Confluence Studios celebrated Earth Day 2025 with art demonstrations, live music and an opening reception for a pop-up exhibit titled “The Last of the Kind: Endangered and Extinct.” There was also a morning encaustic class (painting with pigment in warm beeswax), and later in the day, poetry and prose readings by several acclaimed authors, including Western Slope poet laureate Wendy Videlock.

Confluence Studios’ tagline is “Bringing Art and Community Together,” hence the name “Confluence,” says owner Carrie Kellerby. The Earth Day activities were just a sampling of what often goes on at this vibrant gallery, located at 660 White Ave. in downtown Grand Junction. Kellerby says her “goal is to create a life of beauty, joy and community.”

Carrie Kellerby. *Photos by Sharon Sullivan.*

You’ll find acrylic paintings, watercolors and collage artwork, as well as handwoven garments, intricate beaded jewelry, exquisite hand-turned wooden bowls and more — all made by local artists and artisans. Confluence Studios hosts monthly First Friday events, opening receptions for revolving art exhibits, art classes and demonstrations. During its quarterly Women and Words events, women read their original writings, or someone else’s work, followed by conversation. Women and Words is held on spring and fall equinoxes, and winter and summer solstices.

Traditionally, art galleries group an artist’s work together. Kellerby, however, designs her spaces differently. She lets the artwork tell her where it wants to be, she says.

“A lot of that comes from my interior design work,” Kellerby says. “The art is talking to me. I choose to place artwork where it resonates with other pieces.” It creates a feeling of hospitality, a feeling of being part of a home, she notes. “It’s why we have furniture, flowers in vases — so people can see how you live with art. It’s why we mix things up.”

“Message from the Corn Maidens” by Caole Lowry

Curated exhibits occupy three of the rooms, while another offers rented wall space for artists who want to hang a body of work. Artist Caole Lowry leases a wall, and is also a gallery member. “Carrie’s skills as a curator are really unparalleled,” Lowry says. “She knows how to hang a show and create a space that is welcoming.

Confluence also hosts two uncurated shows each year — “the Dark Show” and “Gifts for the Goddess” — holdover events from the former Planet Earth and the Four Directions Gallery, a shop Lowry owned for 18 years in Grand Junction. Both professional and amateur artists contribute to these popular community exhibits.

Confluence Studios has a tiered membership model in which its approximate 100 members pay a yearly fee to receive discounts on classes and artwork, help shape gallery programming and show their work in the members-only exhibit in December and January.

Local business owners benefit from Confluence Studios’ Art to the Community program, which lends artwork for display in their spaces. In return, owners receive a 10% commission on any work sold while on display. (Owners also receive 10% discounts on any purchased work — not to mention the opportunity to showcase original artwork).

Kellerby wrote her dissertation, titled Dwelling in the Woven Threshold, for her Ph.D. in philosophy, art theory, aesthetics and visual culture. The topic explored women, art and culture through the ages. “Women weavers were the originators of culture and economy — the foundational thread of culture and society,” Kellerby explains.

Lowry likens Confluence Studios to “coming home.” She adds, “I can’t say enough good things about what Carrie’s doing with her vision and commitment to art. She’s making space for creatives in our world. That’s what we need now.”

Confluence Studios is open Tuesday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Learn more at imconfluencestudios.com.

Originally published in the fall 2025 issue of Spoke+Blossom.

Confluence Studios In Grand Junction: Bringing Art + Community Together