Witness Honey Space, a rent-free, heat-free, window-free gallery in a "cubbyhole" in Chelsea. The Times article states:
If you like the art inside, you can call the artist’s phone number on
the cards lying around. You could also steal it. But the people
involved with the gallery hope that you appreciate the cultural value
of this little eddy in the rushing stream of development that has all
but swept away such scrappy artists’ spaces in Manhattan.
Read more about galleries and museums in the Art Marketing Action archives.
5 thoughts on “Exhibition space can happen anywhere”
(http://www.davidvart.com/) An artist named David Vasquez shows up in Toronto when the weather gets warm enough & exhibits in a recessed space in between two buildings in the toniest most travelled boutiquey area …The space used to be owned by the soap company Lush & he paid them a little stipend to hang his paintings & sell them directly to passersby…He accepts cash on the spot & his prices are very low…He probably sells more art than any other artist in this city…fast…if you visit his site you will see the names of celebrities who own his work…no joke…they all stay at the nearby hotel & purchase gifts directly from David during their short visits…Is his work good ? well, years ago it was derivative, but with the steady investment from tourists too intimidated to enter a traditional gallery, this artist is getting good…even more interesting, he is happy…No gallery commission, sets his own prices, meets his clients & gets tons of rare sunshine, & cash sales are nice…he packs up when it rains…no invites, no cards to print, no wine to buy & he really sells…when it gets cold he leaves to another country…I used to think it was tacky to sell directly like this, but no one else sells as quickly as this here…no doors or stairs makes it easy for the handicapped to approach, low pricepoint, & great great location…it’s just a large space between two buildings, nice, but not even a ceiling…
sorry the link from above didn’t make it…it is http://www.davidvart.com just no extra bracket at the end…if you go to the site notice how easy it is to buy directly…would you know this person was a street artist?
Sari: Thanks for sharing David’s story. I love it! I’m adding it to my collection of creative selling stories.
I loved this article! Thank you for sharing. It’s this kind of thing that keeps me going with the idea that getting one’s art out there really has no limits. Inspiring!
I’ll be in new York in May for my daughter’s wedding. I hope I can find it. Great story!