Radiators provide steam for the art

Wednesday, July 12, 2006 | 7:19 a.m.

When Chelsea Nork and Dave VanZanten bought a chunk of land on Main Street, just south of Charleston Boulevard, they also bought the radiator business on it. They renovated half of the building, hung some art, brought in '50s-style dinette sets and turned it into a gallery space that is open only on First Fridays.

But Nork and VanZanten faced the problem familiar to many of the galleries and furniture stores on the west side of Main Street: How to get people, who normally don't even walk around downtown, across the street and into unfamiliar territory away from the main arts festival?

"It's such a good location, but for some reason no one comes across the street," Nork says. Not even the barkers, street musicians and sidewalk merchants outside her building have helped.

So the married couple - he's a businessman and she's a speech pathologist - capitalized on the oddity of their businesses. They launched a radiator art contest, provided the radiators to the artists, promised to show the work in their sparkling new gallery and offered a cash prize for the best design.

"For $500, people started paying attention," Nork says. "Five hundred dollars and a free radiator flush. Who doesn't need that?"

Apparently not as many people as she had hoped. Last year, the contest drew only six entries by artists (including Nork) who turned radiators into canvases and sculptures. But the marriage of radiators and contemporary art has gotten a little more attention this year. At least 15 artists plan to display their radiator art at the Aug. 4 exhibit, where visitors will pick the winner by casting votes.

There is no sign identifying the gallery in the big yellow building at 1114 S. Main St., only one offering a "Flow-Thru Engine Flush" for $39.95.

But curator Tamarisk Marie says the gallery is booked through the year and receives steady submissions from young, progressive artists seeking a space to show their work. Inside, with a coat of white paint covering the cinder block and brick walls, track lighting and a customized wooden platform and staircase that leads to the loft, the gallery exudes industrial charm.

The beauty of Nevada Radiator Service/Avant Gallery, however, might just be the cultural shift that takes place when walking from the business to the gallery. Unfortunately, the public can't experience that delightful dichotomy because the shop and gallery are never open at the same time. The novelty doesn't escape Marie or Nork, who appreciate the contrast between a pristine gallery and the shop's hazardous chemicals, heavy machinery and greasy floors.

They bought the property in hopes of opening a restaurant and bar in the area, Nork says. "There were a lot of plans for the space, including leveling part of the building for a parking lot ."

Until the restaurant idea comes to fruition, Nork says, they will keep the gallery as a way to support the arts, including visual artists, musicians and video artists who have set up in the gallery's back space. Last month's exhibit included paintings by Danny Bennett, Jessica Knowles and Scott Wood, known for "Waste Your Life, Be an Artist."

Does the radiator business boost the gallery interest? "I think it happens more that way than the other," Nork says, adding that some of the "guys" come to the art openings. One First Friday regular from the shop is Jerry Caperell, manager of Nevada Radiator Service. But Caperell won't be competing in the radiator art contest.

"I see enough radiators all day," Caperell says with a friendly grin. "Art does nothing for me. When someone makes art out of a radiator, I'd just as soon melt it down."