Grand Junction draws people in for very different reasons. Some are looking for peace and quiet after spending a long time in a city, many are drawn to the nature and freedom and others come here for the art scene that is more well known and established than you might have thought.

There are many appealing art galleries and studios on Grand Junction’s Main Street. I checked out the Working Artists Gallery at 520 Main Street where they have a group of over 90 artists doing everything from pottery, jewelry, fine art and stained glass work that is on sale throughout the store. You can also approach an artist to have a custom piece made for you in great quality.

A little gem that many might not know about is the renowned tattoo artist Erik Campbell whose shop, The Raw Canvas dominates the Main Street tattoo scene. What makes him so interesting is he made it a very long way in the sixth season of Paramount’s tattoo competition TV show “Ink Master.” These are usually considered to be some of the best tattoo artists in the world who make it onto the show, so if you’re in the market for a great new tattoo, Erik might be your best bet.

In my research I also stumbled upon the work of Jim Hutton, a local painter that paints a variety of different subjects but primarily nature scenes, as they are abundant in the area to draw inspiration from. His large-scale paintings are inspired by the Western Slope apparent in his desert color tones, dusty red rocks and rancher and Native American imagery. His work feels very comforting. You can browse through his work at jimhutton.com and there is also information about pricing and availability to be found there.

Some other art galleries I read about that would be worth a visit are the Red Lions Art Gallery, Main Street Art Gallery, Uncanny Valley Art Gallery and James Howard Fine Art. There is an incredible amount of talent to be found in all of these and it’s always empowering and exciting to support local artists.