Badgerhound Studio and Gallery owners Michael Davis and Emily Vaughn stand in front of a new art piece inspired by John Singer Sargent's famous painting, "Portrait of Madame X." Photo by Tabitha Johnston

SHEPHERDSTOWN — Badgerhound Studio and Gallery, located at 110 West German Street in Shepherdstown, marked its 10th anniversary in April.

Owners Michael Davis and Emily Vaughn commemorated this anniversary and the opening of their new art show, “Celebrating a Decade of Art-Making,” with a reception on Saturday. This was the husband-and-wife artistic team’s first combined show in five years, featuring new work from the both of them.

“It’s great! This means we made it,” Davis said. “It was pretty tough through the pandemic and everything, so it’s fun to think that we’re now one of the more established businesses in Shepherdstown.”

For Davis, making it through the COVID-19 Pandemic was, unquestionably, the most trying time for the business, as less people were visiting Shepherdstown and buying art — classical realist paintings from him or fiber art from Vaughn — during that time. Art classes were also a little more complicated for him and his wife to offer then, due to the need for social distancing and the hesitation people felt toward in-person interaction. But through hard work on their parts and the kindness of their landlord, Shepherdstown resident Judy Shepherd, they were able to survive.

“The last 10 years went by really fast. The pandemic, being right in the middle of that, definitely put that into question,” Vaughn said, mentioning they were shocked when they realized they had hit this milestone anniversary.

Pedestrians walk past Badgerhound Studio and Gallery, located at 110 West German Street in Shepherdstown. Photo by Tabitha Johnston

She remembered fondly the day when they first began envisioning opening their dream business in this storefront.

“There was a shoe store here before. We walked by, and the space was open. We saw that it had a back little room, and Michael said, ‘Oh, this is what we were talking about,'” Vaughn said. “It had the sideboards then that it still has here today, which we knew would be perfect for displaying art.

“We literally looked through the windows and were like, ‘This space would be perfect!'” Vaughn said.

They contacted Shepherd about renting the space immediately after that and soon found themselves the proud owners of their own business in the heart of Shepherdstown.

“It’s pretty cool, because we’ve gotten to the point where people come back to visit us here. They say that it’s one of the things they like most about town,” Davis said. “We have more of a presence here than we did, even a few years ago — a presence that’s unique to this town.”

Vaughn nodded her head in agreement.

“It’s a working studio,” Vaughn said, noting this is not the case with the majority of art galleries, including those in the local area. “The art we make and the art our students make ensures this is always an interesting space to be in, with an ever-changing environment.”

“Celebrating a Decade of Art-Making” will remain open in Badgerhound Studio and Gallery throughout the summer. Hours of operation are Fridays and Saturdays, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sundays, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

To learn more, call 304-261-6028, follow Badgerhound Studio and Gallery on Facebook or visit http://www.michaeltimothydavis.com/badgerhound.