Badgerhound Studio & Gallery owner Emily Vaughn checks to make sure the Little Free Art Gallery is well stocked on Nov. 12. Photo by Tabitha Johnston

SHEPHERDSTOWN — Earlier this year, Badgerhound Studio & Gallery co-owner Emily Vaughn noted the appearance of two empty magazine kiosks in the alley beside her and her husband’s gallery. It soon became clear that their landlady had allowed them to be placed there, after the kiosks proved no longer of use in distributing local real estate listing information.

“We get all of our real estate information online now, so providing printed real estate information isn’t really necessary anymore,” Vaughn said.

An idea then began to germinate in Vaughn’s mind, about how to give at least one of the kiosks a second lease on life.

“It was such a cool little box,” Vaughn said.

After giving it some thought, Vaughn decided to use an idea she had seen once or twice online, to turn it into a Little Free Art Gallery. She spent some time over the summer sprucing it up and then placed it in front of her and her husband’s gallery in September.

Shoppers check out the Little Free Art Gallery in front of Badgerhound Studio & Gallery on Saturday. Photo by Tabitha Johnston

“All it needed was a little sign on it and a new pane of glass in the door — the old one was yellowed and difficult to see through,” Vaughn said. “I also crocheted a colorful outfit for it.”

Her final touch to it, was to fill its interior with drawings and collages that she and her students had made, along with some fun stickers for children to take home with them.

Since then, the Little Free Art Gallery has proven popular with those of all ages, adding a touch of whimsy and creativity to their lives. Visitors to the miniature gallery are welcome to take a piece of art, if something special catches their eye, or to leave a piece of family-friendly art in the gallery. Many people outside of Vaughn and her students have already contributed art to the gallery, including a growing number of Shepherd University art students.

“Some Shepherd students are starting to bring stuff to it, too,” Vaughn said. “It’s been a good community connecting point.”

With the days growing darker and colder at this time of year, Vaughn said she hopes the Little Free Art Gallery will bring a sense of joy to more and more passersby, just as it has brought to her.

Badgerhound Studio & Gallery owner Emily Vaughn holds one of the fun pieces of art she has contributed to the Little Free Art Gallery on Nov. 12. Photo by Tabitha Johnston

“You can be enriched creatively, even while you’re just walking down the street. It’s just a little thing to brighten your day,” Vaughn said. “I get bummed out a lot at this time of year, especially, and I know I’m not alone in that.”

An additional aim of the Little Free Art Gallery, Vaughn said, is to make art more approachable to the public and to encourage them to check out the Badgerhound Studio & Gallery. She has recently taken this one step further, by bringing the miniature gallery online, with the establishment of an Instagram page for it — shetown.lil.freeartgallery — at the beginning of November.

“Every time I have put something out here, I photograph it, and if I come out here and notice something else that somebody has put in there, I also like to photograph it and post it online,” Vaughn said.

Badgerhound Studio & Gallery is located at 110 West German Street in Shepherdstown.