Greensburg craft, gift store invites young artists to sell work

Hannah Smith has created art for as long as she can remember.

But until last week, Smith, a homeschooled sophomore who lives in Hempfield, never envisioned her artistic talent could turn into a career.

Smith is one of five young artists who stocked the shelves of downtown Greensburg’s Artisans of Hands & Heart with their work Saturday. Their pieces will be available for purchase at the store until Feb. 8.

“This is a great and unexpected experience,” Smith said. “I always assumed that art would never be something that I could actually sell or do as a career.”

‘It brings out more of them’

Artisans of Hands & Heart, a co-op store launched in 2012 on Greensburg’s Second Street, features the work of 19 local artists, said contributor Helen Keegan-Geroux.

The store moved to Pennsylvania Avenue in March, selling items like soaps, candles, painted gourds, punch needle embroidery, botanical printing, woodwork, paintings and greeting cards.

The store often invites a featured artist to sell their work on its shelves for a few weeks, Keegan-­Geroux said.

But the vision for the young artisans installation came from the store’s experience working with Greensburg Salem art students — including the local charity auction hosted by the Greensburg Business and Professional Association.

The students painted skateboards for the auction in April.

“The enthusiasm that these kids had for this was really catchy,” Keegan-Geroux said. “I’ve got granddaughters and younger kids in my life, and seeing them off their phones and using their hands for creative things is just, to me, wonderful. It brings out more of them, touches their souls.”

Keegan-Geroux hopes to broaden the artists’ career perspectives and encourage their creative talents.

“Some of these kids aren’t going to go to college, so it’s OK for them to see that they can do other things,” Keegan-Geroux said. “Or, if they go to college, this is something else that they can do. Because, to me, art brings out your soul. It touches your heart, and it keeps you grounded.”

Young artists grateful

Greensburg Salem junior Lauren King, who is selling crocheted stuffed animals at the store, hopes to gain a better sense of which pieces are most popular among customers.

“I work for a food truck, and we go to a lot of events. And whenever I’m on break, I walk around and I get to look at all the different booths. Whenever I see the crochet booths, they just always piqued my interest,” she said. “It just makes me happy to know that stuff I’ve made will be going out to people and that they’ll enjoy it.”

Bear Rocks homeschool student Claire Sabatini dreams of pursuing a professional career in art.

With more than a decade of art experience under her belt, Sabatini, a senior, specializes in watercolor, mixed media pieces and wood paintings. Her illustrative style often portrays animals, dragons and fantasy landscapes.

In selling her work at Artisans of Hands & Heart, Sabatini hopes to learn about item pricing and inventory preparation.

“I’m very excited about starting this,” said Sabatini, “because it’s my dream to become an artist as my job.”

Greensburg homeschool student Ella Schimizzi grew up hauling a bag of art supplies to her brother’s travel hockey games throughout the region.

With her handmade greeting cards and bookmarks available for purchase at Artisans of Hands & Heart, Schimizzi anxiously awaits customer feedback.

“It makes me nervous,”said Schimizzi, a sophomore, “because I’m worried what people will think of it.

“But it also kind of makes me happy, because if I find at least one person that likes what I make, that would make me pretty happy.”