Gallery 138, formerly of East Main Street, is in the process of finding a new location.

Gallery Director Anderson Turner said their lease was pulled in November, which means a new place downtown must be found for the gallery.

The gallery shared the space with Portage Travel Service owned by T.N. Bhargava. Bhargava sold the building to Leadership Portage County. The Kent Area Chamber of Commerce will now occupy the storefront that was Gallery 138.

“We hope the gallery can be reopened in the late spring,” Turner said.

Turner said once the gallery finds a new location, it will probably take about a month to prepare the building for its needs.

Some of the gallery’s shows have been canceled, while some have been moved to different locations, Turner said. Students can still display their work in on-campus galleries, Turner said, though Gallery 138 allowed students to work in a gallery atmosphere.

The gallery’s purpose is still the same — it is only in the process of finding the best way to serve its purpose.

“The School of Art is committed to having a downtown Kent presence,” Turner said. “We are looking for a space that fits our needs. We want a space that is handicapped accessible, can handle reception events and display art well.”

While the search is on for a new building, some students feel a loss.

“I think it was a loss for the art department of Kent State,” said senior fine arts printmaking major Lukas Jordan. “Students had hoped to use the space for senior shows, and now they are forced to show it at other galleries. Classes in crafts and art both submitted art to be sold and bought by people, for many of them this gave them their first showing in a gallery.”

Jordan not only felt it was a loss for the students but the community as well.

“This was a place where people would come to buy art they loved at a cheaper price,” Jordan said. “The gallery also allowed local artists to show work. Although there are a few galleries in town, one less is still a loss to the art community and the school or art as well.”

Some work can be found at the gallery’s Web site, http://dept.kent.edu/art/gallery138, Turner said. Also the 5th Annual National Juried Cup Show will be displayed at the Kent State Museum from April 27 to June 11.

“Gallery 138 outgrew that space,” Turner said. “We had been in that space for six years; now we have more opportunities to grow.”

Contact Fine and Professional Arts Reporter Jennifer Zemanek [email protected]