short of a whirlwind.

The hope for the series is to appeal to a broad audience, because Bloomington is such an art- and music-based community, DiGregorio said. Wandering Turtle’s mission is to be seen as an accommodating and welcoming place for the entire community.

“We really have made our gallery accessible to everyone,” DiGregorio said. “I just love how it feels in here.”

Wandering Turtle carries local and international music, metal, sculpture, painting and photography from around the world, some of which are from as far as Mongolia, she said.

“Our biggest mission is supporting the growing arts community in Bloomington,” DiGregorio said. “We would love to see more students establish an interest.”

Freshman Stevie Slater is looking to take advantage of all of Bloomington’s offerings in the arts but said he thinks few students know about when events take place.

“I definitely plan on exploring the galleries in Bloomington this year,” Slater said. “I think more students would stop in the galleries if they were advertised a little bit more.”

DiGregorio said the welcoming environment and world-class art are reasons enough to stop in.

“People look at independent artists as rebels,” DiGregorio said. “But any independent artist isn’t made unique by choice. They are made unique by chance.”