Oakmont’s Olive Branch Studios moving to Manos Gallery in Tarentum
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The Olive Branch Art Studio on Allegheny River Boulevard in Oakmont will be moving to the Manos Gallery in Tarentum at the end of March. Owner Sara J. Kirsch will be named resident artist at the new location, where she will not only continue to display her own work but will also continue with the art classes that made her location such a popular spot in Oakmont.
“I have a lot of special memories in here, and I really love this studio, but I’m very much an optimist about new opportunities,” Kirsch said.
Those new opportunities include a bigger space to carry over many of her most popular classes, which include adult classes such as Roses and Rosé and Winter Landscapes, in addition to a multitude of children’s classes, including a Cabin Fever class where Kirsch puts down a tarp and the children produce abstract art. She also does themed birthday parties for kids and has done princess-themed events, truck themes, dinosaurs, unicorns and even a Harry Potter class where students create their own magic wands.
“We really took our time trying to find the right person, and it was Sara’s background, her personality and her drive that really attracted us to her,” said Ernesto Camacho, art director at Manos Gallery. “We’re really excited to have an artist aboard with a fresh perspective.”
As part of that new perspective, Kirsch also plans to continue to do art openings at her new location. For instance, she’s done Summer Solstice openings at the Oakmont location, but she’s also looking forward to expanding her repertoire into different genres once she gets acclimated to the new studio.
“I notice what I’ve found myself gravitating towards is more abstract art, impressionist style, and using more textured paints,” she said. “That’s my new direction, so I’m kind of shifting over from realism.”
Despite moving, Kirsch still plans to be heavily involved in the Oakmont community. Olive Branch Studios has been attending the recent public events in Oakmont, including the Hometown Christmas Celebration and the Oakmont Fall Festival, where she provided face painting for children. The studio will remain a member of the Oakmont Chamber of Commerce and continue to contribute to the community festivals and vendor nights moving forward.
“Having the studio has allowed me to meet really great families who I now have a connection with, and I’m really a part of the community. When I told some of my regulars that I was moving, they were devastated,” she said. “But I still live in Oakmont and I will still have a presence here.”
Because of her love for the area, Kirsch says she isn’t ruling out an eventual return to town for the studio in the future, but that for now, she’s looking forward to balancing the new location with still supporting her previous community.
“I am looking forward to the new opportunity and growing as an artist amongst other talented artists at the new gallery and I am very excited and feel very fortunate to have that opportunity,” she said. “However, because I think the art studio is such a treasure for the kids and parents of our community and it has been such a special place for me, that if a space ever opened up in the future, I would always be drawn to the possibility of moving back to Oakmont. But for now, I feel like I am getting the best of both worlds. One — to really hone my craft as an artist in a very special and creative space, and two — to still be available through the Chamber of Commerce of Oakmont and for private paint classes and commissions.”
Classes range between $20-$35 per student (children’s classes generally run cheaper), and anyone interested can reach out to Kirsch via the Instagram account for Olive Branch Studios or by emailing her through the studio’s website. Private, in-home lessons can still be arranged as well, and Kirsch is also an English teacher for junior and senior high school students at Lenape Tech in Armstrong County, so she has plenty of experience instructing youth.
“She fits in well with our environment due to her background teaching classes, because we do a lot of that here as well,” Camacho said.