A fine art and fine craft gallery in Buena Vista, Colorado opens in September, 2008.

 For thirty years the dream sat in the back of their minds.  Preston and Nora Larimer followed their careers, one as an artist, and the other as an environmental educator.  But the dream persisted of someday opening a gallery with a living space above it. In their travels they kept looking, wondering what would be the ideal place. “Our son had been coming to Buena Vista for years, and we had passed through town countless times,” tells Preston.  Nora adds, “We never really looked at the town as the place where we would want to move to start our gallery.”

But one day after a trip where they had searched for the ideal location, looking particularly seriously at Durango and Salida in Colorado, Preston picked up a copy of Outside magazine and read of the South Main Project in Buena Vista. “We were home in St. Louis, and had just come from Buena Vista, but we needed to go back to pick up our son, who had been working on the river all summer for the Adventure Unlimited Ranches, and a couple of weeks later we had bought a live-work lot in South Main” added Nora.

Over the past 30 years Nora has done art shows in 13 different states, showing her work as a watercolor artist, as well as teaching watercolor and running her own custom framing business. She now plans to bring a number of other fine artists and craftspeople into Rock Run as well as offering custom framing.

In addition to her paintings, Nora and Preston will represent the fine art photography of their son Nathan, a recent art school graduate. They will also represent a number of award winning artists from all over the United States, with work including jewelry, pottery, glass, handmade furniture, and rugs.

Nora also reproduces her work onto glass and ceramic tiles.  Her tiles are suitable in a number of decorative uses, including wall murals and backsplashes in kitchens and baths. Come by and see for yourself!