After 46 years in business, the popular Amapola Gallery has lost its lease in Albuquerque’s Old Town and will be closing at the end of this year. As the Christmas gift-giving season closes in, the all-local co-operative art space – which first opened in January 1980 – is expecting to shut its doors on Dec. 31, leaving the co-op’s current members wondering if their artistic enterprise can continue.
News came down this summer that a new property owner of the building at 205 Romero St., located on the west side of the Old Town Plaza, would not be renewing the gallery’s longtime lease. The new property owner, whose name has not been disclosed publicly, has asked all commercial tenants in the property, known at the historic “Romero House,” to vacate the premises. Raven Blues Coffeehouse, one of the other Romero House tenants, closed shortly after the sale was announced in July.
“There are presently 38 artists active at the gallery. Two have been with Amapola since it opened in 1980. None of the artists wanted this closure to happen,” says Pamela Troutman, a jeweler who has exhibited at Amapola Since 2018 and who volunteers as the secretary of Amapola’s board of directors. “Since most of the artists are older, retired professionals, a few are taking the gallery closing as a sign to retire from co-operative gallery life. Others are still holding out the hope that we can find a vacant space in 2027 and start the gallery in Old Town again.”
Since July, Amapola board members have been actively searching for a new location, but rents and floor space in the Old Town area have proven to be prohibitive. “Amapola would love to stay/reopen in Old Town,” says Troutman. “Seventy-five percent of our sales are from tourists, and the rest are from locals bringing friends and family to the gallery. Relocating outside of Old Town is not what the membership wants, but reopening Amapola will depend on location, rent and how many artists are willing to return.” According to Troutman, at least six of Amapola’s current member artists have already chosen to retire at the end of 2026.
Amapola Gallery will remain open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily (except Christmas Day) until Dec. 31, with many items – from prints to jewelry to woodwork, ceramics, macrame, quilts, glass photography and more – marked down to help clear out the space.