Maren Mullin, founder and owner of Gallery MAR, was just 25 when she made the decision to open her own gallery on Main Street. Fifteen years later, the space remains an Old Town staple and an anchor of gallery stroll, and always has welcoming window displays. But it’s not just about the location; if there’s one thing Mullin has learned in her years of business, it’s that “it has to start with the people.”

When she opened the gallery, Mullin says, “My goal was to have a space that was lit up with great energy and community events … where people felt that they could express themselves.” Looking back at her original business plan “was poignant and cathartic,” she says, “because so much of it is really still where we are today.”

During her first year in business, Mullin worked solo, six days a week. As the gallery grew, she brought on colleagues, whom she felt she learned from as well.  
“As the gallery has developed, it’s become less about the space,” Mullin says, “and more about how things feel, and … how the people are interacting in the space.” Her collectors have remained a relatively constant 50-50 split of locals and visitors, ensuring there are always some new faces, as well as long-standing relationships. 

Gallery MAR represents local Utahns as well as artists working across the United States, and one in Germany, in an intentional “variety of styles and media” selected by Mullin. Some works are impressionistic, some abstract, and some mixed media; most play with texture and color, and many connect to the natural world. However, any landscapes on view are not last century’s nostalgic, Western scenes; rather, they all feel essentially modern, often with some slight twist on their sense of place or past.

Mullin has learned to follow her instincts over the years—she explains that when she began, she felt she needed to “act older” and follow preconceived notions about what a gallerist should do. But “the longer I’ve been in this business, the more authentic I’ve allowed myself, my employees, and my artists to all be—and that just makes everyone’s experience so much richer…. I’m less defined by what owning a gallery and being a gallery owner is—and I’m having a lot more fun.” 

After more than a decade on the same street she says, “New things come in and things move out, but I think the feeling of Main Street is still very much the same. It’s still the heart of Park City.” 

This winter, Gallery MAR features Fred Calleri and Aaron Memmott—two artists who have been part of its roster since its foundation. It will also host its first show of ski map artist James Niehues. The opening reception is December 29, from 6 to 9 p.m.