The community of artists in Peekskill is adding a new form to its creative world with the opening of Bantam Tools Robotics Showroom and Art Gallery in the Flatiron Building next to the Peekskill Coffee House.
The space will serve as a gallery, offer classes to teach the skills of art machines, show the work of digital artists, display a wide collection of digital art and sell unique merchandise.
“This has been one of my dreams,” says Bre Pettis, the owner of Bantam Tools on Water Street and a pioneer in the world of desktop CNC milling machines (and before that, a pioneer in 3D printing).
“I always wanted to be a professional artist with my own gallery but was never able to as young person. Being able to support artists by making technology and showcasing their work is about as dreamy as it gets.”
The showroom and gallery opened this week, offering a special Valentine card custom made on the art machines. And this Saturday (Feb. 15) at 4 p.m., University of Vermont professor and renowned digital artist Jenn Karson will be on hand for the opening reception of her show of original works called “The Generative Tree, Life Lines from Westchester County” that runs through March 9. In addition to the gallery exhibition, Karson will be producing new works live in the showroom, using Bantam robotic art machines, and offering visitors a rare opportunity to witness her process in action.
Bantam Tools arrived in Peekskill from California in 2018, when Pettis relocated his company to their building along the Hudson River. Last year Bantam joined with Evil Mad Scientists when they also relocated here, making Peekskill “the art machine capital of the world,” Pettis said. “There’s no place in the world where you can art machines in action [in public].”
Artists use all types of different applications to create their art on computers. “The beauty of the machines we make is the Bantam Tools ArtFrame and the Bantam Tools NextDraw help artists make physical art from digital designs with traditional materials.” Prices for the machines range from $700 to just under $4,000.
Bantam Tools made an art machine for the Whitney Museum of American Art in November 2023 at the museum’s request. The machine was on display at the Whitney from January to May in 2024. “It doesn’t get any better than launching a product line at one of the most prestigious art museums in the world,” Pettis said. Today, art machines are a major part of Bantam’s business.
Pettis will be displaying his personal collection of digital art throughout the gallery, a collection he started in 2013. One piece currently at the gallery is by Golan Levin, a Carnegie Mellon University professor who teaches a course on drawing with machines. Levin created a database of amoeba-like structures and each time he runs the program, a unique design is sent to the art machine to produce a new piece.
Bantam Tools Robotics Showroom and Art Gallery is just getting started. The plan now is to be open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 12 noon to around 6 p.m., when plenty of people are out and about in downtown Peekskill. “We want to create a showroom for artists as a good member of the community and to show people what Bantam does,” Pettis said. “Peekskill is a fantastic art town.”
