Nighthawk Gallery & Studio

Nestled in the heart of the Neosho Square is Nighthawk Gallery & Studio, a gathering place where visitors can both view and purchase locally made fine art—and a place for its owner, Cathleen Denise Bailey, to continue creating art of her own. 

But before Bailey ever took the leap to start Nighthawk Gallery, she cut her teeth at another nearby spot called The Clay Cup, a business that’s part coffee shop and part art shop. Bailey started as an intern at The Clay Cup under the guidance of its owner, Jeff Jones. She spent her days helping out in the shop’s studio and teaching classes in exchange for access to the studio.

The Clay Cup would prove to be a crucial stepping stone in her art career, as Jones later offered her a permanent place in his studio and served as her mentor.

Nearly six years after she started at The Clay Cup, a retail space became available in the Neosho Square, and Bailey knew that this was the perfect opportunity to make her newfound dream of running her own fine art retail gallery come to life. The doors of Nighthawk Gallery opened in June 2023, and Bailey says the location is everything she could ask for. The community seems to agree. “I don’t even know how many times I hear people come by and say, ‘I’m so glad this is here in Neosho. I’m so glad you’re here on the Square,’” says Bailey.

Among a strip of other shops and businesses, Nighthawk Gallery fits right into the Neosho community. It’s homey and intimate with comfortable seating. Bailey doesn’t want it to feel cold or intimidating. She says she wants to make fine art approachable. “You know, we have $2,000 to $3,000 paintings, but then we also have things like handmade cards that are $4 to $5,” she says.

The space serves as a retail gallery in the front and Bailey’s personal pottery studio in the back. The gallery features some of her own work, plus anywhere from 16 to 20 other regional artists at a time, primarily from southwest Missouri.

Many mediums are represented: paintings, sculptures, pottery and other small, hand-made items. To Bailey, it’s about more than just selling other artists’ work and her own. “It’s like my community service you could say, being able to bring this art to the community,” Bailey says.