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Last summer, in the midst of a recession, Milwaukee began losing more art spaces than it was gaining, leaving some in the arts community concerned for the city's prosperity as a cultural hub for independent artists and entrepreneurs.

Paper Boat Gallery and Boutique shuttered, quickly followed by Spackle Gallery and The Armoury Gallery. Then, fortunately, there was an opening.

BYO Studio settled in nicely at 2246 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. in Bay View, but it wasn't like most galleries.

As the name suggests, owners Kerry and Ken Yandell encourage Milwaukee's "creatives" -- a much broader term, they say, than "artists" -- to literally bring their own art to the studio, whether it's painting, sculpture, yoga or modern dance. The idea is that the studio is available for anyone -- painter, dancer, actor, sculptor -- looking for an inspiring and affordable space to create, practice and share his or her craft.

The concept of a workable and rentable art space has been a hit, says Ken. And since the start of the new year, BYO has added yet another component. As the day comes to an end, the interior lights dim and the world music starts to spin as the space transitions into the city's first "cocktail gallery."

With transportable art walls on wheels, it was easy to rearrange the space to allow for a rather large and beautifully crafted bar, accented by a chaise lounge and a small collection of high-top tables near the street-facing bay windows.

BYO Studio Lounge, as it's now called, is a comfortable, friendly place that successfully incorporates the aura of an art space without feeling exclusive.

"For a lot of people, they hear the word 'gallery' and it automatically has a certain connotation and a certain weight to it," says Ken. "It can keep people from feeling comfortable going into a space if they're not of the 'gallery set' or it's not Gallery Night."

Ideally, he'd like to diminish the idea that you have to know someone, or know the artist -- or have money -- to spend time in an art gallery. He and Kerry keep their prices fair, "and by nightfall," he says, "whether or not my customers are interested in art doesn't matter as much -- it's more of the aesthetic backdrop to the evening, anyway."

Ken says his goal in creating the space was to retain the gallery's hand-crafted feel, and he's succeeded.

The bar, which he made himself, features tiny hand-painted tiles that create a smooth and very touchable surface. "The first thing people do when they come here is rub their hands across the bar top. I think that's interesting because it gets you to interact with the space in more ways than one. We want to engage people visually and for them to also have a sense of texture."

This is, after all, an art gallery's bar.

All of the light fixtures casting a soft glow from above were hand made in Egypt, and feature a variety of styles based on Bedouin chandeliers with Moroccan, Turkish and Spanish influences. If you look closely, you can see the hand-punched metal and small imperfections.

Ken is a veteran bartender in Milwaukee, having worked at Taylor's and the former Eve. He's taken his expertise with him in this new venture and has created a full-bar menu focused on classic cocktails and accessible drinks that are big on flavor, but not on sugars and synthetic flavors. He favors a more natural blend of booze and fresh juices and plans to rotate his selections quarterly to reflect the seasons.

With March around the corner, he's readying his spring drink menu, which features drinks like Gallery No. 4, a gin martini with apple schnapps, lemon juice, a basil- and sage-infused syrup and a bit of egg white for froth, and the Jamaican mimosa, rum mixed with several fruit juices, bitters and fresh fruit, which is then poured over Spanish cava, a sparkling wine.

This summer, keep your eyes out for a muddled cucumber sangria.

The full bar is open evenings from Thursday through Sunday with occasional live music, DJ sets and other potential performance art events, such as film screenings, poetry slams and spoken word nights.

"We want to foster creative expression and engagement with the community," Ken says. "We offer the space for community and business association meetings, we host fund raisers and promote youth artistic development. In fact, my 10-year-old was commissioned several times to do portraits and artistic interpretations by people who happened to see her work sold out of our gallery.

"It is immensely rewarding to watch artists at all levels hanging out here during the day painting and talking and cultivating their creativity. It has been very cool so far. The cocktail lounge is an opportunity to extend that feeling through the night."