New Rockport gallery is a hive of artistic activity

Jon Conant works in a rustic wooden building in Rockport, which he is transforming into a hive of energy for local artists.

The vocation of an artist is as old as bees themselves, he says, always occupied with their task at hand.

With that vision, Conant has created what he calls The Hive Cape Ann.

"I always wanted to have a space where you have a bunch of different artists working in a place where there can be a cross-pollination of ideas and support for each other," he said. "This idea was spawned out of the fact that I have a lot of friends doing a lot of interesting work, and there was no gallery for them on Cape Ann."

Tomorrow night, Conant will hold his grand opening with a show of several artists. The primary featured artist is Tom Torrey of Beverly, who makes an array of robots.

"We want to keep it light, not so serious, and keep it fun," said Conant. "The idea behind The Hive is to create a network of people and artists. I want to make connections. I want this to be a positive thing and move the art scene by adding something different to what already exists. It may appeal to younger people who may be intimidated by the more traditional arts."

Although he has a group of artist friends, Conant reached out to Torrey to take part in the opening.

The two sculptors met a couple of years ago in Boston at the Bazaar Bizarre.

"He bought one of my robots," recalled Torrey. "Then, about six months ago he e-mailed me to see if I wanted to be part of this group — and I said yes."

Torrey, 41, remembers the 1960s television show "Lost in Space." He was a big fan of Star Wars and Star Trek. In college, he studied sculpture at Bridgewater State and Massachusetts College of Art.

In terms of his robotics sculpture, he started out with pots-and-pans robots using spoons and folks.

"I moved more into making them look like the vintage toy robots and then I explored all different kinds of things, like zombies, space robots and ones that look like race cars. People really loved them and they appealed to a range of people."

He was thrilled to be part of this group.

"It's something I've wanted to do for a long time," said Torrey. "I wanted to connect with people. It can be hard to create art in a studio all by yourself. But in an organization like this, you can talk and share and work toward a common goal, which is getting your work out there. But even when my show is done, I can't wait to see and help with the other shows. It's not going to stop here."

Conant, 31, who grew up in Manchester-by-the-Sea, delved into art as a high school student.

After high school, he headed west to Colorado College, where he studied fine arts with an emphasis on sculpture, working mostly with wood and stone. Later he lived in South Carolina and Rhode Island before returning to Cape Ann. He was drawn back to the region, which is rich in places to explore and a unique history. In 2001, he founded Everlution Forms, a company under which he makes objects from reclaimed wood. Many of those are wall hanging sculptures of fish.

"Now I'm starting to do more one-of-a-kind pieces with found objects and recycled materials," he said.

Conant also fires glass into retro-cabinet hardware under the label Retroglassworks.

When not submerging himself into his artistic impulses, Conant, an avid surfer, will be found outdoors.

"I would say nature is my biggest inspiration. I like the ocean, and that's a huge part," he said. "I'm active. I like to rock climb, trail run and run along the coast. I like the freedom of the lifestyle, to do creative things and to spend time out, especially if the surf is good. You have to trade off a lot of financial things for sure, but for some people, that's worth it."

Conant's efforts are designed, in part, to provide a setting for those diving into atypical areas of art.

"One drawback on Cape Ann with the art scene, I think, is that people are a bit competitive and tend to do their own thing and not really make connections with others doing creative stuff. That's unfortunate," he said. "The majority of artists in the area are focusing on traditional art."

Karen Conant, his wife, is involved in art and also is very active, even as a roller derby skater, called Krushpuppy. She competes nationwide with the Boston Massacre team. The couple has two dogs, Moxy and Kiwi.

Conant plans to have shows each month. The other featured artists this month are: Will Means of Salem, a furniture make; Kyle Browne of Rocky Neck, a painter/mixed media artist; Karen Conant, who paints, and creates mosaics and textile work.

The Hive, at the end of the railroad track in Rockport, serves as both a gallery and a studio for Conant.

"I want to promote creative and active lifestyles on Cape Ann," said Conant. "I want to create a sense of community, and motivate people to be creative in all aspects of life. This will help make Cape Ann a more unique environment.

"There is a ton of untapped potential here," said Conant. "I just like to think of myself as someone who likes to make stuff and be creative."

Gail McCarthy can be reached at gmccarthy@gloucestertimes.com.

GRAND OPENING

What: The Hive Cape Ann, a center for art

When: Tomorrow, 7 p.m.

Where: One Station Square, next to the Rockport rail station, on the grounds of the hardware store in the smaller adjacent building on the second floor. For more information, visit www.thehivecapeann.com.

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