Local Gallery Owners & Directors Meet To Discuss The Regional Art Market

2/10/2019

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Photo copyright Michele Kisly 2019

For the first time in memory a large group of commercial gallery owners and non-profit arts organization directors/curators met in one place to discuss the Rochester regional art market. The meeting was convened by Rochester Art Collectors and took place on Thursday, February 7th at RIT's newly opened City Art Space in downtown Rochester. A similar (albeit smaller and more exclusive group consisting only of commercial gallerists) was convened by Rochester Art Collectors and held at Axom Gallery and Exhibition Space in April, 2018. The goal of these meetings is to help foster a spirit of cooperation in support of growing the art market and enhancing the art scene in our area.

Leaders from the following organizations participated on February 7th: 1975 Gallery, Artshow.org, Axom Gallery & Exhibition Space, Bausch + Lomb Corporate Gallery, Ceramics Gallery at Flower City Arts Center, Chase The Art, Colleen Buzzard Studio Gallery, Create Art 4 Good, Flower City Arts Center, Gallery Q, Geisel Gallery, Genesee Valley Council On The Arts, Joel Sapienza, Kristen Campo Fine Arts, Lumiere Gallery, Makers Gallery and Studio, Memorial Art Gallery Gallery Shop, Michael Deming Antiques, Oxford Gallery, Phillips Fine Art & Frame Gallery, RIT City Arts Space, RIT Events Office, RIT Shop One, Rochester Contemporary Arts Center, Print Club of Rochester, Patricia O'Keefe Gallery at St. John Fisher College, Roslyn Goldman, UUU Art Collective, University Gallery at RIT, Whitman Works, and The Yards Collective.

It should be noted that all the organizations represented at the meeting offer art for sale at their locations. Some of the venues represented operate on a for profit basis while others are legally recognized as not-for-profit organizations. The discussion centered on ways to work together. The agenda for the meeting was generated by the participants prior to the meeting and then approved by the entire group on the night of the meeting.

Roz Goldman spoke to the group at the outset of the meeting about her experiences as a gallerist and leader of the Rochester Area Art Dealers (RAAD) group from years past. Unfortunately, Roz had to make another appointment and left after her presentation. Following Roz's presentation we did introductions around the room the group engaged in a general conversation about the regional art market followed by a deep dive into areas of common interest and ways the participants might work together. There was a brief conversation about the potential for programs with a regional reach. Time ran out before the group could consider ideas about developing a series of awards recognizing individual artistic achievement on a yearly basis and before an update on recent actions to secure more public funding for the arts in Rochester. The meeting ended with a summary of action items moving forward.*

The following is an executive summary of the conversation and, in some case, next steps:

Roslyn Goldman's presentation on the now defunct Rochester Area Art Dealers group inspired many of the for-profit commercial gallery owners. There seemed to be support from commercial owners to work more closely together in the areas of marketing & promotion; particularly in terms of potential cooperative themes like what used to be called "Galleries Week". In addition, there may be interest in ongoing collaborations between these business competitors vis-à-vis reviving an informal association of art galleries/dealers.
The group was divided about the development in a large scale, high end, cooperative "art fair" in Rochester. Kristen Campo described her first-ever "Contemporary Art Fair Of Rochester" event that took place last November at the Strathallen Hotel in Rochester as a success and worth repeating. She may be willing to work with others on a expanded art fair in 2019. Bleu Cease, director of Rochester Contemporary Art Center, secured a location that may be suitable for an art fair (under very favorable terms) while he was in the process of developing an ambitious program involving two other medium sized not-for-profit art centers scheduled for October and November of 2019 called "Current Seen: Big Ideas, Small Venues." There was considerable discussion around the practical costs and likely benefits of an art fair. Some spoke enthusiastically in favor of the idea while others were skeptical. More than one venue owner was passionately opposed to the idea for practical reasons. A small group interested in the idea of an art fair this fall will explore the prospects more thoroughly and share information with others as their work unfolds. It may also be possible to coordinate a "Galleries Week" type promotion in coordination with "Current Seen: Big Ideas, Small Venues" program later this year.
There was little appetite in the room for building a regional art presence through cooperative programming with galleries and arts organizations in nearby counties at this time.

*CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO AN UNEDITED RECORDING OF THE MEETING ON MIXCLOUD

For it's part, Rochester Art Collectors supports local galleries and non-profit arts venues collaborating on as many levels as they feel comfortable. The group also supports the development of a large scale, high visibility, high quality art fair in our area. Rochester Art Collectors continues to believe in the value of regional cooperation and will continue to support efforts in that direction as well.

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