Elevating one environment at a time with significant art.
Art: Ann Beinecke
ARTS COVERAGE
from ARTISTS
Juniper Rag isn’t here to play by the old art-world rules. We spotlight the wild mix of artists and scenes shaping culture right now—from underground collectives to global voices rewriting what creativity looks like. Think of it as pop culture grit colliding with journalistic art talk. We cover it all through the eyes of the artists themselves, because they’re the ones pushing the boundaries.
Since the start, we’ve been about breaking hierarchies and amplifying fresh voices across every discipline. Diversity isn’t a box we tick—it’s the pulse of who we are, from the artists on our pages to the team behind them.
Juniper Rag has become an impactful curatorial consultancy founded by Payal Thiffault and Michelle May.
After notably founding Atelier ID Global, and the the acclaimed fundraiser for the arts, Cirque du Noir, the partners established Juniper Rag in 2021, carving out a unique space for themselves as both art advocates and curatorial consultants.
Building on decades of design and art world experience, the partners established Juniper Rag (JR) with a mission of elevating residential, healthcare, hospitality, entertainment, and civic spaces with significant art. Working with corporate as well as private clients, JR’s success lies in strategizing and implementing dynamic cultural programming and site-specific artworks as well as regionally sourced art for small to large-scale projects. Our community involvement and this strategy sets them apart. Payal Thiffault and Michelle May bring their integrity and wealth of talent in their artist network into our shared spaces, leading to next-level environments and vibrant communities for all.
Juniper Rag and Atelier ID Global are women and minority owned.
“We are artists ourselves, using decades of experience in luxury paper and home goods to elevate artists. We founded Atelier ID Global to build and elevate brands and we do the same for creatives through programming at Juniper Rag.”
Co-Founders, Michelle May and Payal Thiffault
ARTISTS
Uniquely, we identify worthy artists and creative businesses. We are always seeking important and thought provoking visual art to share with the world.
COMMUNITY
Real relationships matter because networks and referrals are most often personal connections. Our artists and collaborators value strong reciprocal relationships.
COLLABORATION
Collaborations are everything. Uniting with another force on a project always benefits both parties. We love working with galleries, museums and other organizations.
our mission
Build an empowered community, drive a curious audience & champion a new approach to the future of art.
Juniper Rag is an organization for high-level artists, collectors and art enthusiasts. We are committed to elevating and promoting artists and creative businesses to enhance and capitalize on efforts of growth through a nurturing community. Juniper Rag is passionate about improving the lives of others through cultural enrichment. We support artist risk-taking, experimentation and feature the most innovative and ambitious visual artists. Our rich community welcomes diversity and inclusion of all visual artists and appreciate work from traditional to avant-garde. We welcome guest curators and collectors for collaboration, with an ambitious effort to move the creative economy forward all around the world.
Comtemporary artists at the core of creativity and the future of visual art can be found at Juniper Rag.
Relationships are important to us and we are invested in every artist we engage with. We also encourage each cohort of artists in exhibitions to meet and network with others in their group, enriching their own network as well as the Juniper Rag community as a whole. We enable artists by fostering relationships and sharing opportunities through our contacts.
We offer creative services for artists, art organizations and non-profits. Ambitious emerging artists and mid-level artists can look to Juniper Rag for inspired blog posts, social media support, live and virtual exhibitions, gallery collaborations, guest curators and learning how to step outside of your normal modus operandi.
the difference
Juniper Rag: Operates outside the limitations of corporate sponsorships, large institutional boards, and bureaucratic red tape, allowing for more risk-taking and innovative programming. We do not have to balance the interests of donors, corporate sponsors, and city stakeholders, that sometimes leads to less provocative exhibitions to maintain funding.
We prioritize artists as the central decision-makers rather than being structured around administrative agendas or fundraising goals. Many art associations function with an administrative board and governance model that, while supporting artists, is ultimately responsible for keeping the institution financially viable, not focusing on art sales, but on raising money and keeping the lights on.
We highlight more radical, underground, and experimental work that challenges social norms, promotes activism, and explores decentralized art movements. Many local organizations have to maintain a level of accessibility and appeal to a broad audience, which can result in exhibitions that are more pedestrian or less stringent with acceptances rather than provocative and with a high barrier to entry.
Juniper Rag is hybrid: We take advantage of digital platforms, virtual exhibitions, and decentralized art spaces, allowing for global reach and innovative networking, as well as collaborating with physical galleries and arts organizations and corporations. We do not have to rely solely on physical gallery spaces and local engagement, which can limit reach. We love this face time that strengthens ties to the immediate local arts community and increases potential for art sales.
We encourage a freeform, self-sustaining art community where artists support each other without traditional institutional oversight. We provide structured opportunities, networking events, and educational programming, offering stability for emerging and established artists as well as promotion to a global audience.
our ethos
Impact & Advocacy: With every call for art and exhibition, collaboration and effort we put forth, we consider what our organization's effect on the artists and communities are that it serves. This could include promoting artists to new markets, fostering artistic development, promoting social change, or revitalizing and activating spaces and cities as arts hubs.
Community Engagement, Inclusion & Equity: We do our very best to connect with and involve all of the local community and we are always looking for new pathways to involve more artists with little barriers to get involved.
Sustainability & Economic Development: Our organization has a fragile but sustainable model for its programs and operations. We are a 2 person organization, birthed from the need we identified as artists ourselves. We know the challenges and work creatively to keep the lights on.
Innovation and Forcasting: The Juniper Rag project by Atelier ID Global employs creative and innovative approaches to its work and looks ahead for advantages and insight from trends to effectively serve artists and protect what we are building for our community. It is all an experiment that we are committed to everyday.
our core
Founded in 2021 by Payal Thiffault and Michelle May, we use our 40+ years of combined skills to elevate artists, driven in our ability to connect people, our true superpower.
We emerged from the printing industry. We were first fine artists, then designers. We became trend forecasters and buyers, marketers and project managers. We helped grow one of the top luxury stationery brands in the US, with brick and mortar and three e-comm companies, simultaneously. We managed collaborations with Condé Nast/BRIDES, Neiman Marcus, GILT Group and our designs were sent out by hundreds of crazy celebrities, royalty and rock-and-roll icons. The knowledge we have for elevating brands and luxury items is second nature to us, so it was only logical that we try to help artists. Identifying pathways to connect artists with collectors and support their art careers is something we are personally passionate about.
Art lovers and artists can learn through artists features written by us and guest writers, print and digital marketing campaigns organized and planned annually, curated exhibitions virtual and in-person, our guest jury shows with other galleries and art orgs and many other collaborative projects that we present annually, partnering with some of the most prestigous organizations in the arts, like Mechanics Hall Worcester, Art Newport, New Art Center, ARCK Boston, Show Up! Boston, and more. Juniper Rag also focuses on new and exciting creative technology that is evolving every day.
With Juniper Rag, we have had some wonderful collaborations with Spectrum Health Systems, CUSP Gallery Provincetown/Newport, New Art Center in Newton, ARCK in Boston, Mechanics Hall in Worcester, Fountain Street Gallery in SoWA, The White Room, and Worcester Center for Crafts, the Mayor’s Office of Art and Culture in Boston for The Fay Chandler Emerging Artists exhibition and more. We attended in Basel Miami, Scope and Untitled as well as Ignite Broward in Fort Lauderdale, CODAMade Summit at Mad Arts in Dania Beach, Florida. Looking to the future, we research and work to gain insight into public art impacts and the landscape of digital art.
Juniper Rag hosts 10-12 virtual and live exhibitions a year, as well as curating for gallery partners, promoting thousands of artists and cultural organizations.
Juniper Rag Collaborations
Sharing content and leveraging our impact with social media elevates our collaboration with partners—galleries, local non-profits and municipal organizations that have similar missions. We drive traffic to our events and support the artists involved. We all know that art, community and culture can impact the world. We’d love to consider your organization for collaboration. There are many ways we can work together.
CURATION & JURYING
We are available to guest curate and/or jury exhibitions for galleries all around the world. We’d love to apply years of experience and support your organization. Contact us!
EXHIBITION MANAGEMENT
We have been curating luxury brands, hosting fundraisers, art auctions and exhibitions for over two decades. Juniper Rag has a record of lively, top-notch exhibitions that are highly organized and tightly managed to make your organization look stellar. We are detail oriented and know how to prepare, collect, curate and install artwork. Contact us if you’d like to collaborate.
Atelier ID Global is the marketing agency behind Juniper Rag.
With Juniper Rag magazine, we focus on elevating artists and creative businesses, because we are artists and we know the challenges.
Uniquely, we identify incredible artists, designers and creative businesses and share them with people that thrive on all of it. Oh, we are quality snobs that palpitate at the sight of interesting visual art. We love anything with an edge, that makes people stop and think. We are also artists, who have decades of design and marketing experience. Our digital agency is Atelier ID Global.
After over two decades of design and marketing success, we founded Atelier ID Global. We wanted to continue our magical creative partnership. In our past lives we designed some pretty snazzy work for a luxury brand stationery company that twice made Inc. magazine's 5000 List of Fastest Growing Private Companies in America. We have worked directly with editors of the finest magazines on product design and marketing campaigns.
Our past designs have also been featured on Brides Live Weddings, The Today Show and Good Morning America. Additionally, some pretty prestigious organizations and celebrities have enlisted our designs, like presidents and royalty, rock bands, movie stars, famous chefs and even muppet makers.
Locally and more recently, Atelier ID Global has designed the branding and websites for Juniper Rag, Kelley Square Lofts, Worcester Public Market, The Market Pantry, Starr Home Care, and Nivi / AskNivi in Nairobi and Delhi. We also handle social media, from cybersecurity to logistics, we deliver social growth strategies that drive and nurture leads for our clients.
Michelle May, proudly from Worcester/Falmouth, MA, by way of UMASS Amherst, now residing in Paxton, MA.
Payal Thiffault, a Worcester Clarkie by way of Oman and Mumbai, now living in Easton, MA.
We believe at Juniper Rag, that to create a vibrant and authentic home environment, original artwork brings culture and community to your space.
Roughan Interiors, Image by C. Bednar
Roughan Interiors
Roughan Interiors, Image © Jane Beiles
No matter what your budget allows, your home is where you live, may work, and gather—
Your home is made more vibrant with touches of handmade objects and pieces of art collected over time, from all kinds of sources, antique fairs and yard sales, to galleries and artisan websites. Research shows that children that grow up learning about and making art have more appreciation for culture and creativity, growing into strong critical thinkers with a more connected feeling about family and community.
We know that art brings so much value to our lives — it generates an emotional response, sparks interesting conversations, and represents a memory. It may eventually serve as a smart investment or treasured heirlooms.
No matter what your style is — classic, farmhouse, whimsical, minimalist to maximalist, art transforms you and your spaces. We have launched our Art Market to increase placement of art into new homes and to help collectors—old and new discover new artists. If you have questions, need measurements or additional information, we are here.