The business of art is complicated. It's different because of it's local significance, product, cultural implications, investment and entertainment factors. A single art gallery is a business. Multiple galleries in a closed vicinity constitute an art community or an arts district.

A good arts district can be a major contributing factor to the health and growth of an entire community. Arts and performance attract smart people to the area work force. It's one of the things they look for when considering moving to an area.

The Northwest is noted for its large body of art, and Bremerton is becoming one of those forces by declaring a downtown area be officially deemed Fourth and Pacific arts district.

In this small downtown area are five fine art galleries, two museums, two performance theaters (Admiral and Chapel), one art school, twelve artist studios and another dozen art-related businesses.

The web is fragile because Bremerton is not retail attractive, the town has a less than sparkling reputation. Most artists are a low income entity, museums and theater are in constant need of funding, the ferries are not catering to the weekend tourists, and the Bremer Trust seem reluctant to subdivide it's large once Navy occupied buildings.

These fragile and complicated factors can be a "positive" in the "big picture." Bremerton holds a fringe element, and that fuels creative development.

Everyone needs to secure the knots of this enormous web for art's sake. And in turn the benefits will be Bremerton's economic rise to success.

Keep and eye out folks. As an art community establishes a name, so do the artists within that community. Buying art is investing in your community and with a little luck that art could be a super investment to your wallet.

(Editor’s Note: Amy Burnett is the owner of the Amy Burnett Gallery in downtown Bremerton and a vigorous proponent of creating an arts district in the downtown area.).