What does it take to start your own gallery?

DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES

We spoke to three inspirational gallery owners; Maria Morrow, Jasmine Coe and Shona Bland, who all recently started their art businesses and exhibited for the first time at one of our Affordable Art Fairs in London this year. From building relationships with artists, to practical tips on getting funding – find out what it takes to set up and run your own gallery.

Maria Morrow, Air Contemporary

Founder of Air Contemporary, Maria Morrow set up her gallery in 2020 as a platform for emerging and established artists.

What inspired you to start your own art gallery?

I’d worked in galleries for many years, including 13 years at Portland Gallery, so I had good experience in managing artists and exhibitions. After I had my son, I wanted to do something that I could own and make the decisions. I set up Air Contemporary as a platform for emerging and established artists to collaborate and create exclusive fine art limited editions. Our first exhibition was an online show back in summer 2021 – and I loved the fact that I could put up-and-coming artists alongside the likes of David Shrigley, Grayson Perry and The Connor Brothers. For me it’s so exciting to have the opportunity to showcase emerging artists alongside these big names and help grow their careers.

At first, going out on my own, I was terrified. I had imposter syndrome thinking “I don’t know if I should do this.” But when I started reaching out to people to get it off the ground, that’s when it became real. I’d worked for many years building up relationships and contacts, so I was pleasantly surprised by how many artists approached me wanting to work together.

You launched in 2020 in the midst of the pandemic. What was that like?

Whilst it was a nerve-wracking and challenging time, I wanted to make the best of a bad situation. I knew I wanted to do this, so I took a leap of faith. The Covid lockdown gave me the time I needed to set up my gallery and work out my business model. It meant we could be an online-first business and build the brand slowly. All of a sudden, we were on a level playing field with established galleries – everyone was having to work online. And I think for collectors as well, the pandemic shifted buying behaviour. People were more comfortable with buying art online.

You’ve exhibited at both our London Fairs in Hampstead and Battersea this year. What attracted you to the Affordable Art Fair?

My heart will always be with the Affordable Art Fair. It was the first fair I ever did when I worked at another gallery years ago. I love the ethos of Affordable. No matter who you are or how much you want to spend, the fair is accessible and welcoming to everyone.

For me, starting a new gallery, the Affordable Art Fair helped Air Contemporary meet new people and build contacts, particularly as we don’t have a physical space. It also helped to structure our projects, and encourage our artists to create new bodies of work. The Hampstead Fair was our first physical show, and you get a real feel for the viewer response when you put work in front of people. You can’t beat the in-the-moment conversations with artists, collectors, and visitors.

What’s next for Air Contemporary?

In 2023, we’re looking to expand our artist roster and bring on some painters. Everything’s getting very pop and print heavy so I want to balance out that mix of work. I would like to hop over the pond to the USA – perhaps at Affordable Art Fair New York or some fairs in LA. I think American audiences will appreciate our aesthetic.

Jasmine Coe, Coe Gallery

Jasmine Coe is a Wiradjuri-British artist and founder of Coe Gallery, the UK’s first Aboriginal-owned art gallery.

What inspired you to start your own art gallery?

I first travelled to Australia in 2016 to reconnect with my father and connect to my Wiradjuri (Aboriginal) heritage. This was the first time I saw my father, the Aboriginal activist Paul Coe, in about 20 years. It was so inspiring to meet and learn from my family. I went again in 2020, and was meant to stay out in Australia for about a year, but sadly I had to come back early due to the Covid-19 lockdown. So from there I wanted to do something meaningful in the UK and make the best of a bad situation.

I had done a lot of internships in the past with galleries and some that represented Aboriginal Art, but none were Aboriginal-owned. From what I have learnt, I realised this plays an important part in visibility – the reclaiming of how our history and stories are told. Having a space in the UK that is Aboriginal owned addresses the presentation of history between the UK and Australia – the colonisation of Australia is also the UK’s shared history.

What do you hope to achieve through Coe Gallery?

Our goal is to create a space for Aboriginal artists to share their stories the way they want to, facilitating connection, discussion and understanding. Ultimately, the plan is to have a physical space that can be a centre for cultural exchange. It’s also a very personal venture for me: the gallery is a tribute to my activist father and family, but it’s also more than that. As this is the UK’s first Aboriginal owned gallery, we can create unique opportunities for Aboriginal artists here in the UK. The artists we represent are from different Aboriginal nations but the unifying themes in our work is the love for land, nature and caring for country.

So once you had the idea for Coe Gallery, how did you make a start? 

I already had an idea of the artists I wanted to work with – Sandon Gibbs O’Neill, the King sisters – Sarrita and Tarisse, Jay Bird, Hannah Lange and Cara Shields. We launched our first exhibition, Our Stories, Our Journey in Bristol at The Vestibules, connected to City Hall in July 2022. It was fantastic to have the support from the Mayor’s office for our first ever show. It was the first time the Aboriginal Flag has been flown from City Hall! Then – we set our sights on Affordable Art Fair, and it was off to London in October 2022.

What’s next for Coe Gallery?

We have a new exhibition, Language of the Earth (named after a painting by Sarrita King) which is on now until 22 December 2022 in Bristol. It showcases a mix of established and emerging aboriginal artists, across many different styles and regions of Australia. We also hope to be back in London in 2023 for Affordable Art Fair, Hampstead in May.

My ultimate goal is to find a permanent space in Bristol and to run artist residencies, bringing Aboriginal artists over from Australia to share their own stories and hopefully create some works here in the UK.

What advice would you give to anyone looking to start their own gallery?

1. Develop a list of artists you know well and trust. That way you already have a creative community you can tap into and foster.
2. Research where to apply for funding – there are a lot of costs to work out. You need to make sure you have a sustainable business model. Getting arts funding as a commercial gallery can be tricky to navigate. But you can get funding for specific exhibitions rather than operational costs.
3. Network! Build relationships with local stakeholders, funders, businesses as well as other artists / gallerists and collaborators. In Bristol we’re really lucky to be a part of a thriving creative community which is a great resource and support.

Shona Bland, Art Friend

Shona Bland is the founder of Art friend – a collaborative and welcoming online and pop-up gallery, started in 2022.

Why did you want to start your own art gallery?

I felt like not having an art history degree was holding me back from getting gallery jobs. So after a while I thought – I’ll do it myself and set something up on my own. I wanted to create an arts / gallery experience that would be really inclusive and open to anyone. It’s why I love the ethos of Affordable Art Fair. The name Art Friend came about because I realised not everyone has that ‘art friend’ to take them to cool exhibitions, gallery openings, art happenings etc. So I want to be that Art Friend and create that experience for my clients.

How have you built relationships with artists?

Well – true to our name, most of the artists I represent are friends that I’ve built up relationships with over a period of years. I only want to work with artists who are nice and friendly and down to earth. It’s more of a collaboration than a transaction.

What was it like preparing for Affordable Art Fair?

It was overwhelming! And a big gamble for our second ever exhibition, but it helped establish Art Friend as a brand! For Fair Director Hugo Barclay and the Affordable Art Fair team to believe in us was a huge compliment.

I selected some of my favourite artists to present at the fair, including Craig Keenan, Claire Halifax, Sara Hoque, and Adam Bartlett. I was super excited to share Adam’s work with visitors as I’m obsessed with his pieces – they make me really happy. And it seems visitors agreed! So many of his works sold, he had to get on a train from Margate to drop more pieces off! I was surprised at how busy Affordable Art Fair was and how many pieces of art we sold. Visitors really wanted to connect with the story of the gallery and who we are.

What’s next for Art Friend – what are you planning for 2023?

I’m really interested in showing art in non-traditional spaces – spaces that feel more welcoming for audiences who might not usually go to a gallery. And of course, we will be back at Affordable Art Fair, Battersea in March!

Thanks to Shona, Jasmine and Maria for speaking to us for this article.

If you would like to exhibit at one of our international Affordable Art Fairs, find out more below!