Holland Origin Stories: Young Blood

Holland Origin Stories: Young Blood

From time to time we get asked about certain names, phrases, stories, titles – and sometimes we gotta prove or bust some myths!

Young Blood launched in Jan. 2013 as a low-stakes and fun way to celebrate and showcase some of our community’s youngest and best new artists with a peek into their worlds, their works in progress – the stuff made at home or at school, techniques and styles being explored. As a one-night only, unjuried, no proposal process event – Young Blood created an easy forum for young artists not just to make work, but to learn how to hang and display it, how to title, price and sell it (or not!) – a sneak peek into a professional arts sphere. Working hand-in-hand with members of Holland’s Gallery Committee, students put together a pop-up art show in a day. It took off immediately – packing the Gallery with artists and their friends and families from all over the city.

Young Blood at its core is a party – it’s young artists coming together from different schools and neighborhoods, it’s an appreciation of people honing their craft, a showcase of their skills, a networking and friendship-building experience, an entry point to Holland and our greater arts community, and a high energy gathering to honor art and art-making in a world where these skills can take a back seat to sports, theater or debate-like activities. 

Over the years Young Blood has become very near and dear to our hearts at Holland and it’s one we always look forward to. We feel so honored and privileged to have met so many amazingly talented young artists and friends because of Young Blood and have had the special opportunity to watch them and their work grow and flourish. It’s wild looking back in the archives and seeing all the close friends we’ve made who’s first gallery showing was at Young Blood and who continued to stay involved and have become part of the bigger Holland family. Artists like Em Jiang, Summer Orr, Paige Gomez, Adam Benedict, Bridget Conway, Hanna Kaplan, Erin Miller, Marjorie Williams, Maya Claiborne, Ana McKay, Dave Hall, Kat Neil and soo soooo many more (too many to name here!) who continue to inspire us every day and make us so proud to have been a small part of their artistic journey. It’s youth-driven artists like this and programs like Young Blood that keep the HP gallery fires burning and make us feel excited and hopeful for the greater arts community and the next generation of local artists who will lead it.