A treasure trove of art and craft supplies awaits any passerby who might be drawn into the nondescript entrance to Giving Art to Missoula on the Westside.
Inside, the 1,800-square-foot shop at 801 Sherwood Street brims with a colorful, comprehensive array of donated art and hobby supplies, including but certainly not limited to beads, jewelry, instructional books, paint, paintbrushes, stickers, paper, fabric, knitting needles, embroidery thread, skeins of acrylic and wool yarn, Shrinky Dinks, canvases, rubber stamps, glue, party decor and more. Everything is sorted as neatly as possible by type and color.
“The biggest complication, I think, is people getting used to the fact that it’s free,” says Amber Kurzenbaum.
Free because GAM isn’t a business but a small nonprofit Kurzenbaum founded in the fall of 2023. It’s fiscally sponsored by Creative Visions, an organization that supports “creative activists.” She and her fiance, Akhilesh Boehmler, both Missoula artists, are the only paid staff.
“The biggest complication, I think, is people getting used to the fact that it’s free.”
Kurzenbaum says GAM’s model was partly inspired by other nonprofit art supply shops such as the Broad Room in Sacramento, Calif. Even in a digital era, she says people are clamoring for physical crafting materials. She recalls how her own art supplies disappeared when she set things out on the curb while decluttering her small apartment.
“I started putting huge canvases that I’ve already painted on — like $300 canvases — I’d put them on the street because they’re just too big,” she says. “And people were just raking up my art supplies right off the road within minutes.”
Kurzenbaum took classes in business and nonprofit management before launching the organization. She found a shop space in the Westside’s Ceretana Building, a historic grain elevator that’s been repurposed into a center for art studios and creative small businesses. It’s a fitting home for a nonprofit with a mission to divert materials from the landfill and offer them up to creative local makers.
The shop opened last March, and Kurzenbaum says the response has been enthusiastic, drawing clients of all ages, largely by word of mouth. She says procuring stock has been easy — donors often come by after finding GAM online. Many items come from older adults who can no longer craft due to declining vision or dexterity. Someone once dropped off about 80 pounds of beads.
“That’s when we discovered we needed to do a limit on donations,” she says.
Shoppers are asked to only take five items per visit, and monetary donations are welcome but not required. Teachers and nonprofits who need supplies can reach out and ask for the shop to set aside items in bulk. Looking for something in particular? Just ask. Boehmler often staffs the front desk and keeps a vintage record player humming with classic LPs, lending the shop a lively air while visitors browse.
“It’s very much mutual aid,” Kurzenbaum says. “Take what you need, leave what you can. With things like fabric and ribbon and stamps, there’s always an abundance of those things, so you can always take more of those.”
Volunteer Courtney Taberna started coming in recently to help with the Sisyphean tasks of sorting and bundling donations, including fabric and beads.
“I found out about GAM last summer, and was like, ‘Oh my God, I love what you’re doing,’” she says.
Taberna has visited similar low-cost art supply shops, but appreciates GAM’s no-cost approach.
“I really like GAM’s mission a little bit better as the ‘no-barrier creation zone.’” Taberna says. “Taking away all those barriers allows people the opportunity to try more art and do more creative things. And I think that’s super important.”
The shop does request payment for a few things, such as sewing machines and branded merchandise featuring the GAM whale logo.
Kurzenbaum is mostly focusing on running the organization — and planning its first fundraising event in March at the Roxy — but several months in, she can still step out and be amazed at everything on display.
“I just got so giddy all of a sudden,” she says. “We have so many options. So many things I could do, just at the tip of my fingers. Which I knew was part of the mission, but all of a sudden, it’s here. It feels so good.”
GAM is open most weekdays and once a month on Saturday, but the days and hours can vary so be sure to check its calendar before swinging by.
