Every rural person and place has a story. Change is part of that story.

“Rural Utah at a Crossroads” is part of the Smithsonian traveling exhibit Crossroads: Change in Rural America, which explores the changing meaning of rural life and identity. Utah Humanities is touring Crossroads to eight rural communities across Utah in 2024. As part of the tour, Utah Humanities and Utah Public Radio are partnering with exhibition hosts to interview local residents about change in their communities.

This interview took place at the Granary Arts Gallery in Ephraim, Utah.

Kelly Brooks: I teach visual arts, and I love it.

I’m trained in drawing and painting, but I love experimentation. I teach time-based media at Snow College, so video and animation, even performance, those are all things that I enjoy. It’s one of the reasons why I really enjoy doing the education workshops with the elementary school kids because we get to do printmaking, watercolor, you know, oil pastels — I’m looking around the studio here — we’ve got all kinds of different projects from our education programming and collage, all kinds of fun stuff. But as you know, for myself, drawing, painting, animation, video, those are the mediums that I work in.

It’s a struggle for people to really support the arts. And I’m all for playing sports and going camping, these are some of the things that I love, but there are a lot of people, including a lot of kids, who benefit from the arts. And it’s tough when city funding or other kinds of funding go to recreation and the arts and culture get left behind.

When Amy and I decided that we wanted to propose Granary Arts as a rural arts center in Ephraim, Utah, we went in with our eyes wide open. We understand that when you have such a small patron base, there are going to be challenges, but we strongly believe in the arts. I think part of that was being able to have a place that was independent from the college, that could bring contemporary art to this place, to introduce it to not just our students, but the community as well.

Putting Granary together while it was hours and hours, and it’s been really like blood, sweat, and tears for the love — so many hours that just you know, came from the bottom of our hearts — it’s been worth it. And I think Granary has really done well in serving this community as a hub for art and culture and ideas. It’s kind of interesting. I mean, Sanpete Valley has more artists per capita than any other place in Utah, which is exciting, and I think there’s reason for that.

One of the things that I’ve learned is you find the folks who put their heart and soul into what they do, and you back them. And, you know, I think that’s subjective. Everyone’s going to have the things that they value most, and it’s not a bad way to do things at all. But that’s kind of what we’ve found, is really get behind the folks that are committed and dedicated. Yeah, that’s the way to succeed and thrive here.

The only parting words I really have is, I find myself still here for lots of reasons. And I don’t think there’s a week that goes by that I don’t express either to someone I know or even just to, you know, the universe: I’m so glad I get to live here. I love it. I’m very appreciative that places like Ephraim exist and that we’re all working to do our best to make the most of a rural community.

“Rural Utah at a Crossroads” is a collaboration between Utah Public Radio, Utah Humanities, and the community hosts of Crossroads: Change in Rural America, a Smithsonian Museum on Main Street exhibition made possible in the Beehive State by Utah Humanities.

Support for Museum on Main Street has been provided by the United States Congress.