About the founder

While studying informational graph theory in Budapest in her early 20s, the future founder of The Growlery, took off for Transylvania with nothing more than a small backpack with a change of clothes and a large knife. One night, while stranded in a small village, an old woman who spoke no English welcomed Jean into her home, insisting on killing a chicken to feed her foreign guest. Jean was so touched by the woman’s hospitality that she decided that very evening to establish a living space for fellow dreamers.

Known to many as “the Beige Ghost”, Jean earned her undergraduate degree in mathematics augmenting her intense academic pursuits with adventurous self-expression. She’s a video game enthusiast, sci-fi and fantasy fanatic, and retro-futurist; in other words, she puts the tron in patron. Some say she embodies the intellectual rigor of Archimedes with the refined taste of Peggy Guggenheim and the horrific singing voice of Florence Foster Jenkins. A Bay Area native, she never brags about her sharp parallel parking skills. She enjoys candlelight dinners, long walks on the beach, souped-up electric vehicles, and real hip-hop.

THE GROWLERY'S MISSION

To create an environment for artists and creators that will encourage growth, discussion, and reciprocal influence among members of our diverse community.

About the growlery

growlery \grou-‘ler-ē\ noun; a place of refuge or retreat.

The Growlery has moved to Oakland, California. Our new 3400 sq ft facility includes an extensive woodshop and potential gallery space. Due to the pandemic our residencies are on hold, but we are still supporting local artists and dreaming of what will come post-pandemic.

From 2015-2020 it was a privately run artist residency centrally located in San Francisco’s historic Haight-Ashbury neighborhood. Residencies at the Growlery ranged from one to three months. Artists lived rent-free in a beautifully restored Victorian-era home and have the opportunity to work in a small, diverse group of peers. 

Among the Growlery’s first residents were a photographer, a graffiti artist, a woodworker, and an installation artist. The Growlery has worked with sculptors, muralists, textile artists, and is open to individuals from other disciplines. 

In addition to residencies, the Growlery has commissioned murals, sculptures, and installations, and continues to accept proposals from interested artists.

Artists with questions should direct their inquires to contact@thegrowlery.org.