If every dog has its day, Saturday is the one for Bird Dog Arts, which is celebrating its one-year anniversary with a reception and art opening.
Being located at the Outlets at Tejon, the art gallery and retail space takes a bit of business inspiration from its neighbors.
"Like fashion and new lines coming in, we kind of do that with art," said David Gordon, managing partner for Bird Dog Arts."We're always getting new work in, having a show. ... We do fit into an outlet and we can call them (artists) designers."
Gordon partnered with Peter Edelmann and Andy Boyle of EB Development on the 11,000-square-foot space that opened at the outlets just over a year ago.
Prior to this, EB Development opened Art Hound Gallery in Essex, Vt., a similar concept venue featuring work from more than 125 Vermont artists as well as other products produced in the state.
Bird Dog Arts is focused on California art with more than 75 artists' work on display in the three adjacent rooms with much more in the storage area.
For Gordon, there have been two highlights since opening.
One is the type of reception from people who have discovered Bird Dog over the last year.
"They're so surprised and thankful that there is arts available, that there is a space like this," he said. "It's a lot of being discovered, finding fine art in an outlet situation.
"I find a lot of joy through people finding joy in my place."
The other is how many artists now want to be part of the space. Last spring when Gordon was looking for artists to feature, he had nothing to show them with a space and website under construction. ("We didn't really exist for artists to trust us.")
Now the word is out and part of the work is continuing to show the public how Bird Dog Arts continues to evolve with posts on social media. Gordon said he received training on how to make engaging TikTok videos and Instagram reels and has been putting that to practice.
Featured in some videos is Turkey, a black-and-white stray cat that was adopted as the gallery cat. Guests can spot him lounging near art throughout the day.
"He is quite the mascot. We have people from the Bay Area that if they know they have family members stopping by they ask them to take a picture of Turkey and text it to them, to make sure he is still there.
"He has free rent and he works for his food."
Bird Dog Arts has benefited from repeat visitors not only from Kern County but those from the Bay Area as well as travelers taking a break from I-5.
Gordon said the nearby Tesla charging stations — which along with the Supercharger stalls at Tejon Ranch Commerce Center on the west side of I-5, make the area Tesla's second-largest charging location worldwide — have been a big draw.
"We have signs out by them about the gallery," he said. "We've had people tell us, 'I was going to sit in my car (while charging), then I saw your signs about an art gallery.'"
"They spend their charging time with us, no pun intended. Renewable energy is helping us. Electric cars are helping the art world."
A constant rotation of art also helps keep visitors coming back, with new shows opening throughout the year.
Saturday's reception will feature the opening of John Grisbach's "From My Lens: Shore to Peaks."
Now a resident of Frazier Park, the nature photographer had a decadeslong career with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department's Emergency Services Detail, and Gordon said that experience informed his quest to seek out remote locations aiming for the perfect capture.
Fellow artists and Kern residents Fran Gunner and Rob Trains will also have work on display along with Monica Marks.
Looking forward, Gordon sees more opportunities with excitement building for the Tejon Indian Tribe casino project and the Plein Air Painting Festival, which Gordon developed while he was executive director of the Arts Council of Kern and that he will now bring to the arts space.
With another year and a half secured at the outlets, Bird Dog Arts will continue to thrive in its space, Gordon said.
"We’ve popped up but we’re not popping out."
