I got involved with Artmongerz through a happy coincidence. I met Dorothy Sellers, the main controlling owner of Artmongerz, at Strive Gym, where she worked and had some of her artwork on display. We started talking, and that connection lit a creative spark. I hadn’t made art in years, but I went to Michaels, picked up a canvas, and jumped back in. The first piece I ever sold was at the CVA’s 100x100 show. Laura Way of The Arts Council of Greater Greensboro bought it, and that gave me the confidence to keep creating.
Art has always been part of my life. I took lessons as a kid in the late 1970s, but when my parents divorced, I had to start working to help support the family. Later, I spent years in photography, working in studios and documenting the restoration of the Carolina Theatre after the 1980 fire, which is now in their archives. This art adjacency kept me close to the creative community.
Art has always been part of my life. I took lessons as a kid in the late 1970s, but when my parents divorced, I had to start working to help support the family. Later, I spent years in photography, working in studios and documenting the restoration of the Carolina Theatre after the 1980 fire, which is now in their archives. This art adjacency kept me close to the creative community.
My work is mostly abstract. I am drawn to the idea that art does not need to replicate the world we see. It can express emotion, memory, or something completely intangible. One of my pieces includes keys left behind at the retirement community where I worked for 28 years. Another is a tribute to French artist Pierre Soulages, designed to change as sunlight moves across the room.
I’ve been part of Artmongerz since 2020. It is a cooperative space where local artists rent walls to display their work and keep 100 percent of their sales. We also host emerging artist shows twice a year, giving new artists a chance to exhibit publicly for the first time. Everyone pitches in to run the gallery, and it is truly a community-driven effort.
Recently, I joined the Marshall Muse Gallery, a new space opening in Greensboro that, like Artmongerz, creates more opportunities for working artists. I also host artist salons, free and open conversations where creatives come together to share ideas, process, and perspective.
One of my core beliefs is that art should be welcoming. Bill Ellis, one of my mentors over the years, was one of those people who treated everyone who walked through the door the same, and I’ve tried to practice that plain old kindness in my own life. Sometimes people will walk through the gallery doors at ArtMongerz timidly. I want people to know that you do not need a degree to appreciate art, or even to start making it. If something speaks to you, that is enough. You like it? Then it works.
To learn more about Gregg and his work, please stop by Artmongerz, the Marshall Muse Gallery (opening soon), and check out his Instagram at @greggbryantimpactart.