Getting in a gallery
YOU MIGHT NOT THINK, in persevering through 15-plus months of a global pandemic, there would be much of an art scene left here in Taos. We had our fair share of loss, isolation and uncertainty, mixed in with feelings of spaciousness and solitude. I’ll admit, the work coming out of my own studio has been a struggle and yet has evolved.
And it may not seem possible, with months of state-wide shutdowns and stay-at-home orders, that our little town could maintain the vibrancy and inspiration the arts give to our community. But retail vacancies are low downtown, art openings are happening, and galleries are moving art. Maybe it’s time to get your art out of the studio and onto a wall of a local gallery. As you begin to stretch those self-promotion muscles, I reached out to some of our local gallery owners and artists for suggestions on getting into a gallery.
The first gallery I showed at was the Taos Art Collective. It’s one of those spaces that provides a small amount of wall space for a modest fee in exchange for working the gallery several times a month. In retrospect, it’s the perfect starting point for an artist; you’re forced to fill the wall, interact with visitors, and see how art moves out of the gallery. It inspired me to be a more dedicated artist.
“If I had to pick one tip for an artist, I would say perseverance would be the top thing,” Michael Anaya-Gorman of the Michael Gorman Gallery shared with me. “It’s a matter of timing, luck, talent, presentation, marketing and perseverance.” Anaya-Gorman finds both a pleasure and challenge in running a gallery, balancing customer service and sales with maintaining a creative mind-space. And, in sharing his space with other artists, it’s relationships that matter to him. “It’s important to have trust and communication.”
Getting to know our local galleries and what each brings to the art scene of Taos is important, and a fun thing to do on a quiet afternoon.
Ari Myers of The Valley, located at the top of Ledoux Street, encourages artists to do their research. “Whether in my work with commercial galleries or nonprofit exhibition spaces, I have frequently received unsolicited proposals from artists whose work is not a fit for the gallery due to the aesthetic, the content, the material, and the budget. Artists should take their time to assess their career needs and goals, research spaces that are aligned, and look to make an authentic connection with the person in the role at that space who can support them. Authentic connections are the origins for the best collaborations!”
Have you experienced that awkward moment where you drop into a gallery hoping to speak with the owner, wanting to see if they are accepting new artists? But, with months of isolation in your studio, you’ve forgotten how to introduce yourself? It’s really not the best move. “Make an appointment rather than showing up unannounced,” Georgia Gersh shared with me from her gallery Magpie on Paseo del Pueblo Norte.
Jeff Cochran, a local painter with 25 years of gallery representation, recommends this strategy: In your car, have a set of paintings in different sizes and shapes, but bring photos of the work into your meeting. In his experience, they will shuffle through the pictures quickly to see if your work is a good fit for their gallery. If they like what they see, tell them you have the actual painting in the car. “This does a couple of things that the gallery directors love,” Cochran explains. “It shows that you are a serious artist and that you are capable of delivering a full set of paintings – something that a website link or an Instagram page cannot show.”
Having a body of work is key. A gallery doesn’t want to place you on the wall and then beg for more work. “For me, the number one tip is having a current body of work that is available,” Rob Nightingale, of Wilder Nightingale Fine Art shared. “I have had some artists show me this style and that style, and before I know it, my mind is visually overloaded.”
All that said, the work that has accumulated in your studio may actually be serving another purpose. There is more than one way to be an artist and more than one way to share your work.
“Academically, you’re told the gallery is the goal to show your work, but maybe that’s not your trajectory,” local fiber artist Jana Greiner shared with me recently. “You have to ask yourself, who is your audience? If you’re not going to sell, where do you want the art to go after you make it? My work isn’t something you’d hang on a wall. For me, it’s therapeutic and a heart journey.”
There is a resiliency in Taos that seeps through the landscape. It materializes in a creative spirit demonstrating our collective endurance. Supporting the arts in Taos keeps our imaginations alive and adds to the mosaic of our identity and sense of place. In your own way, please support our local artists and galleries. And keep sharing your creativity, Taos, in all its beautiful complexity.
‘You have to ask yourself, who is your audience? If you’re not going to sell, where do you want the art to go after you make it? My work isn’t something you’d hang on a wall. For me, it’s therapeutic and a heart journey.’
JANA GREINER
Fiber artist