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Wednesday 29 July 2009
at 7pm
at the Henderson Gallery in Edinburgh, off Hanover Street
I am giving a talk and maybe some demonstrations, all welcome.
Mark

http://www.thehendersongallery.com/events.html

How did NESTA go?

It was late last night and I was tired so I kind of got carried away. I am sorry about the length of the last comment, at least I didn't go into rant mode.

What is Nesta?
Any gallery is as good as the other, it all depends on whether they take your work. If they take your and can sell or at least get it out into the open then it is a good gallery.
The Scottish Gallery is probably you first port of call. That will be Christina in charge. The open eye is the next possibility with Tom Wilson. The Henderson Gallery is looking for new work to show as they are a new space and Peter is interested in making a statement. Each gallery has it's own style and prestige which depends on the person running it. Another person to talk to is Amanda Game, who used to run the Scottish Gallery's craft before Christina and is now freelance. Amanda organised the silver exhibition last festival.
You have to remember that the problem with all these galleries and some of the Artists who exhibit in them are usually unaware how behind they are in style with the work they show and the public even father behind. No matter how current or avant garde you think you are, if you are in fashion or starting to gain imitators you are already passé in the eyes of the next generation who will, usually mistakenly, believe or assume they are the next big thing. The problem with being fashionable is your ideas are already out there in public and therefore of date. I have say that sites like this do not always help. Having worked for short time selling work into the Fashion scene, I can tell you that having a new collection twice a year, which you hope somehow mirrors the next season's theme is enough to burn out anyone and I have seen it happen to several friends and I have lost friendships because of it. And though the art scene is not so aggressive it also suffers from the pull of the fashionable. ECA has suffered worst than most. People buy within their comfort zone and galleries are no better. Of course if your work is similar to styles that have already been seen and are familiar it helps get into the gallery in the first place.
With this in mind you have to now approach every gallery in turn and make contact. Find the person you can relate to and they to you and your work. Personal contact is better and persistence is the key. You should make sure they keep seeing you and your work about. Do not be afraid to mention your successes at every opportunity. Go to private views at the galleries of YOUR choice and help then feel "comfortable" about the prospect of taking your work. Send info of yourself to local papers and see if they will do an article, unusual boxes etc. Be careful of going for second best first as this can put off another gallery with more prestige, start at the top. At this stage, you graduating this year, you will find that most galleries will have chosen those they deem suitable or believe are the next big thing and will have invited them for a try out at all the inevitable new faces exhibitions, to see if anything sells. If you haven't been picked for anything, don't worry as most of these new graduates usually find something else to do and we never see them again. When I graduated there was so few of us that we all got into the exhibitions and I can't tell you of any one that graduated in my year who is still working. Mind you there was not that many galleries either.
The real hard work starts now with the selling of your self, I feel though that your work is perhaps more "In-house" than art house, more design, you could try there, they are in Howe Street. You could try that angle, I have known people go off and get great jobs working for fashionable Italian design companies in warmer climates. They never seemed to come back, I don't know whether that was suspicious or I just not to blame them. Other wise you could try the art angle and come across as more installation than craft. I noticed your work was with the Jewellery cases at VAS, was that your choice? You had better make sure that you are perceived as you want, not pigeon holed out of your control.
I moving workshop at the moment, I am making a boring blog diary about it on my website, wittering on about floor paint and stuff but I intend to be finished by the end of March, got to be really and I hope to have a Workshop warming/opening and a mini exhibition in May, I will try to get Simon, Keiko, Catherine and Allan involved as they are my new neighbours and it would good to put on a show.
Sorry for going on like this but you did ask. There are some small but intense galleries in Glasgow who seem to more "art house" and prepared to show something a bit different especially in your scale. The Scottish Gallery might like silver boxes, if you can make them, in a more "domestic" scale, assuming you can afford to make them. The current price fluctuations are not helping anybody.
Good luck, your work's good just keep faith and, well, nag them till they take your work. I am sorry to say you will have to keep doing so.
I have gone over this several times looking for spelling and grammar problems and to be honest I have written too much and I can't be bothered do it again so you will have to forgive me if I have messed up something. You will have to guess what I meant.

Hello and how are you? It was good to see you at the VASA, was it any good for you and are you going to try for the Aberdeen Artists? I thought I might try it this year.
I saw some work at the Leith Gallery which I recognised as the other girl from Gray's, it, the work, looked good, shame about the gallery.