This past Thursday, Julie and Phil Wilmot, new owners of The Gallery at Flat Rock, hosted a farewell reception for the gallery’s founder, Suzanne Camarata. Suzanne, who will be returning to Texas to help care for her parents, was greeted by a grateful crowd of friends who filled the gallery to overflowing with best wishes – and occasionally teary smiles. A fitting tribute for a remarkable woman who has been a Flat Rock fixture for the past decade.

When Suzanne Camarata first stepped into the former cafeteria of the old Flat Rock High School in February 2015, she immediately had a vision. Today, that vision has been realized in ways even Suzanne could not have imagined on that cold winter day. Under her stewardship, the Gallery at Flat Rock has become an integral part of life in Flat Rock.

In an apt moment of serendipity, the exact moment of the summer solstice arrived during Suzanne’s reception. As friends gathered around the Gallery’s founder, the seasons officially changed from spring to summer. And, just as the seasons change, the time has come for Suzanne to bid farewell to Flat Rock and turn the page to the next chapter of her incredible and still-evolving story.

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The Beginning

Prior to moving to western North Carolina, Suzanne worked in retail while developing a growing business as a freelance photographer in the Boston area. She loved her work as a photographer. “I love having flexibility. And my day was always different. I found my rhythm there,” she says.

Eventually, she contracted to work for Harvard School of Public Health. That job led to a connection with Harvard Medical School and she parlayed that connection into further jobs with other area colleges and universities. Suzanne had found her career niche. But change was looming. 

During an extended road trip through the southeast in 2014, Suzanne had encountered a stray dog desperate for help. Her heart melting, Suzanne scooped up the emaciated, flea-invested pup and went to find help. The unlikely pair spent the rest of Suzanne’s road trip together getting to know each other and developing an undeniable connection.

Still, Suzanne needed to get back to Boston and returning with the dog she had christened “Charlie” was not a viable option. She left Charlie in the care of a kind-hearted woman she met in Brevard and returned north to continue her life. Charlie and Suzanne, however, had forged a bond that would be strong enough to lure Suzanne back to the Southeast.

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To the Mountains

Suzanne soon confided to her Boston friends that she had resolved to move to the mountains of North Carolina. “I suppose I knew in the back of my mind that I wanted to move eventually,” she recalls. “But Charlie is the reason I moved as quickly as I did.”

Suzanne rented a place in Asheville sight unseen and embarked on building a new life in the mountains. Then, on a cold and wintery February day, Suzanne drove into The Singleton Centre (now Flat Rock Square) in Flat Rock and happened upon a building with a “For Rent" sign in the front window.

THE SPACE THAT WOULD BECOME THE GALLERY AT FLAT ROCK.

Suzanne went to peek in the windows of the large empty space that had once been the cafeteria for the old Flat Rock High School. As she peered in, she realized that the door was unlocked. Since there was no one around on such a dreary day, she stepped into the inviting space with large windows that flooded the rustic wooden floors and high ceilings with natural light.

Standing in the center of the space that is now The Gallery at Flat Rock, Suzanne Camarata was overcome with the feeling that this was where she needed to be. “I took one look in that space and said 'I want to rent it. I don't know what I will do with it, but I want to rent it.'”

Intuitively, Suzanne realized that the space had great potential as an incubator for creativity and community. “It's a really special space. It's open, but it feels warm at the same time." When she came back a few days later to look again, the ice on the sidewalk had melted to reveal a set of dog prints in the concrete leading to the front door. The prints were not Charlie’s, of course, but they did seem to be yet another invitation from the universe. Suzanne resolved to rent the space. She would figure out how to use it later. 

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The Gallery

Initially, Suzanne hoped to partner with 2-3 other photographers and share the space as an office and shooting studio. That plan never really took off and Suzanne quickly realized that the space would be an excellent venue to feature work by some local artists.

Displaying and selling art started out as a sideline, but Suzanne soon realized that her heart was leading her to a new business opportunity. “I thought I would show a few artists. And then it just morphed into what it is now. I think the timing was right. I was ready to get out of photography and The Gallery was really what I wanted to do.”

Suzanne flourished in an environment where she could interact with people more frequently. She also discovered that her knack for bringing people together was a huge asset to the gallery. “I enjoy working with all kinds of people. Bringing different personalities together is really fun. I found my gift.”

She began assembling artists to represent and The Gallery's first show was in May of 2015. Suzanne looks back now and says it took about three years to get to a place where she was happy with her new business. “I truly was just feeling my way through. I didn't know for years in advance that I wanted to open an art gallery. There was a lot to learn.”

Today, The Gallery is one of the area's most well-known and respected art venues and is preparing to host its Ninth Annual Art in Bloom show over the Labor Day Weekend. The Gallery has become a connection point for artists, clients, and local residents. And Suzanne sits at the hub of all those intersections. "I love that the locals will bring people and say, 'This is my gallery.' How cool is that? What an honor!"

Fittingly, Charlie - aka Brown Dog -became the official Gallery Ambassador for The Gallery at Flat Rock. Visitors would find her napping contentedly in her bed below a display table or vigorously wagging her tail in an enthusiastic canine welcome to The Gallery. One could argue that she was the most recognizable dog in Flat Rock. Suzanne and Brown Dog soon becamne two of Flat Rock’s most iconic residents.

Nine years later, Suzanne remains a tireless advocate for the importance of art in our lives. "Art takes us out of our normal realm. It's good to have beauty in your life - whatever that might mean. A view outside your window, or the people you choose to hang around with. Objects can have incredible beauty, but they also have a lot of energy to them. I love when people put things in their space and every time they walk by a piece of art they feel so good.” 

After a long and winding road, the child of multiple countries, cultures, and families has discovered a true “sense of place.” And she, more than most, can appreciate the power of that feeling. “The Gallery gave me roots," she says. "While I still fumble with the question of 'Where are you from?', the people in my life who I have met through The Gallery have become my tribe.”

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Transitions

When Suzanne announced the sale of her gallery to Julie and Phil and her plans to move back to Texas, Suzanne’s friends were quick to put aside their disappointment and rallied in support of her decision. One Gallery artist in particular, poet/photographer Tim Jones, put into words how so many of us feel about the impending change.

Life is an endless cycle of hello and goodbye, but I wish there weren’t so many goodbyes.

In 2016 I said hello to having my creative work represented by the Gallery at Flat Rock. I never guessed that would lead to the owner (and all-around art wizard), Suzanne Camarata, becoming like a beloved sister to me. As we collaborated on one creative project after another a sort of magic started to unfold.

This was an unexpected path that opened in front of me. Once I stepped into it, my soul knew immediately it was what I was supposed to be doing all along. It just took someone like Suzanne Camarata to encourage me and open the door. She has been unwavering in her support through this unscripted, meandering, joyful journey.

Now Suzanne is selling the Gallery and moving to Dallas so she can give to her parents the kind of love and support they need. There’s no surprise there, because that’s just who she is---blessing others along every step of her journey.

Suzanne’s support has been a scaffolding around me so we could build and birth new things together. I can’t imagine what my life would be like right now had it not been for her constant urging me forward and cheerleading new projects.

So here I am today picking up a few remaining items and saying goodbye. I will forever be grateful our paths intersected. Gosh, what an adventure we’ve had together!

I’m so, so very grateful. -Tim

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Coda

Although I am reluctant to follow the eloquence of Tim’s words, I will try to add a few final thoughts of my own.

As she did for Tim, Suzanne generously invited me into the Gallery’s orbit. I’ve been fortunate to spend the past few years working with her on the Gallery website and in concert with many artists she recommended as new clients for my services. This past spring, she invited me to speak at The Gallery in one of the true highlights of my years in Flat Rock.

Throughout our time together, Suzanne has been a constant source of inspiration. Along with her keen eye for the aesthetic, Suzanne’s gentle spirit and unwavering grace have flowed past her gallery’s doors and infused our village with a truer sense of what it means to be in community. Suzanne quietly invited us to congregate in her gallery and celebrate the beauty around us – with both the art she assembled and through the very real human connections she fostered among so many that would have otherwise never met.

Perhaps Suzanne Camarata’s greatest gift to all of us was a gracious presence that afforded each of us a warm and welcoming place to be the best possible versions of ourselves. Although quiet and unassuming, her positive influence will echo loudly through our village for years to come.

I, for one, cannot imagine a more enviable, and well-deserved, legacy.

It’s been a magical time. Thank you, Suzanne.

-Bruce