Interview: Art for the Soul | Springfield Means Business - MassLive.com
Interview: Art for the Soul
By TSM Design
May 14, 2010, 4:00PM
TSM Design talks with Rosemary “Tracy” Woods, owner of Art for the Soul (235 State St., #10), a gallery that showcases work by African-American artists.
How long have you been in Springfield?
I grew up in Philadelphia but I’ve been in this area for a long time. I first came during the Vietnam War because my fiancé was in the service and left from Westover. I worked in Connecticut but I always came back here, and I wound up staying.
What inspired you to open Art for the Soul?
Well, my friend Stella Butler and I used to have house art parties around here—like Tupperware parties, but with art. She came up with the idea for the gallery, and we opened Art for the Soul in 1999. We have a reputation as an African-American gallery but actually we’re open to any artist. My very first opening featured works by Frank Frazier. His wife is from Springfield. Some people know his work because of its exposure in the Eddie Murphy movie “Coming to America.”
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