BUDA — Sinéad Whiteside and Susan Guerra opened the doors of Inspired Minds Art Center in the heart of Buda’s Main Street in January 2020, with a vision to support both the local artists and the community. Despite setbacks during the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization is preparing to celebrate its fifth anniversary.
“We opened in January 2020. Jan. 25 was our grand opening and we held classes for the first time in February — at the beginning of February -— and then, we had to shut down six weeks later, which was really hard for a brand-new business … [We just had an art opening in the gallery]. It was great and then, everything shut down for COVID,” Guerra recalled. “Sinéad and I didn't know what to do. I thought we were done … We were like, ‘Okay, well now, we go get a real job and we pay off our loans for the next seven years.’ We sat on the gallery floor in the semi-dark. It was during the day, but we just sat there stupefied. What do we do now? How do we fix this? How do we make this viable? Like, we've got bills and obligations and things that we have to pay. Is this really the end? That was fast.”
Whiteside and Guerra did not allow for creativity and love for the arts to be stifled. By June 2020, the co-owners found a way to safely reopen Inspired Minds with hybrid summer camps to offer both in-person and online experiences, as well as virtual gallery exhibitions. Later that fall, the center expanded in-person classes for all ages and launched live performances at The Chambers Theatre while continuing free outdoor events.
