Lille Aeske Arthouse: The Gallery and Listening Room on Highway 9
Lille Aeske is a 350-square-foot gallery with a stage, adjustable theater lighting and art on the walls around the audience. On concert nights, the room becomes a small listening space for songwriters and other intimate bookings.
The name is Danish for "little box," which is the joke and also the accurate description. The arthouse writes it lowercase with a ligature, lille æske, and sits at 13160 Highway 9.
The gallery
The gallery is open Saturday and Sunday, 11 to 3. It's a white-cube room with adjustable theater lighting, and it has shown paintings and prints alongside ceramics, sculpture, and installation work.
The rotating show hangs for the whole month rather than for one evening, so the weekend hours are a real chance to see it properly. Work is for sale during gallery hours and during events.
The music
Concerts are ticketed and they're the reason to plan ahead. The pattern is consistent: doors at 7, show at 8, $30 in advance or $35 at the door, with food and drinks at the show.
Two songwriter concerts are booked for October: Maya DeVitry and Mark Erelli on Thursday, October 8, and Liz Longley on Friday, October 23. Other ticketed evenings can appear at shorter notice, so check the calendar.
The calendar is where anything new lands first, and the arthouse runs a newsletter for the same purpose. Upcoming Lille Aeske shows also appear on our events calendar alongside everything else happening in the valley.
First Friday, and hiring the room
Lille Aeske helped start Boulder Creek's First Friday art walk and it's still one of the anchors, opening with live music and refreshments alongside the month's art. First Friday falls on the first Friday of the month; check the calendar for the current evening's details.
The room is also available to rent by the hour. What you get is specific: a compact kitchen, a 22-piece dinner service, a redwood banquet table, seating and staging areas, the vaulted gallery, a custom redwood and steel bar, and a lounge. People use it for rehearsal dinners, off-site meetings, private parties, band practice, photo shoots, and pop-up dinners, and a host can be arranged.
Who runs it
Sarah and James Mackessy opened the arthouse in spring 2014 and built its reputation on a listening room, farm-to-table pop-up dinners with local chefs, and First Friday receptions. Their 2018 installation, Spektrum, drew people back repeatedly. They moved to Wisconsin in 2019.
It's since been run as a nonprofit. Lille Aeske Arthouse received its IRS 501(c)(3) exemption in 2022, with Anil Prajapati as CEO and managing director. Its stated mission is to keep arts, music and culture alive and thriving in the San Lorenzo Valley, and the people who run it behind the scenes all live in the valley.
The arthouse says it depends on community support to keep its programming going, through donations, event sponsorships and volunteer time, and it describes gifts as tax deductible. It asks for volunteers when a show needs extra hands and gives them complimentary tickets. Events are all ages unless a listing says otherwise.
Support local arts
Donate, volunteer, or simply show up for the work happening at lille æske. Find more ways to support local organizations on Give Back, Boulder Creek.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Lille Aeske Arthouse?
13160 Highway 9, Boulder Creek, CA 95006. Phone 408-309-0756, email arts@lilleaeske.com.
When is the gallery open?
Saturday and Sunday, 11am to 3pm. It's also open during performances and private events.
How much are concert tickets?
The shows currently listed are $30 in advance and $35 at the door, with doors at 7pm and the music at 8pm.
Is there food and drink at shows?
Yes, at events. There's no standing bar or kitchen service outside of them.
Can I rent it for a private event?
Yes, by the hour. The venue rental page lists what's included and how to ask.
Is it a business or a nonprofit?
A nonprofit. It has held 501(c)(3) status since 2022 and accepts donations, event sponsorships and volunteers.
How do I show my work there?
Through the submission form on its arts page. Work shown at First Friday hangs for the month.
Show dates and gallery hours come from the arthouse's own site and calendar. Its First Friday page and its calendar do not always agree on the date, so treat the calendar as the current one.
Shows are announced close to the date and the room is small, so check the arthouse's own calendar before you plan an evening around it. The downtown guide has the rest of the block. If something here has changed, tell us.
