Fast-moving blaze damages artists' cooperative on Cape
DENNIS -- Bruce Cook and Janet Gilmore stood under a dark gray sky yesterday outside the charred shell of what was once The Artists Gallery, mourning the loss of their paintings.
They were among 10 artists whose work was damaged or destroyed Tuesday night when a fire ripped through the gallery on Route 6A. The gallery was one of the few artist co-ops in the area.
The blaze destroyed artwork of all kinds -- photography, oils, pastels, acrylics, watercolors, pottery, drawings, and jewelry -- that had been housed in the salt box-style former carriage house.
Cook said he lost 20 paintings. Gilmore, a painter from Yarmouth, also said she lost 20 paintings and estimated their worth at $10,000.
"This year we did a lot of renovations," said Cook, of Chatham. "The gallery was absolutely beautiful."
The co-op is located in a building in back of another gallery, The Colonial Gallery at 593 Main St. Both are owned by Henry Cosimini.
The cause of the fire has not been determined, said Captain Robert Tucker of the Dennis Fire Department, who would not comment on whether the fire was suspicious.
At 10:37 p.m., a police officer on patrol reported seeing smoke rising from the gallery. Soon after firefighters arrived at the scene, the second floor of the building collapsed, and then the roof caved in, said Acting Captain Bob Marseglia. The fire was out by 2:20 a.m., he said.
"I can't imagine how anyone is going to salvage it," Marseglia said.
Passing cars on Route 6A slowed down to look at the burned-out building yesterday afternoon.
Yellow tape was strung across the driveway, and doors and windows were boarded up.
Shingles at the bottom of the front were still white, but most of the rest were charred. A wood beam supported the right side of the carriage house to keep it from collapsing.
The loss of the building is a blow to the local arts community, according to Spyro Mitrokostas, executive director of the Dennis Chamber of Commerce. Run by the 10 artists, it was one of the few galleries staffed and managed by artists, he said.
"It's one of the unique galleries around here," said Mitrokostas. "It's operated like a collaborative . . . it gives individual artists, who might not be able to afford to open their own gallery, a place to display and sell their work. That's what's going to be missed."
Cosimini, a painter, has operated The Colonial Gallery for 30 years. For the past 20 years, he has rented out the carriage house to groups of artists.
Cosimini said he was not sure what the monetary damage was from the fire.
"How can you replace a 200-year-old home with historic value?" he asked. "And the value of the paintings that were inside it?"
Teresa Ellis Cetto, a jewelry-maker from Dennis, opened a studio there less than a year ago.
She said the fire was "a shock" and occurred at a busy time of the year for the artists, with people starting their holiday shopping. She had planned to host an open house at her studio in the gallery Nov. 19.
"There's a lot of damage to be assessed," she said.
Meanwhile, she said, a gallery next door offered her space to display jewelry. The future of the artists collaborative is in limbo.
"We have no plans yet," said Cetto. "We hope we can stay together as a co-op." 