Today we’d like to introduce you to Julie Gray.
Julie, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts, to immigrant parents who escaped to America during the Vietnam war. I lived there majority of my life and ended up getting married at a young age and lived all around Europe for almost a decade with my ex-husband and two children. I ended up moving to Houston the summer of 2017 a few days before Hurricane Harvey for a fresh start after my mother passed away from cancer and I was going through a divorce. I’ve always been big on art and creativity and upon moving to Houston, I wanted to bring something here that had never been done before, thus coming up with the Playhaus interactive street art gallery idea and bringing it to fruition. Since the opening and closing of my pop up art gallery, I have shifted into the curation of buildings and spaces for other businesses’.
Has it been a smooth road?
It has been bumpy as far as being on my own as a single mother with two kids and no family. I had to figure out things for myself as trial and error along the way but I’m grateful for all of my trials and tribulations because they’ve helped make me who I am today.
Please tell us about District One.
District One Inc. is my company that specializes in curating art in all kinds of spaces. I am a visual architect/creative director and I also do event production on the side. I am most known for Playhaus, which was a pop-up interactive art gallery I opened the summer of 2019. I was proud to do something that had never been done before here in Houston.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I feel like art everyday is becoming more and more popular amongst all different types of people and cultures. When I was younger, if you were into art, you were labeled as a nerd whereas now, being artsy is in. I feel like art itself influences society everyday by changing opinions, instilling values, and translating experiences across space and time in self-expression.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.districtoneinc.com
- Email: julie@districtoneinc.com
- Instagram: @julesoxo @districtonehtx
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