Mannequin legs are propped up in front of a board that spells out “Thank you community for the love” in magnetic letters down a driveway in East Austin.
On the other side is a 550-square-foot duplex that houses Collection Rert, a nonprofit art space for community and experimentation.
In 2017, Amanda Jones and Chad Hopper cleared out a room in the house on Rogers Avenue to make space for the project.
“I think it started out as a joke, like — we should turn this into a gallery or something, you know,” Hopper said. “But then thinking more about it, it made sense. And we did it.”
Lorianne Willett
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KUT News
A welcome sign sits in the driveway of Collection Rert.
Since then, they have hosted more than 70 art shows here.
In one of their favorite shows, “Gay Dregs,” artists Beth Schindler and Lex Vaughn created a museum of gay-themed memorabilia and what Hopper called “novelty items you would get at a souvenir store in some alternate universe.” They set up a popup bar in the yard with cheese puffs and cheesy art you’d find in a dive bar.
“The benefit of having it in our home is we don’t have to worry about making money off of art,” Jones said. “It’s obviously just for the love of the art and love of community and growth, like nurturing people’s ideas and their confidence.”
Built in 1961, the house has seen better days. It’s “ramshackle,” as Jones calls it, especially in comparison to the new container-style build next door. But the vibe on Saturday was full of life as friends of Collection Rert gathered to say goodbye to the spot. The property is being sold, and the house is expected to be torn down.
“My original landlord passed away over a decade ago and his family inherited it, and it’s kind of just been not on their radar for quite a while,” said Jones, who has lived in the house for nearly 20 years.
Rent had been “reasonable” for the area, they wrote on their website, but it was only a matter of time before the property was swallowed by gentrification.
Rert is born
Sam Sayre VanDelinder and a couple friends came up with the idea for Collection Rert in his garage apartment on 37th Street in 2004.
“I think he liked watching people try to pronounce it,” Jones said. “It makes your mouth look kind of weird. It makes it do a weird shape.”
Jones inherited the apartment — as well as the gallery — in 2005. She said she was excited to take up the helm and come up with her own events. She held puppet shows, concerts and art shows before moving to Rogers Avenue the next year.
The artist Silky Shoemaker hosted a few exhibits in the original space before it “dissolved,” as Hopper put it.
Nine years ago, he and Jones launched the latest iteration of Collection Rert.
‘Full of mischief’
“The spot is very old Austin — slacker, rundown, overgrown,” Del Wieding said Saturday as he sat outside sketching in his daily art journal. “It has a sincerity to it.”
Across the yard, tables were covered with artwork for sale — collages, mixed media, stickers, zines. Many of it was Hopper’s own humorous creations, featuring animals doing human things. Signs told visitors to create their own prices and throw donations into a bucket or pay through Venmo.
Lorianne Willett
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KUT News
Jones and Hopper are trying to get rid of as much stuff as they can before moving.
Lorianne Willett
/
KUT News
Artwork is for sale at the Collection Rert farewell party Saturday.
Jones and Hopper wanted to get rid of as much stuff as possible before their move.
“The thing that they bring us is not going to disappear,” Wieding said. “If they can keep their spirits up and keep doing it, I don’t see how they can stop, given who they are. They’re full of mischief.”
Hopper and others performed skits on a makeshift stage (one notably involving Hot Pockets). He called people up to answer trivia questions like naming the capital of Delaware or spelling Häagen-Dazs. Winners could choose a piece of art to take home. The only things off-limits, Hopper said, were the two dogs, Amy and Noah.
The gallery inside the house had been turned into a canvas; Vincent Martinez and his 6-year-old daughter were using nail polish and paint to write messages on the walls.
Lorianne Willett
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KUT News
Vincent Martinez and his daughter paint on the walls of Collection Rert during a farewell party.
“I’m just doing a little Amanda and Chad shoutout,” Martinez said while a slideshow of past Collection Rert artwork was projected onto a wall. “They helped me out, like, gave me a free studio for a long time years ago.”
Brittany Gant, an artist who makes collages and works with LED lights, got involved in the Collection Rert world about three years ago.
“Immediately I loved it and I thought I wanted to invest in it. How do I help everybody know what’s going on over here?” she said. “How do you bring more people over here ’cause it’s just like law of attraction: Coolness attracts more coolness. I just wanted to stay and never left.”
She said she hopes more community support comes to Jones and Hopper.
“There’s tons of these tiny little museums hidden throughout [Austin]. What if that was a coalition?” she said. “I’d like to see it build on itself.”
A new chapter
Jones and Hopper said they would miss the lizards that scurried along the side of the house. They’ll be moving about five minutes away to the other side of Manor Road, where Jones — who is a carpenter — will help rehabilitate an old building. That’s the priority right now, she said.
They’re not sure what will come of Collection Rert.
“It’s a little soon to start thinking about that because you don’t know what’s going to happen,” Hopper said. “I just think there’s another chapter somewhere waiting.”
Lorianne Willett
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KUT News
Jones and Hopper say a lot of great art, ideas and friendships have been born at the house.
Hopper pointed out a pumpkin they had gotten in October that was near the front door, remarking on how good it still looked. As Jones passed by, she reached down and grabbed the stem to pick it up.
It broke off.
“It’s time,” Hopper said. “Everything must come to an end — whether it’s a gallery or a pumpkin or an interview.”