Many times in the pre-pandemic days, I would walk past a storefront named Hunt & Gather and peek into the window to see a gathering of folks making or celebrating surrounded by art. I often wondered what was going on and today I got my answer. I met with DeeDee Hunt, owner and founder of Hunt & Gather, an art community space for event planning.
What does that mean? DeeDee delves into where her inspiration came from. Growing up in a small suburb in SoCal, she wanted to create the art community she so lacked in her childhood. “Every time my family traveled to San Francisco, I saw art everywhere and fell in love.” DeeDee explains. She pursued that love and moved to San Francisco for her college education, majoring in graphic design at SFSU. After graduating, she organized art shows for various people and organizations. In 2018, DeeDee opened Hunt & Gather and since then has hosted art shows, birthday parties, cooking classes, engagement parties and team building workshops.
A small yet versatile space, Hunt & Gather has undergone many changes and is constantly evolving. In a pandemic especially, event spaces have had to pivot drastically to diversify what they offer. In the past few months, DeeDee has brainstormed some incredible ideas for her event space. In April, she is launching Bloom on Zoom, a virtual branding bootcamp for creative entrepreneurs. She’s also started a subscription based incubator space for folks to meet and art to be featured starting in March. Finally, there is an online pop up shop on the Hunt & Gather website where you can purchase local art and eco-gifts. “I’m an idea person” DeeDee laughs. I can’t help but agree as I list the many projects she is inspired to work on!
Sign up for Bloom on Zoom or purchase a piece of local art on the Hunt & Gather website to support this small business!
-Valentine Batra
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