Stephanie Spear 
Most art galleries don’t invite visitors to take a piece home, but that’s part of what makes the premise of a Little Free Art Gallery so special. Art from neighborhood children sits next to pieces sent from professional artists throughout the world, in a variety of media such as painting, collages, drawings, and fiber art. The two things that all the artworks have in common are the size and price: everything is 5”x7” or smaller, and it’s all free. The Fairfax Girl chatted with Stacey Schwartz, curator of a FLAG in Arlington, to learn more about the gallery system. Read on for more about the Little Free Art Gallery concept and how you can participate – or partake – in the art.
About the Free Little Art Gallery
Arlington resident Stacey Schwartz learned about the Free Little Art Gallery (FLAG) concept as part of her studies when she earned a master’s degree in Arts Management from George Mason University. “I noticed they were growing in popularity,” she said. “They were popping up everywhere, especially during and after Covid.”
Seattle-based artist Stacy Milrany is credited with setting up the first FLAG in December 2020. She writes, “I believe that more art should be more accessible to more people– paintings, poems, song, and dance––these personal expressions of our “human-ness” and I hope this little gallery might contribute to that little dream.” There’s no official tracker or governing organization of the FLAGs, but the informal network of curators and supporters is robust and international. Curators exchange ideas and resources and artists can get in touch with curators to share their work.
Stacey was so taken by the FLAG idea that she wrote her capstone project about it. At her 2023 graduation, her husband gave her the actual FLAG that she curates today, which is called the Dominion Hills FLAG.
Stacey had a background in digital strategy and social media, having worked at WETA, Arlington County with Arlington Arts, and at George Mason University – College of Visual and Performing Arts. The master’s degree in Arts Management was the next step in her work of organizing people and sharing information about art. “I realized that for me, curation was the art,” Stacey said. She is now pursuing an MFA in Arts Management.
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The gallery itself looks like a Little Free Library or a Little Free Pantry – a cabinet-like spot for people to take or leave items. It feels a bit like a dollhouse, as the space is decorated to look like a gallery, with ‘wooden’ floors, lighting, and even mini-easels for the artwork.
Stacey said that when she first put up the FLAG, she was afraid it was going to be “an empty box.” But, within a few weeks, community members had already bought into the concept. “I noticed that visitors were interacting with the gallery more like owners, in that they were rearranging things, decorating the gallery, really engaging with it,” she said.
At first, Stacey said that stocking the gallery was really up to her, drumming up connections with local artists. Now, in addition to contributions from local artists and neighbors, she receives artwork from all over the country and the world. “I have so much art,” she said. “I check the gallery a couple of times a day to make sure there’s enough in there, and make sure things are tidy.”
Stacey’s FLAG also has a geocache in it, meaning that geocachers also get exposed to the FLAG. “It’s been a great way to draw new visitors,” she said. “People are so surprised to pull up and see that the geocache is in this tiny art gallery.”
FLAG and the Community
Stacey says that the give-and-take nature of the collection and the fact that all skill levels and nearly all types of media are welcome mean that the gallery is accessible to the community in ways that art typically isn’t.
In her view, the possibilities for the gallery as a tool for the community are endless. “Because the art is created by community members and then shared with other community members, it gives people a space to feel like they can contribute,” Stacey said. She worked on a project with the Aspire program in South Arlington that was an after-school art program for children. “It’s a free program for children from 3rd through 8th grade, and once a month we bring an artist in,” she said. “The students make art and can either take it home or we put it in the gallery to display.”
Stacey has also gotten grants to work with a local artist to create a residency and to put art supplies in the FLAG for neighbors to get inspired. She has worked with the Arlington Collage Collective to create art, and looks forward to seeing where things with the gallery can go. “I’m excited about the future,” Stacey said. “There are so many things I can do with the gallery in terms of sharing art made by community members. I think the gallery can be a really good teaching tool for Arts management since it’s a microcosm of everything that happens in a non-profit, from fundraising to education to marketing.”
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Curating the gallery has been a positive experience. Stacey says that the neighbors are supportive, thanking her and expressing joy at the daily surprise of seeing new art. “There’s a strong camaraderie among the local curators,” Stacey said. “We’re really active on social media, and it’s a great resource. The generosity of the community and the artists is overwhelming,” she said. “I get to look at and interact with all of this beautiful art every day,” she says. “It’s amazing.”
“Whenever I see a little kid out there, it brings me so much joy because it means that they’re opening the gallery and feeling comfortable putting their art in that space,” Stacey said. “It’s a huge goal of mine because I hope that that means that down the road they’re ready to interact with the arts in whatever way that is.”
Neighbors can find the Free Little Art Gallery on North Longfellow Street, between Ninth Road and 10th Street, in Arlington, and follow it on Instagram.
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