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Allure West Studios
©Allure West Studios.
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By Bob Waite
Mercantile’s mission statement reads, “We envision the Mercantile as a collaborative of makers who wish to share their art through dialogue and demonstration and work together to bring greater awareness to the rich history of the arts in Bucks County.” Brooke Henningsen, the founder of Mercantile, thought about this for many years. She says, “It just didn’t seem like there was a great need for it until COVID hit. Then all of a sudden, the shows were cancelled, venues were closed and the artist community wanted more.”
COVID 19 was devastating to the art community. Brooke says, “So, I spoke to a few of the people that I knew in that community and discovered that they were having a very difficult time because they didn’t qualify for a lot of those small business loans that so many others were able to get.” Being a founding partner at Arrow Real Estate Services allowed her to use her connections to find a space for such a venture. That space in the Doylestown Shopping Center is 25,000 square feet and once housed a popular department store.
From the beginning of the construction to its opening took only 45 days. When meeting with interested artists Ashara Shapiro, an artist whose store at Mercantile is ARecerche, became the creative director. Brooke describes their relationship as “… we are cut form the same cloth, both of us are very tenacious, we work well together and have very good vendors.”
Ashara, who does metalwork and leatherwork is in love with the original concept, “A big part of the conception of the market is that we wanted it to be experiential with the idea that people can come, and they can actually meet the artists They can have conversations with the artists, and they can find out how they actually make the art. There’s a give and take of information, and it’s not just going through the space and buying, but instead you understand what’s behind all of the items.”
Well, the concept worked phenomenally. There are over 100 shops at the Mercantile. Mercantile in Doylestown is where “there is something for everyone.” At Mercantile you can find everything from paintings, ceramics, textile work, sculptural pieces, photography and woodwork to clothing, herbs, beauty products, cards, furniture, home & garden, food and drink and more.
An example of this kind diversity prevalent among the artists at Mercantile is the shop, Peter Stolvoort’s Paintings. His paintings are abstract but present their subjects in ways that connect with experience. His use of thick paint and lines recalls the work of Jackson Pollack, but he does so within the confines of recognizable forms. Using fluid acrylic paints and added mediums, he has developed a repertoire of painting techniques that achieve his signature sculptural finish. To learn more about Peter Stolvoort visit www.peterstolvoort.com.
At HBN Design you can find hand painted and reupholstered furniture, bohemian style pillows, and an assortment of antiques. What makes this store so interesting is, as the statement on their website says, “Every item we create is sewn and painted by hand, using recycled, vintage, military fabrics and materials.” Now that is intriguing. Checkout HBN Design’ website at www.hbndesign.com. Notice that on the site is a section devoted to their Mercantile Shop.
Ashara Shapiro, Mercantile’s creative director, creates custom wearable art. The focus of her work is jewelry design and accessories. Ashara does custom work and has several collections. Her shop is A.Recherche, and in the statement on the Mercantile Website says that she “… focuses on empowerment and design artistry in her work. As an advocate of historical symbolism in current society, Ashara breathes new life into reclaimed pieces and creates storied wearable art that have gone through an evolution using the tools of yesteryear.” To find out more about A.Recherche, visit www.reclaimeddesigns.com.
These examples demonstrate some of the diversity found at Mercantile. High quality and diversity are important to Brooke Henningsen. “We decide who fits and we do not want too many of the same offerings. So we have a wait list for artists that want to be in the space that maybe someone is doing the same thing. There is not a lot of inward competition within the space.”
Besides makers and local retailors selling their wares, Mercantile has classes such as cocktail mixing, cupcake and cookies (one of the most popular) and Yoga. The classes vary, but there are at least 10 per month. Events featured at Mercantile also create that interplay between art and community that makes Mercantile so different than most venues. Things like a visit from Santa, a fashion show, a masquerade gala, a guys out night and other events that create community participation. Mercantile has truly made a space where artists and art lovers meet, connect, and engage.
Mercantile at Doylestown is located at the Doylestown Shopping Center, 444 – 446 N Main St, Doylestown, Pennsylvania. For more information, visit www.mercantiledoylestown.com.
Bob Waite is the editor of Bucks County Magazine.