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M A R k E T P L A C E

OriginalsThe Fine Art of a Mother-Daughter Bond

Story and Photos by Cindy Davis Meixel

Market Street in Corning can be an enchanting place for anyone, especially a child. As the daughter of business owners, Jesse Gardner spent many magical moments growing up

on Market Street, tucked in amongst an extended family of merchants, blanketed by familiar faces, conversations and kindnesses. Jesse fondly recalls the scent of pizza flowing from the store next door where she would visit, nearly daily, eager to receive a fresh, gooey slice, served with a smile across the counter. There was also the hardware store that promised hours of amusement in simply gazing at its shelves layered with crafts and curiosities. Lou, the mailman, offered

another reassuring routine each morning, delivering warm greetings. And there was the distinct sound of the doorbell in her parents’ art and framing shop, announcing the arrival of another customer, or artists hauling in their latest creations. Activity whirled around her, stirring into her days along with snack time, infinite rainbows of markers, and inviting stacks of papers—childhood pleasures all mixed together in some sweet, imaginative, messy masterpiece only a youthful mind can create. Jesse, the youngest of three Gardner children, was born two years after her parents, Lin and Tom, opened their first business, Corning Art & Frame, in 1977. In 1988, the

Shop Around the Corner

Gardners added West End Gallery to their enterprises and, three years later, sold the initial framing business. Lin is owner and director of West End Gallery; Tom is an artist. While the marriage did not survive, a partnership did; Tom is one of approximately seventy regional artists represented by the gallery—a modern, two-story space exhibiting original, representational art in various mediums including oils, acrylics, pen and ink, watercolors, pastels, graphite, wood, bronze, glass, and metal. When a twenty-something-Jesse decided to move West, she grabbed one of her father’s paintings off the wall of the Gallery and packed it in her U-Haul. Her degree earned at Corning Community College and her soulmate, John, by her side, she was ready to explore what the world had to offer. They landed in Colorado and carved a successful living in corporate America, yet Corning kept calling her home.

“I couldn’t deny that I felt something was missing,” Jesse acknowledged. “I realized that this is where my heart was—with family and the Gallery. My heart was here before my body was. My body couldn’t catch up fast enough.” Now fully home, with husband John by her side, Jesse has been given the title of assistant director. “She’s my retirement plan,” Lin joked. Yet, this retirement plan is actually serious business. Jesse’s return is freeing up Lin’s time for a bit of play. On Mondays, in particular, Lin now escapes work and paints instead. Her endeavors in oils are a delightful new exploration for this woman who has encircled her work life for thirty-five years with the creations of others. “I love that you can just get lost in it,” Lin said. “There are no deadlines, like with work. It’s nice to play and get lost in time.” Being her mother’s “retirement plan” is an honor to Jesse. “I take

it as the utmost compliment. It’s humbling,” Jesse offered. “It makes me happy that this natural shift in roles will allow her to focus more intently on her new-found freedom. She can take the well-deserved time for herself that

See West End on page 64

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Scott Walker, 570-295-1083

West End continued from page 63she has earned. She has worked hard all her life. She has poured everything into this business—her heart and soul. I often hear how proud mothers are of their daughters, but I must say I couldn’t be more proud of my mother as a business woman and a mentor, but more importantly, as a friend and a mother.” Lin also poured her strong work ethic into her daughter. Some of this certainly occurred naturally while Jesse was growing up in and around the family businesses, being a witness to all of the interactions and effort, but other lessons were direct. When Jesse was fourteen, she wanted an original oil painting, titled “Misty Morning,” by Martin A. Poole, an artist represented by the Gallery since the year Jesse was born. She was required to purchase it on her own. “Mom let me pay it off on a payment plan with my allowance,” Jesse recalled, thinking fondly of the hard-earned lesson. “I think it made me appreciate it that much more. It was my first original painting and, every year since then, I’ve purchased one of Marty’s paintings.” Jesse looks forward to more lessons by her mother’s side in the coming years. The young businesswoman is intent on seeing West End Gallery grow even further with traditional street sales as well as with the entrepreneurial outlet offered via the Internet. “I plan to see this business to its sixtieth anniversary—at least,” she said. In this magical Market Street shop, adorned on its exterior with a melting clock created by her father, Jesse is aware of the preciousness of time. And, like ingenious clockwork, in sweet synchronization, a daughter returns to the nest and a mother finds her own wings. Cindy Davis Meixel, a native of Wellsboro, is a writer, photographer, kayaker, and yogarian residing in Williamsport.

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