The Herald - The Herald Magazine
Fancy a trip to the pictures?
AFTER four long months of guiding customers around virtual spaces and virtual artworks, Scotland’s private galleries are finally throwing open their doors for business. Since the lockdown period began on March 23, I have been cheered and occasionally thrilled by the activity hosted by some of these small galleries as they came up with various ingenious online ways to keep potential buyers’ interest piqued.
There is, of course, no substitute for being “in the room” with art, but these digital interventions were beacons of light for many. And importantly, they kept sales of art simmering away.
Becky Walker, owner of The Green Gallery, conveniently next door to her home in Buchlyvie, conducted Live at Five Facebook gallery tours on a Saturday night over lockdown. Aided and abetted by husband, Ads, behind the smartphone, this lo-fi approach to guiding viewers around work in the gallery gave fascinating insight into the practice of individual artists. Occasionally the Walkers’ teenagers were berated for hoovering up broadband while they attempted to broadcast live.
According to Walker, she has sold “masses” of work, and in doing so, has managed to help support her artists. “I have built up really close working relationships with artists over the years,” says Walker. “You feel a real responsibility to them. Most are, of course self-employed so I felt I had to use every means within my power to highlight their work.”
One night, about a month ago, I joined a ten-minute long private view via Zoom, hosted by The Scottish Gallery in Edinburgh. Among the artists being “launched” was Davy Brown, who was my art teacher at Kilmarnock Academy in the 1980s. What a thrill to wave at him across a Zoom room.
There was also the additional buzz of eariwigging around some intriguing living room walls; including that of Scottish Gallery managing director, Christina Jansen and her husband, Guy Peploe.
These small private galleries are an integral part of the “art economy” in Scotland, supporting artists by highlighting and marketing their work; which for many artists is a real stumbling block.
Ken and Susan Lemond have been running their home gallery in Bearsden for the last 20 years, opening for 19 weeks of every year with a big summer exhibition and a big Christmas show, interspersed by solo and joint shows every other month.
Over the years they have built up strong relationships with a host of established and emerging artists and created a strong customer base, which extends way beyond Hadrian’s Wall. Today they regularly show the work of around 140 Scottish contemporary artists in their elegantly extended home.
With a down-to-earth, yet knowledgeable approach to art, their customers have grown used to Ken’s enthusiastic introduction to different styles and approaches to mark-making.
As lockdown fell, a joint exhibition of work by Ryan Mutter and Rosanne Barr had been hung and was due to open on March 28. Both artists are gallery favourites. Mutter’s distinctive monochrome oil paintings are inspired by Glasgow’s industrial and maritime past, while Barr’s loose and expressive landscapes of Scotland have an international fan-base.
As well as the Mutter and Barr two-person show, two additional exhibitions were scheduled to run during lockdown and Lemond continued to support the shows using Facebook and Instagram and traditional advertising in the likes of The Herald.
“You feel for the artists,” he says. “They have been painting for months, setting aside work which they would otherwise sell. What it did do was keep us working at promoting the shows.”
At the end of June, in line with government advice, they opened their doors to the public for the first time since March. At the door, you are welcomed with a smile and an invitation to use the hand-sanitiser provided on tap. There are also facemasks available should you require one.
For the new Summer Show, the Lemonds have clearly relished the opportunity to showcase their artists’ work and every available inch is filled by over 600 paintings and a handful of ceramic artworks.
I visited last Monday morning after a busy opening weekend. Sales were brusque even before the doors opened. At the end of June, a Facebook post intimated that 23 paintings had been sold before all the paintings were listed on its website.
Several artists are new to the gallery; Ian McWhinnie, Rowan Rosie, John