MenuFinally, a newsworthy article appeared in The Irish Times announcing our original idea of a small friendly neighbourhood art gallery that shows quality work in a wide range of styles and prices — an open window — no lock, no bell. Bravo, the small, independent art gallery.
Here are excerpts from the article capturing the essence of the idea:
THE SMALL GALLERIES TAKING BACK THE IRISH ART MARKET
After the hubris of the boom, the bust brought big changes to the Irish art market. A new kind of gallery has emerged that is approachable, diverse, risk-taking and even humble.
As art galleries tumbled to earth after the boom, it was hard not to feel a smidgen of schadenfreude. At the height of the market, certain Irish dealers had exhibited a degree of opportunism similar to that of estate agents. But there’s a new art climate spreading across Ireland, one that encourages greater approachability, diversity and even humility.
The worst is now over
What all these disparate galleries have in common is a sense that the worst is now behind them and that the market is turning. ….
The galleries that have survived have inevitably become more nimble and more appreciative of buyers. For the consumer, art prices are a fraction of what they used to be. In this increasingly synthetic age, a local gallery is one of the few places you can purchase unique expressions of human creativity. The speculators and corporate collectors have had control of the art market for too long; it’s about time we took it back and started animating our walls with something other than the products of IKEA and B&Q.
The Irish Times, 14 July, 2015