Original art doesn’t have to be out of your price range. Unlike the blue-chip art market — which sells sculptures for $91 million — local art festivals are fantastic sources to start building a collection. Colorado excels at outdoor art festivals, with a few dozen occurring each summer all over the state — including quite a few in and around metro Denver. Another art festival has just been announced for June 1 and 2 in the 40 West Arts District in Lakewood — the Art Garage Sale hosted by Next Gallery.

Instead of a traditional art fair or festival, the Art Garage Sale will not only sell finished artworks but also art supplies. Every artist understands the struggle with supplies — whether it’s buying an entire pack of markers for one color or growing away from a certain medium — there is always a need for more tools while there’s also a need to declutter the studio. Constantly restocking or changing supplies is costly, so the Art Garage Sale wants to offer a place for artists to reclaim some of the sunken costs of doing “business” while offering other creatives a discounted deal.

Adrienne DeLoe, an artist at Next Gallery who makes environmentally-focused pieces — and the organizer of the event — said, “I wanted to offer supplies as well as art to really create an event with a community feel. To give artists an opportunity to clear out some of their unused materials and offer other artists affordable supplies. I want this to be an event for artists as well as art appreciators.”

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The deals extend to the finished artworks, as well. All of the artists are represented at co-op galleries including Next Gallery, Pirate Contemporary Art, 40 West Arts and Kanon Collective. Unlike many other art galleries in Denver, these co-op galleries are artist-operated — which means there are no middlemen between fans and creators. This event, as well as all of the exhibitions that occur at the different galleries, is organized by the artists who will display work and sell supplies.

The Art Garage Sale will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on June 1 and 2 in the courtyard of Pasternack’s Art Hub on West Colfax Avenue with food trucks and a mobile bar.

Want to know about more outdoor art events this summer? Check out our list of 15 unusual art and culture festivals in Colorado