From tragedy came a symbol of hope for one local artist who used his creativity to help his family and friends deal with a loss.
Brendan Nass of Ellicott City lost his 19-year-old sister, Elizabeth, suddenly in a 2012 train derailment on a bridge above Main Street.
To honor the memory of his sister, Nass and his brother Jon created a logo featuring the letter “E” for Elizabeth with a rose intertwined in it.
Little did he know, the design would launch something much bigger for the town he says his sister loved. Many in the area connect the “E” for her name with the “E” in “Ellicott City.”
“It started out with my brother giving stickers with the logo to our friends and family members, and a lot of people started to associate it with the town in general,” says Nass, 26.
It then spun into an Instagram account featuring Ellicott City-area artists. They called the account “Too Six,” an homage to Elizabeth’s birthday on Oct. 26.
Nass, who lives above the Bean Hollow coffee shop on Main Street, and some of the local artists he’d connected with in person and via Instagram, had an idea to display their work in a pop-up gallery to featuring mixed-media art. The space is a small 5-foot by 8-foot green and tan alcove on the first floor of the building where Nass lives, which they named the Pistachio Gallery — a play on the size of the room. (Pistachio nuts are smaller than peanuts.)
“The reception has been incredible,” said Nass who included collections of his own work along with that of six other artists for Pistachio’s first show during Ellicott City Spring Fest in April. They also sold Too Six logo merchandise, including stickers and T-shirts, during the event.
Zach Bowler, 36, an artist and owner of the Ellicott City visual arts studio Elemental Forms where Nass works, showcased his work with the Too-Six group at the Pistachio Gallery on its opening day.
“People were curious and surprised and confused and all of those things, and I think that’s what he was looking to offer — something a little quirky and unique,” Bowler says.
For Bowler, seeing a group of up-and-coming artists group together to combine resources and ideas is refreshing.
“It’s great to see people like Brendan doing their part in a huge way, and to see it taking off motivates all of us,” Bowler says.
Bill Knapp, a metal artist who’s had a studio on Main Street for almost 12 years, says pop-ups like Pistachio Gallery are important to showcase the growing art scene in the historic area.
“I’d like to see more of them,” Knapp says. “I belong to the Ellicott City Arts Coalition, and we were putting artwork in the windows of storefronts that haven’t been rented and I’ve seen such a positive response to it.”
These sorts of displays, he says, offer artists a venue with less commitment than signing a contract for a gallery space.
“It’s great to have that freedom, and that’s why I think Brendan’s model works really well,” Knapp says. “The more artists the better in my book.”
The Pistachio Gallery, 8061 Main Street in Ellicott City, will open during festivals and events throughout the summer and fall with details posted on the Instagram account “too_six_oec.”