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Visual Artists' News Sheet | Special Issue: September – October 2018
Galleries & Workspaces
Núria Güell, La Feria de las Flores (The Flower Fair), 2016, video, installation view, ‘MAC International’, The MAC, Belfast (28 October 2016 – 19 February 2017); image courtesy The MAC
Top: Richard Forrest, From the Mouth of Chrysippus, 2017, installation view, ‘Futures, Series 3, Episode 1’, RHA Gallery I, (17 March – 23 April 2017); photograph by Katie Bowe O’Brien; Bottom: Katie Watchorn, ‘BalehomeBalehome’, VISUAL Carlow (6 June – 2 September 2018); photograph by Ros Kavanagh
Working With Galleries HUGH MULHOLLAND DISCUSSES HOW EMERGING ARTISTS MIGHT WORK WITH DIFFERENT TYPES OF GALLERIES THROUGHOUT THEIR CAREERS. IT IS LITTLE WONDER that visual artists are unsure what their relationship with a
gallery should be, when there seems to be a concerted effort in the art world to create a hierarchy of galleries, of both private and public spaces, for the promotion of a small number of artists. In this system, artists sometimes find themselves not only trying to navigate their way through a complex network of galleries, but also having to second guess the motivation of the individuals running them. With curators of public spaces programming as if they are running private foundations and directors of commercial galleries taking a perverse pleasure in their aloofness, approaching galleries can be an intimidating prospect. This may seem a cynical introduction and whilst I accept that not all curators are self-serving egotists and not all commercial spaces are unapproachable, unfortunately this is sometimes the reality. This makes it more difficult, but not impossible, to get your work noticed. I am convinced that in the end, good work wins out – it just takes longer! However, deciding to become an artist means accepting that you are part of the art world and that no artist operates outside it. Whether claiming to be mainstream, alternative, accepted or marginalised, artists, galleries, curators and critics are dependent on each other.
APPROACHING A GALLERY
If you are to become a successful or fulfilled artist, you must take control of your own career. It is not enough to hope that curators will discover your work and seek you out. You will largely have to create your own opportunities, by truly understanding your own ambitions for your practice. An honest appraisal of your aspirations will inform the path you take. Your working relationships with galleries will evolve along with the development of your work; your exhibiting profile will mature as your work does. It is important therefore to have a clear strategy for the promotion of your work and to identify galleries which are compatible with the development of your practice. Therefore, before you go any further, I suggest you ask yourself the following questions....
What kind of work do you do? • In what art context do you see your work operating? • Can you identify a historical and contemporary context for your work? • What are your long-term aims and ambitions? • Are you ready to exhibit? • Do you have a coherent body of work? • Do you feel confident about your work and your ideas and are you able to articulate them clearly?
Why do you want to exhibit? • To get feedback • To communicate with an audience • To make sales • To test out new ideas • To develop work which needs a particular kind of space • To further your career • To gain national or international recognition • To develop a fulfilling and enjoyable career
