THE ARTIST SIMI LAUNAY
The difficulty of securing gallery representation is well documented, but experiencing it first hand proved a catalyst for Simi Launay, founder of online platform Ungalleried. A move from the UK to Portugal left the former headhunter with a window of free time, which she filled by painting. When sharing her works on social media led to a joint exhibition in an arts space in a bar, confidence followed – though it was swiftly curbed when she was rejected by local galleries. ‘I didn’t have a traditional art background. I studied economics,’ she laughs. ‘I thought there must be so many artists out there like me.’
A stint in Asia exploring the emerging scene and connecting with curators provided fresh inspiration, and the idea for Ungalleried – which nods to the artists who lack representation and the notion of selling outside a gallery space – was hashed out on her return. By this point, galleries were revealing the industry’s struggles to Launay, citing the overheads of the bricks-and-mortar model.
Launay’s business-honed brain, meanwhile, atoned for her lack of experience. ‘I started from a strategic standpoint,’ she explains. ‘I wanted this to be an international gallery, so I began building a global network of curators.’ Now, she has representatives in Serbia, Berlin, Rome and Texas, who source artworks under £10,000 across Europe, plus ‘pockets of excellence’ in the US and South America. Sub-Saharan Africa is next, with physical pop-ups in European cities coming soon.
It’s an ambitious project to realise within a year (the site now hosts 165 creatives across the globe), but Launay isn’t stopping there. Having just secured her first interior design commission, she plans for Ungalleried to morph into a gallery concept store. Speaking to Launay about her fledgling endeavour, you get the sense that the old corporate gig is a fading memory. ‘This could be a powerful vehicle for these artists to express themselves and tell stories that you don’t hear on the news. It’s given me that raison d’être.’ ungalleried.com
‘I DIDN’T HAVE A BACKGROUND IN ART. I THOUGHT THERE MUST BE ARTISTS OUT THERE LIKE ME’