Myra Casis and Meg Sheehy have never had the kind of family or spousal financial support that many other gallery owners enjoy–they saved for more than a decade to open Zg. (Its unpronounceable name, written like an element in the periodic table, is meant to indicate its uniqueness.) They met during their first year at Saint Mary’s College in South Bend, and right after graduation, in 1988, Casis began working as a receptionist at what was then known as Douglas Kenyon; Sheehy started a year later as a gallery assistant. By the time they left in 2000, Casis was the director and Sheehy the manager. They were negotiating the lease on their present space when 9/11 happened–and the lessor’s terms suddenly improved. After Sheehy went to the library to read about galleries that survived wars, they anxiously signed. Zg opened in February 2002, and while its expenses are now being covered by sales, it’s not earning enough to pay either owner a salary; they’re still drawing on savings.
