Machina Arts Gallery
Art is an Experience

We view art as an interactive experience in which guests are active participants rather than passive observers. We want our guest to feel immersed in the experience that we have curated from when they walk through the door to when they interact with each staff member or enjoy each dish that they are served. Towards this end, our space is filled with installation art and hidden stories that can be discovered over time should the guest choose to explore.  Our food and drinks are creatively presented and we strive to have our staff be knowledgeable and kind, cultivating an experience of intrigue, ease, excellence, and excitement.

​The ArtBar is created to be a blank canvas for a site-specific contemporary installation artist to come in once a year and do a full install in our space. Instead of a white walled gallery, we have decided to push the norms and have a black walled gallery. 

The ​Kitchen will hold a 3 month rotating gallery with a focus on contemporary  2D artwork. The Kitchen will also be home to a permanent collection created by Jeff Scott. 

Our Current Artists

Wendy Klemperer I ArtBar Gallery
Brooklyn, NY & Nelson, NH

The imagery that pervades my work reflects a lifelong fascination with animals. As a child this led to hours of watching, drawing, and imagining. When I began making sculpture as an adult I developed these mental images in three dimensions. Facility is not the objective of my work, but a means to convey an expressive moment. The materials I use retain a raw, immediate quality. Presence and absence reverberate in the sculptures: a network of steel lines builds the form, drawing and re-drawing the animal, creating a tension like the sudden sighting of a wild beast. The surrounding environment penetrates the negative spaces between the lines of metal; the landscape itself is imbedded in the work.To make the sculptures I search scrap yards for pieces that have been discarded and ravaged by life in the yard. Bent and twisted, such pieces contain energy and a potential new life. Industrial refuse is transformed to living form.

Carolyn Enz Hack I Kitchen Gallery
Keene, NH

My work is driven by a wide-ranging curiosity and a desire to make objects that explore interesting concepts whether societal, scientific, or philosophical. Ideas influence people and perhaps the ultimate work of an artist is to tap into the viewer’s psyche to conjure a transformative experience. I paint and draw but find many concepts more easily translated through sculpture. My chosen media: metal, mineral, and paint, allow for ample exploration of technique and design. Reflective or translucent materials appeal to me because I relate these qualities to the ethereal and ephemeral and I enjoy working with copper because it’s easily formed into interesting shapes, takes paint well, and the color and texture can be changed through patination.

Nat Schmee l Installation Artist
​Winchester, NH

Nat truly believes that art is in everything and everyone, so it should be anywhere and everywhere - on a vacant wall, a sidewalk, or even in a bathroom. Nat moved here from outside NYC where the art scene is strong and  established and Nat is committed to helping make NH a thriving art hub, where the arts are more weird and prevalent.
"Art should hit you when you least expect it. It should make you think, feel, and question what you thought you knew. Everyone can make art. So make it wherever you can and make it often." -Nat Schmee. Nat has commissioned numerous pieces and events for Machina Arts and the Monadnock Community and hopes to continue to "Make Keene Weird."

Rebecca & Chris Hamilton
Design Directors and Installation Artists/Machina Partners and Co-Founder
​Gilsum NH

Jaime Mcguigan l Illustration Artist
​Marlow NH

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Danya Landis
Art Director / Machina Partner / Co Founder

​Danya Landis graduated from The Maine College of Art in 2011 with a Bachelors in Fine Arts in Sculpture. Danya specialized in metalworking, installation art, performance art, and jewelry. Although her studies focused on fine art, her passion, even then, was for craft, design. and curation. In 2013 Danya co-founded Machina Arts because she saw a need in our community for art based cultural activities and with their art-based business started offering art-based event management, experiential interior design, curated interactive galleries, and in 2019 co-founded Machina Kitchen & ArtBar merging art, food, community. Danya has been a welder for over a decade, and has been an artist since childhood, and her work has been exhibited across the country. In addition to Danya’s work with Machina she teaches steel sculpture classes at The Carving Studio in Rutland VT, serves on the Governor's Millennial Advisory Council, and was a founding member of TEDxKeene and Keene First Friday ArtHop. Danya is an active voice for her community speaking out about her passion to create the opportunity for artists to showcase their work, building culture, and mission driven business. Danya is passionate, organized, and has a deep understanding of the need for art in our community and is excited to live, build, and create in Keene.