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 If
you find yourself in the heart of Mid-City next to Calandro's, and
you come across a pink house adorned with flowers at the door and
stained glass in the windows, do go in. That would be Caffery
Gallery. First you must turn the knob, ring the bell and wait for a
buzz…..then you may enter…..but you may not leave. There is so much
to see as you walk amidst the stained glass, ceramics, ornaments,
jewelry, candles and other eye-catching treasures. You must take it
all in. I promise, you will find yourself going back and forth, and
in circles, and you still may not see everything. You will go back
very soon because you remembered something very cool that you only
glanced at, but later it comes back to you and haunts you until you
return. The card section alone will keep you engaged for a very long
time, and then once you go one of the 3 rooms containing paintings
and Elvis collectibles, you slowly make your way into the gallery
itself. The gallery is owned and operated by Mary Ann Caffery, a
stained glass artist in her own right, whose stained glass works
exude a magical, yet powerful combination of intellect, emotion, and
detail. I have had the privilege of knowing Mary Ann for a number of
years. I have always said that she has the greatest location and
such a great place to showcase her work and several others. She
epitomizes artistic success on so many levels. Here is what she has
to say:
 JE: First,
give me a brief history of your art and how it evolved into CG?
MC: I work in stained glass, mosaics, and glass sculpture. I deal
with all kinds of light in my work-transmitted, reflected, and
absorbed. Some of the themes that recur in my work are water,
gardens, and ideals to which people aspire.
I started out with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry, but I
was always attracted to the artistic side of science. I loved
differential equations and calculus, not only for mathematical
reasons, but also because when the equations were written out on
paper they were visually beautiful and flowing. Diagrams of chemical
compounds were like art to me, and when we set up experiments in
physical chemistry, the scientific equipment looked like wonderful
pieces of sculpture. After I graduated I also wanted to pursue art
because I felt so akin to this right brain left brain relationship
of art and science. For 3 years after graduation I worked in
recruiting and admissions at Centenary College and also took art
classes there while my husband Taylor finished his economics degree.
I traveled throughout Louisiana and Mississippi in my orange Jeep
 Commando
recruiting students, speaking at high school functions, hosting
informational parties for potential students and their families, and
hosting students on campus for visitsc as well as taking art classes
at night and sqeezing them in wherever I could. After Taylor
graduated I continued art classes at Centenary while Taylor operated
the Oroweat Bread Distributorship in north Louisiana which he
purchased after graduation. I eventually joined Taylor in the
business, but continued to study art. I also began taking stained
glass classes at one of the studios in Shreveport.
After 5 years in the bread business we moved to Baton Rouge so
Taylor could attend law school. When I looked into LSU I saw that
they had a stained glass program. I entered that program and
eventually received my MFA in the 60-hour program. I first worked in
my home studio making my art, but eventually moved into a studio on
Government Street next to the Jambalaya Shoppe. It had a tiny front
showroom where I put my art for sale, but then I started getting
public art commissions and didn't have time to make art to sell to
the public, so I began adding art from other people to my showroom
while I worked on a large mosaic for the Lafayette airport, and then
mosaic work for the New Orleans airport. I worked on a stained glass
window for a police station in New Orleans, and made about 20
windows for a private residence. All of this time people kept
popping in wanting to purchase art, and I kept scrambling to find
enough things to keep the tiny showroom filled. After about 3 years
in my studio / showroom, the 2-story house next to Calandro's on
Government Street was for lease. I had always loved that location,
so I moved down there and officially opened Caffery Gallery. My
studio is upstairs and the retail gallery is downstairs.
JE: Were you always located in Mid City and if so, I have to
ask, why Mid City?
MC: We have always lived in the neighborhood. We like it because
it is fairly close to LSU, great restaurants, shopping, downtown.
Mid City is an all-inclusive area of Baton Rouge. It reminded us a
little bit of the Magazine Street area of New Orleans.
JE: How do you choose your artists for your shows? What does one have to
do to see his/her work on your walls?
MC: I am partial to art with spirit as well as content. Our
customers like art that is thought-provoking and meaningful.... that
has presence. There is an unspoken quality we look for in the art we
exhibit that is hard to put in words, but we know it when we see it.
We like to find art that speaks to the viewer, that invites the
viewer into the scenario and engages him or her. Some of the art we
exhibit is very representational, while some is more impressionistic
and even folk-art like. We have artists who show with us for group
shows and one- and two-artist shows. Currently we are hosting an
exhibit of Dennis Sipiorski's paintings and pottery.
JE: What are some of your most popular items that you sell?
MC: Fine art, handcrafted jewelry, blown glass, and stained glass
are some of our most popular items. We exhibit work by many local
painters, jewelers, glass blowers, and stained glass artists at
Caffery Gallery.
JE: For someone who has never ventured into your store, what do
you feel draws people in?
MC: Word of mouth is the number one thing that draws people in to
Caffery Gallery. In fact, some of our customers have become such
good advertisements for our gallery over the years that they could
come to work for us and would need very little training they know
the gallery so well.
Our gallery is in an old house with different rooms, so a customer
can see what art looks like in that type of setting. Our gallery is
fun and has a wide gamut of things for sale, from wonderful art to
the quirky.
JE: Mary Ann, what do you consider to be the secret to your success?
MC: You should always treat people like you would want to be
treated.
Caffery Gallery is located at 4016 Government Street at Richland in
the Mid City Arts and Design District. Gallery hours are 10 - 5
Tuesday through Saturday. For more information call Caffery Gallery
at 388-9397, or email
cafferygallery@earthlink.net
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