Our Story

The tradition of artists occupying the mill building begins In 1997, with Lorri Primavera, Marion Kassab & Mary Gordon, co-founding Heron Studios on the first floor. The walls dividing the studios grew organically as more artists joined their growing community. Lorri and Mary continued to create art in their studios here until 2021 growing the seed of the artist community they planted into a thriving artist community which expanded into the surrounding area.

Heron Crest founders, Claire Brill and Heidi Hammel, started looking for studio space in 2006 when both realized that they no longer fit in their small at-home studios. Intrigued by the second floor of the old mill, and armed with the encouragement of friends and members of the art community, they took the leap and opened Heron Crest Studios in February, 2007.  "It's the best thing we've ever done," says Hammel. Today the studios serve nearly 30 artists and offer a teaching studio and gallery space.

In December of 2021, Heidi passed the torch of leadership to Veronica Batter, the new President of Heron Crest Studios. Veronica worked to reopen the first floor space with new studios, gallery, and teaching space and combine both the first and second floor under one new name. On Jun 1, 2022 the former Heron Studios space on the first floor and Heron Crest Studios on the second floor were joined as Aston Mills Arts.

Aston Mills Arts hosts an Annual Art Show & Sale, an open studio and sale, the middle two weekends in November. The community is welcome to visit us then, and the couple of times a year we have Open Studios.  The rest of the year studios are open by appointment only.