The Japanese word "Shibui" translates as "intrinsic beauty" or "exquis-iteness difficult to express." For Mitch Witkowski, it translates into a communion of art and nature. For him, the gallery he started three years ago at 955 Cherry St. SE represents a chance to do much more than hang a few paintings.

"I've always had this idea of having a gallery and an architectural studio, ever since I was a young boy." Witkowski said. "I feel like I'm part of a vision that's bigger than all of us. The work that I have to do is bring beauty into people's lives. This is a wonderful opportunity to do that."

The gallery originated when architect Witkowski was hired by Don Marek to help with the design of the Boulevard House. The history of this Cherry Street locale is particularly rich. Witkowski related: "The original structure was an old inn that was constructed in the 1870s. It was on the outskirts of town on the main trading path between Grand Rapids and Lansing. That's all a part of what Lake Drive is."

"It's got all the original tin ceilings. I took all the walls down to the brick, and once the old bricked-in windows and the stairway that went off the side of the building were exposed, it was such a wonderful historic find." Witkowski cited Frank Lloyd Wright as one of his principal influences. "The art that inspires me has always come from nature. Wright's work is an expression of his own involvement with nature and growing up in Wisconsin, his own study of architecture and the history of architecture in the world. I think he also was very inspired by the light and how it's always changing. There's a romance ... a sense of correctness."

His own family history wouldn't seem to lend itself to artistic endeavor. Witkowski's parents were from the mountain region in Poland and were imprisoned in work camps during the war. They escaped from a camp in Austria and traveled through Italy and joined the Allied forces. Witkowski was born in England and raised in the Detroit area after immigrating to the United States at the age of 5. He came to Grand Rapids in 1976.

Nature played an important role in his youth. "I have fond memories of where we lived in England. We were in a displaced persons camp. There was forest across the way, and the child care given at that particular time often involved excursions into nature and nature studies. In Detroit, there were weekend trips to farms ... and there was this great park system. There was always this draw to nature. In my middle age, I see the importance of it and what an education it was. I think that's what connected me to Frank Lloyd Wright.

Witkowski recalled reading an old article in a 1956 House Beautiful magazine. "I saw this word 'shibui' mentioned and I was really drawn to it. In fact, the whole magazine was devoted to how we could bring naturalness into our lives, how the Japanese had evolved this idea of shibui"

— Dani Lane
Grand Rapids Magazine, December 1992