SIXES Art Studio moves to new location after fire

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) - In February, SIXES Art Studio in Downtown Pocatello caught fire, leaving the Pohlman family without many options going forward. 

"Even in the shop fire, I didn't realize quite the severity of what that meant for my family or my business in the moment," said Co-Owner Josh Pohlman. "Coming from a blue-collar background and that socioeconomic upbringing, it was we'll just pull ourselves up by our bootstraps. We'll just get it done. So, I didn't even understand maybe in that moment that I need more help than I was readily available emotionally to ask for."

But it didn't take long for Josh and his family to get the financial support they needed to open their new shop at 225 Yellowstone Avenue. 

While the building is still getting settled, Pohlman says he's glad the local art community will have a new space where they can get supplies. 

"We had a really beautiful outpouring of community support following that fire," Pohlman said. "We realized kind of the needs and the involvement, because at times as we're painting, we don't realize the impact that we're having."

SIXES is heavily involved in local art projects throughout the city, including their latest one, Mural Fest, which gives local businesses a new look by using just a can of spray paint.

"The idea for the murals actually came from seeing a couple around town," said Sodacade Owner R.J. Miller. "I thought, man, that'd be really cool if we could get them to do something inside, because I've always kind of enjoyed looking at the trains and looking at some of that artwork that those those artists put out there in the community."

Miller recently opened Sodacade in the Idaho Grocery Outlet in Pocatello. He needed to decorate his shop, so he reached out to SIXES for a fresh look.

"I think that the city is totally lucky to have SIXES in the community," Miller said. "The amount of things that I know that they've got planned and the amount of things that they have done, I think it's just wonderful for our communities."

For Pohlman, he hopes the new location will give both kids and adults a place where they can express themselves for a positive purpose. 

"Maybe we do a sculpture class that turns into a sculpture that we can install downtown or building benches for a library or something like that," Pohlman said. "It's just a good, clean place where you can work through what you're working through with your peer groups."

There will a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday at 5:15 p.m. at SIXES's new location on 225 Yellowstone Avenue.