Meet The Curators
This month we invite you to dive into the life of the Gallery Baird Curators- Vanessa Baird and Liz Belyea. Below is our Meet the Curators Interview. Over a Zoom call Vanessa and Liz talk about our ideal superpowers, how the gallery started, side projects, and where we hope to see the gallery go. The videos have been broke up into three parts. - Enjoy!
Vanessa Baird
Vanessa Baird is the founder and co-director of Gallery Baird. From a young age art has played a pivotal role in Vanessa's life. Growing up she spent many afternoons sewing with her grandmother, who was a quilter, and getting dusty in the woodshop with her father who had a Associates in Fine Art. Baird grew up in rural upstate New York in Lake George surrounded by the Adirondack Mountains. With the encouragement of her parents Vanessa went on to earn her BFA in Sculpture and Studio for Interrelated Media (SIM) from Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Vanessa is a practicing artist and her work can be found under the moniker Essa Baird. Through Gallery Baird she hopes to create an alternative art space to support emerging and mid-career artists as they navigate the art world. In addition to running Gallery Baird Vanessa is also the founder of Baird Creative, a venture working to help manage artists' digital portfolios. Currently Vanessa resides in Seattle, Washington where she is a member of Side Rail Collective in the historic Georgetown district.
Liz Belyea
Liz Belyea is the co-director of Gallery Baird. Born and raised in Lake George, New York, Liz had a close relationship with her Grandfather, Charles E. Hawley, whose painting inspired her to appreciate art from a young age. Liz went on to earn her BA in history from The State University of New York at New Paltz, specializing in Russian and Eastern European history. Following college Liz moved to New York City, and is currently enrolled at NYU in their museum studies graduate program; her interests include public programming, adult and continuing education, and community outreach and engagement. Through her work at Gallery Baird Liz hopes to create an accessible space for artists and art enthusiasts alike to share their work and ideas, spark important conversations, and build a supportive, creative community. Liz currently resides in her hometown of Lake George, NY. In her free time you can find her hiking the Adirondacks, visiting local museums, and going down podcast rabbit holes.