Eileen Baumeister McIntyre Creates Community at Art Studio Hamptons Gallery in Westhampton Beach

Westhampton Beach is unique among its sister Hamptons for not only its western location, but also for its quaint village comprising mostly small businesses run by the locals. One business owner who has thrived in Westhampton Beach, and has uplifted her community as she’s done so, is Eileen Baumeister McIntyre, artist, state-certified art teacher, and owner of Garden of Silver and the one-of-a-kind Art Studio Hamptons Gallery.

Baumeister McIntyre has been teaching art and graphic design for over three decades at Newfield High School, Suffolk County Community College, Studio E and, most recently, Art Studio Hamptons. Studio E, which she opened in Miller Place in 1991, marked her first independent art school business and helped many students to blossom in the 15 years she owned it. After selling the business, she turned her focus to the development of her own art, created in the mediums of colored pencil, pastel, watercolor, oil paint, silverpoint and jewelry.

With a newfound love of custom art jewelry, Baumeister McIntyre opened the Garden of Silver in East Hampton, later moving the business to WHB where she fell “in love with Westhampton Beach.” While the display cases at Garden of Silver, a frequent winner of Dan’s Best Hamptons Jewelry Store, were filled with fashionable adornments, the walls showcased her fine art, prompting customers to inquire about classes.

Baumeister McIntyre answered the call by opening Art Studio Hamptons on Old Riverhead Road in Westhampton Beach. This location off the beaten path operated for a little over two years before transitioning to its current spot, a “dream gallery space” just off Main Street, in summer 2023, she explains. The new location inspired a vision for a hybrid business model, with Art Studio Hamptons classes now operating out of the reimagined Art Studio Hamptons Gallery.

“Now that we have this amazing space, we’re rocking and rolling in the art world. It’s a whole new business in addition to the fine art teaching,” Baumeister McIntyre says. Upon entering the Art Studio Hamptons Gallery, visitors see a dedicated gallery space filled with works by mid-career and beginning professional artists. To their right is a sampling of the owner’s jewelry pieces from Garden of Silver, displayed against a partition wall that creates an intimate classroom space behind it. The classroom walls act as an extension of the gallery space, but even when no class is in session, the room’s educational nature remains clear.

Baumeister McIntyre shares that she initially felt compelled to hide the classroom elements during major gallery shows, but has since reconsidered the shared space as a positive. “It ends up being exciting for people that are coming in to view the art, to see tubes of paint, paintbrushes and easels, and to think about creating themselves. People that have come just to look at the art gallery have turned into students of ours.”

Under the banner of Art Studio Hamptons, Baumeister McIntyre and seven other instructors teach art classes for adults and children, empowering students with skills ranging from drawing, painting and ceramics to animation, digital art and Adobe Photoshop. In addition to regularly scheduled classes, summer 2024 camps will take place July 1 through August 30, each dedicated to a single art focus, be it sculpture, fashion or video game design. “We’re even doing some virtual reality workshops this summer,” she adds. “The possibilities are just so exciting in the digital world.”

Leading the adult classes exclusively, Baumeister McIntyre utilizes what one student describes as a “community-based” approach to teaching that fosters creative experimentation in a relaxing setting. “It’s such a positive and very laidback and open environment,” she says. “People that come here, they just love the feeling and love that they’re able to come in and relax. It just has a really good vibe.”

Her classes, limited to 10 students, have a general structure but are flexible to the needs of the class or to a student who needs individualized instruction. And artists looking to paint in a welcoming environment are invited to sign up, as well. “We have people that have been coming here for years and continue on with their work and get critiques and help along the way. It’s not the kind of place where everybody is painting the same exact thing on a canvas at once,” Baumeister McIntyre explains. “We do color mixing and all different techniques according to material and sequence of how to actually, start to finish, create a piece in whatever (material that the students) use.”

On the gallery front, Baumeister McIntyre has big plans for Art Studio Hamptons Gallery’s second summer, starting with the Prelude to Summer exhibition that opened this month and is on view through May 12.

The show features a curated collection of works that capture that warm summer feeling while the East End struggles to ditch its winter temperatures. The gallery’s represented artists on view include Dan’s Papers cover artists Jennifer Hannaford, Jen Contini and Denise Franzino, as well as Stephanie Erdel-Laws, Jacqueline DuBarry, Nadia Klionsky, Adam Smith, Kirsten Bowen and Kathryn Maher, a recent addition to the roster. Baumeister McIntyre is especially excited to include the art of recent Ukrainian emigrant Natalia Nosyk, whose work she describes as “really vibrant, with gorgeous brushstrokes.” In an effort to pay each artist what their art is worth, while also keeping art accessible to a wide demographic, Baumeister McIntyre works with Art Money, a business that arranges full payment to a gallery at the time of purchase, while the buyer pays 10% down and the remaining balance over 10 months.

Baumeister McIntyre also has a few of her botanical and seashell artworks on view in Prelude to Summer, and she’s noticed that her first year as a gallerist has had a positive effect on her as an artist. “It’s just like being in an art museum every single day because you can get right up close and really study the pieces — study how the different artists work and how they handle subject matter and mediums,” she says. “I have tried so many new things because of some of the artwork that has come in here, so it’s been inspirational to me.”

Additional summer exhibitions are in the works, but one major happening that can be announced is the Art Studio Hamptons Gallery’s debut at the prestigious Hamptons Fine Art Fair, returning to Southampton July 11–14. “I’m excited about hitting the demographic that goes to that show. It kind of puts us on the map as a local gallery from the other side of the canal,” Baumeister McIntyre says.

Spreading her time between Garden of Silver, Art Studio Hamptons classes and the gallery is a complex juggling act that requires careful scheduling and trusted staff, Baumeister McIntyre shares. “I have staff working at both places, which allows me to bounce back and forth — actually running back and forth on Main Street. I get a lot of exercise,” she adds.

It’s clear to anyone who meets her that despite the full plate, she’s happy to be doing what she’s passionate about in a community that she cares for. “I am an art teacher. … That’s in my blood. I love to teach, and I really don’t want to give that up,” she says. “I love creating art. I love creating jewelry. I love just being able to do what I love, and then be able to provide jobs for my art teacher friends and provide income for other artists when selling their work. … It’s a good life.”

The Art Studio Hamptons Gallery is located at 108 Main Street #2, Westhampton Beach. For classes, visit artstudiohamptons.com.

To stay up to date on upcoming exhibitions, like and follow the gallery at facebook.com/artstudiohamptonsgallery. And to learn more about Eileen Baumeister McIntyre and her art, visit ebaumeistermcintyre.com.