Margie Koger owns Easel & Frame Art Gallery

Name: Margie Koger

Job: Owner of Easel & Frame Art Gallery

Background: Although Koger’s father is from Clovis, N.M., she was raised in Clovis, Calif. She moved to eastern New Mexico four years ago and opened the gallery with her husband, Tim, during last year’s peanut festival.

Time on job: Four months

What does your job entail? I manage the gallery, make jewelry, help host live music events and art classes, including guitar lessons that will begin next month. We hope to eventually offer framing and custom jewelry as well.

What is a typical day like for you? A lot of cleaning and shining things up. Because it stays slow, I have rewritten the business plan three times.

Why did you choose this job? I have been interested in art all my life. I have worked in numerous artistic fields, including hairstylist, sign language interpreter and work involving theatrical interpretation. I always love making things, so this is a natural extension of what I do. Starting a business is something I have always desired to accomplish, and I had the opportunity to do it.

What type of training did you receive? I took classes at ENMU and Clovis Community College in jewelry and glass making, including making beads and pendants. I studied extensively in art history and have helped in other galleries prior to this.

What do you enjoy most about your job? I enjoy it all, especially the live events we host and seeing people’s reaction when a piece of art surprises them. I also love working with the artists and seeing what they make. I feel so grateful that I get to show their work. There are not a lot of avenues for them to do that around here. But Portales has treated us very well. We have made a lot of friends in the couple of months we have been here.