At the start of the month I went to visit a very old, very dear friend in another city. He’s a little younger than I, just about to graduate from art school and step out into the world for the first time. We sat in his studio space for a while; there was a real sense of excitement as everybody made the final push towards their degree show – but this was mixed with a palpable feeling of trepidation; the knowledge that soon you’ll have to jump out of the nest and fly as well as you can.
We talked a bit about what might happen next, about what he’d do after graduating. He’s putting a few proposals together for some summer shows aimed at showcasing new graduate talent – and after that, he said, he hopes eventually to get gallery representation. At that point I said something like, “It’s one way of doing it, but it’s not the only way, and it’s not for everyone…”, only for my friend to reply, “It’s the only way if you want to make a living out of your work and reach as many people as possible… especially in the current climate.”
I found that interesting, as to me, commercial galleries are not synonymous with reaching as wide an audience as you can; in fact, I tend to view them as quite a negative thing, contributing to the level of speculation and commodification within the arts, and, to a certain extent, encouraging stagnation. I’m yet to hear of a commercial gallery that supports artists whose practices do not produce solid, saleable outcomes – for good reason, of course, as commercial galleries are, more than any other type of institution, businesses first and foremost, existing to generate sales and profit. (From my perspective, it’s hard not to read all of the above as being damaging and negative, though I can also understand how a less politically-minded artist with, say, a pure painting practice who has found a supportive, understanding dealer might choose representation. And, of course, more experimental commercial spaces may well exist – any examples are welcomed!)
I talked to my friend about other methods, citing examples of artists I know who manage to make something close to a living from a mix of residencies, exhibition fees and educational work, with studio practice, unpaid-but-fun exhibitions and occasional sales thrown into the mix too. I think it’s a model that’s becoming increasingly viable, with artists utilising social media as a tool for building supportive networks, displaying work and reaching audiences. I tried to explain a little bit about how I feel that gallerists, dealers and art fairs are mostly bad for art and artists, and that it might be more interesting (and fun!) for artists to find another way of promoting, exhibiting and selling.
I’m not sure any of it worked; my friend seemed convinced that gallery representation was and is the only way for an artist – any artist! – to progress and succeed. As such, he’s coming out of art school with vast confidence in his own work (and rightly so; his work is fascinating) but with what looks to me a lot like fear and confusion about the next step. It’s a shame, and I wonder if universities could do more to prepare graduating students for life after art school.
