New Book Inspired by Kettle Art Gallery is More Than Just Pages About Art

As Dallas grows, it’s important to take a deeper look into what really gives the city its cultural identity. For some, it’s Frank Campagna. The founder of Kettle Art Gallery spent his life at the center of Dallas’ cultural scene, and a new book, For the Love by Jason Hensel, tells the story of the local legend’s life, chapter by chapter.

For many, Dallas has long been considered a stopover city, apart from Deep Ellum, the mecca for cultural vanguards. Campagna, born in New York City, spent his teenage years in the ’70s venturing into Dallas’ art hub after his family relocated to the region. Forty years later, Campagna would be dubbed “the godfather of Deep Ellum,” following a whirlwind career as a muralist and curator.

For the Love takes an in-depth look at the organic culture surrounding Campagna’s origin story, timed with the Kettle’s 20th anniversary. The beautifully crafted book is a series of essays from those within the artist’s orbit. The chronicle serves as a historical recounting of a neighborhood in transition, and of the gallerist who molded deep cultural connections as it evolved.

“Change happens,” Campagna tells the Observer. “To avoid becoming bitter, obsolete and stuck, you must understand it, evolve with it and find a way to make it work for you. When we first opened, part of the intent was to help offset the hit the live music scene took when [venues] shut down, and that spirit of adaptation has stayed with us ever since.”

The page-turner, an easy 257 pages, is composed of photos, artworks and personal essays, with entries from noted names of the local arts scene such as Jeff Liles, Robert Wilonsky, Anne Bothwell and more. For Hensel, telling these unique stories in first-person was essential to ensuring the book reflects the gallery’s authenticity.

“The gallery’s story could only be told as a collection of voices, because that’s what the gallery itself is,” the writer told us. “Frank said many times that the book isn’t about him; it’s about the community. By telling the story through multiple narratives, we hope to offer a more well-rounded view of the gallery and of Frank’s influence on the artists and the neighborhood.”

Kettle Art Gallery’s Ethos Ensures Its Longevity

The book outlines the establishment of the gallery in 2005 as crucial for developers facing stark changes that the early aughts brought to the neighborhood. In fact, Campagna’s gallery project, along with Kettle’s first artist cohort, may have been the only thing that saved Deep Ellum’s cultural cachet as businesses closed left and right. Through two decades of success, the artist’s commitment to hard work and diversity has remained unwavering in his business practices.

“From the start, Kettle was created to push back against the uptight, fancy-pants stereotype often associated with traditional galleries,” Campagna says. “Our goal was inclusivity over exclusivity, focusing solely on the strength of an individual’s work and not their sexual identity or the color of their skin. The bigger picture was simple: check your ego at the door and play well with others.”

This ethos worked out well for Campagna and his arsenal of artists. For Stephanie Khattak, owner of K.Co Press, which published For the Love, Kettle Art was the starting point for some of her favorite Texas artists. 

“It’s always in a state of flux, this city,” Khattak says. “Dallas is a city of very distinct neighborhoods. I mean, what do we stand to lose if more of the cultural institutions of Dallas go the wayside… Kettle is really a special place in that kind of way, and it’s important to preserve that.”

In a city that is constantly evolving, and sometimes devolving into cookie-cutter clutter, Kettle Art Gallery just may be one of the last standing spaces for organic community. On Feb. 14, Kettle Art Gallery celebrates its latest show, For the Love of Kettle, a homecoming of sorts for the gallery’s 20-year roster of artists and collectors, offering both affordable art and an authentic connection to the city. The show features more than 150 artworks, all available for $75.

“We’ve always been more interested in offering artists a place to show, grow, and learn alongside others with a shared mindset and the hope of building successful careers in the visual arts,” Campagna says. “Because of that, we’ve seen a lot of incredible talent come through our doors, stay for a while, and eventually move on after finding new ways to advance their careers. That constant evolution keeps the door open for new blood.”