Thread: Art gallery in my studio!?! Thoughts?

This afternoon I was in my kitchen scooping out tabbouleh for lunch when I suddenly had an epiphany.

Problem #1: Boring, plain studio walls. Can't afford the kind of decor or murals I'd like.

Problem #2: Quite a few artist friends -- including my beloved daughter --with budding careers always asking me for business advice, and I want to be more help to them.

DUH!!! My studio is EMPTY on Friday and Saturday nights. Why couldn't it be a studio AND gallery? The name, Lotus Arts Studio, lends itself so easily to the combo.

I met with my daughter and another artist friend and we've mapped out a plan. Rotating exhibitions of one or more artist, we change them monthly. Each new exhibit gets an opening on a Friday and/or Saturday, and the artwork stays up for a month. (I have 70-100 students coming through the place all the time).

If the artist wanted more 'gallery' hours, they could be arranged on weekends.

My daughter and her friend will run the 'gallery' part of the business, great resume stuff and learning experiences for them. Any commissions the gallery earns are split between them and the studio (after we cover the initial expenses). And every time there's a gallery opening, the studio gets a nudge of free publicity!!

No edgy or controversial work could be displayed, of course. (that could ruin the yoga experience). We'd specialize in uplifting work.

Voila! Now I just have to fundraise for a gallery art display system and some lighting. The place was about to get a new floor and a paint job anyway.


Sorry this is long, I'm really excited. I'm trying to learn a bit about the gallery biz (though in some ways this would be more like those coffeeshops and restuarants that display rotating artwork for sale). Luckly my co-directors have some experience in this.

Squeeeeeee!! Just wanted to share my epiphany, mostly. But I'm open to advice, warnings, thoughts, and just warm fuzzies from the universe.

p.s. When I got the idea I was so excited I called my friends for an emergency epiphany meeting at the nearest coffee shop. I left the whole giant bowl of tabbouleh sitting out!! I guess i have to throw that away now. *sob*

Aww, too bad about the tabbouleh. But that sounds like a truly inspired idea! Have fun, and best wishes for much success with it.

Even though she is family and it sounds like you have a great relationship, I'd make sure everything is well-documented legally. Whenever there's money involved with people I care about and me, I make sure everything is as clear as possible. I don't want to have falling outs.

The only bad thing I can think of otherwise is that the dance studio and yoga studio I attend both have no shoe policies, to keep pebbles and such off the floor. If you have that policy for your studio, it may be hard to enforce if they're having gallery only events.

Originally Posted by Lauren_

This afternoon I was in my kitchen scooping out tabbouleh for lunch when I suddenly had an epiphany.

Problem #1: Boring, plain studio walls. Can't afford the kind of decor or murals I'd like.

Problem #2: Quite a few artist friends -- including my beloved daughter --with budding careers always asking me for business advice, and I want to be more help to them.

DUH!!! My studio is EMPTY on Friday and Saturday nights. Why couldn't it be a studio AND gallery? The name, Lotus Arts Studio, lends itself so easily to the combo.

Lauren, we really do have to stop meeting like this . . .

Just a couple of weeks ago, I stopped by a business block that had a few "for lease" signs out (including, unfortunately, Rana's Huntington Beach, California studio).

Always dreaming, I peeked through the windows of the available spaces and, for some reason, it suddenly occurred to me that an art gallery would be a perfect fit with a studio for the "moving" arts! (Hubby is getting to be pretty good with his oils and has sold a few of them, so I was thinking of displaying his work, at least at first.)

And with your dance/yoga studio's name, the addition of the visual arts is so perfect!

Go for it, girl!

Just work with contracts and agreements and stuff, as indigostars mentioned; but you know that already.

Once again, Deborah has to dream vicariously . . .

Deborah

I love the idea!

I was the visual arts director at several art spaces and I like the idea of art being accessible.

There is also this concept now of "third space" where coffee houses also serve as art gallery/meeting place/wifi, clothing retail establishment also serves as cafe/open mic/lounge area, etc. etc. many different combinations of activities so art being exhibited in a yoga studio is one such multi-purpose use.

Who does the curating and do you have set criteria as to what is edgy and controversial, or will it be subjective and up to the curatorial staff?

I also agree with having contracts in place b/t gallery space and artist, esp. in areas of insurance, liability, and commissions.

This sounds great! If the art is intended to sell, make a little brochure that has the artwork information including prices instead of making tags to hang on the wall. The brochure could also include the artist’s biography and artist statements. You can make reusable numbered tags to hand next to the artworks that coordinate with the brochure since the exhibitions will change often. This will save you a lot of time with setup.

Even if the artworks are not for sale, you'll probably need to record the value just in case something happens. You never know if a nail will give out or someone breaks in the space.

My teacher mentioned doing something like this too, but only after I had traded away most of my belly dance paintings…

Lauren, this is a wonderful idea. And it would promote your dance and yoga studio as well. You may need to invest in some extra lighting so that the art work is seen to good advantage, especially for the openings. It could be a lot of fun and profitable for both parties.

Souzan

Sounds like a nice idea, Lauren.

If you have not thought about it already, take to mind insurance. You are having other peoples stuff on your property, will your liability cover that if for some reason it brakes or is stolen? Do they have to carry their own insurance? I would call your agent to find out the details.
You're such a creative thinker. Tabbouleah/Art Center, who would have ever thought? Snickers.

I think it's a fantastic idea!

Sounds a nice idea.

Just to raise something no one else has- security?

You may need to consider further security arrangments then you would for 'just' a dance studio if you have art, especially anyone popular or with a significant attached 'value'.

Back in my babydancer days I went to classes in a local-ish arts centre, which was originally an old mansion, and now has a modern threatre complex with a gorgeous huge dance studio and an airy modern art gallery. Sometimes we'd dance in the music room or the garden room of the mansion, sometimes we'd be in the dance studio, and sometimes we would be in the art gallery.

Which is all to say, there is precedent for dancing in an art gallery. It's a brilliant idea. Go for it Girl!

The class I take is held in a yoga studio which does double as just the kind of art gallery you mention. As a dancer, it's fun to see the scenery change when the exhibit does. This studio will also host local musicians during their night time exhibit opening events to bring in more people.

Shoes are not allowed, but they manage it by placing a large sign by the door and providing shelving just inside the door for shoes, seems to work well.

Yay! Woo hoo! I think it sounds perfect.

One extra consideration - would you need to meet any licencing/food handling requirements in order to serve up champers and nibblies at openings?

As for clean floors - hey, it'd be kinda fun to have to remove shoes and use a pair of funky slippers (provided by you).

what a fantastic idea!

OK, I'm taking note of the considerations brought up here and I'll discuss them with my co-directors. They'll mostly be curating, since they're much more educated about art than I am -- but I have veto rights and my word on what's potentially edgy or offensive is final. The artwork needs to enhance the studio experience, not compete with it.

I have a smaller room and hallway in back where less uplifting or mildly controversial works could be displayed if it seemed beneficial. But edgy and controversial won't be our specialty. (that space will also be good for anything bulky that won't fit in the studio).

We have a few acquaintances who curate galleries or multi-purpose spaces that include galleries, so we're going to pick their brains and I'm buying a business guide that should answer some of my questions.

There's a coffeeshop next door to my studio that offers rotating artwork, openings and receptions for artists, etc. I have a reasonably friendly relationship with them, and I want to keep it that way. I intend to meet with them and let them know my intentions. I hope we can work together to create a synergy -- if we both had openings on the same night, for instance, people would undoubtedly walk between the two and increase attendance at both. What I don't want to be is the undercutter next door, so I need to find out what their commissions are.

I'm still really excited! Best batch of tabbouleh I ever made, though, so that part was sad.

How fun :)))

sounds like a great idea

my onw concers would be
- who's in charge of cleaning
- artworks (even non controversial ones), that would "distracting", during class.

Originally Posted by casbahdance

Lauren, we really do have to stop meeting like this . . .

Just a couple of weeks ago, I stopped by a business block that had a few "for lease" signs out (including, unfortunately, Rana's Huntington Beach, California studio).

Always dreaming, I peeked through the windows of the available spaces and, for some reason, it suddenly occurred to me that an art gallery would be a perfect fit with a studio for the "moving" arts! (Hubby is getting to be pretty good with his oils and has sold a few of them, so I was thinking of displaying his work, at least at first.)

And with your dance/yoga studio's name, the addition of the visual arts is so perfect!

Go for it, girl!

Just work with contracts and agreements and stuff, as indigostars mentioned; but you know that already.

Once again, Deborah has to dream vicariously . . .

Deborah

Deborah, I keep meaning to respond to this. The connection between you and me is eerie sometimes.

I'm going to personally come out there and kick your butt if you don't start doing something with your ideas. They're good ideas (I know, they're the same as mine ).

Put together a business plan, see if the SBA can loan you some money to get started.

Awesome idea! Don't forget about gallery nights that your town or city might offer too and getting in on that free publicity. I'm thinking of First Fridays that happen in many cities around the country - maybe if there isn't one in your area, your team could work on starting up something like this...

Originally Posted by Lauren_

I'm going to personally come out there and kick your butt if you don't start doing something with your ideas.

Could we do lunch while you're here? Either before or after the butt-kicking is fine . . .

Truly, the SBA thing had just sprung to mind. I'm kinda aware of what the SBA does, but I'm not sure just how it gets done. My homework for next week will be researching the SBA. *crosses heart*

Deborah

Great idea!! One of our local coffee shops is a couple blocks from the studio and they display paint by local artists. When the previous owner was there, we held a couple of student recitals, and it worked both ways--brought him a little extra business, the artwork got more exposure, and in turn his customers were exposed to a bit of advertising for the studio and classes. I think your idea is brilliant, especially getting together with the coffee shop owner. Maybe you could both display works by the same artists with fliers suggesting "if you'd like to see more by this artist, check out ..... down the street", and he could do the same. Maybe it would increase business for both of you .....

Just want to encourage you in your endeavor as well, there are so few venues for artists to show their works so a community art space is always welcome. At my cafe, I do a rotating gallery for local artists. It has worked out very well. A few things to think about-are you going to pay taxes on sales or is the artist? as mentioned above, liability insurance, and gallery exclusivity. Commercial galleries (ones that are in business to sell art as their primary source of income) often will have an exclusivity clause in their artists contracts, so that the artists they represent are not allowed to show in other galleries within a certain mile radius. So just be aware of that when considering your artists. Also, changing a show once a month is difficult. Once a month rolls around real fast! You might consider every two months, because if you are going to do an artists reception for each show, once a month can get tiring/expensive. Good luck to you!

sounds good to me...I am a photographer too...so my studio triples as a photography studio as well as dance...plus my hubbys music studio...

I love this idea! As long as the artwork isn't depressing or overtly sexual I don't see how it can do anything but enhance the studio for both dance & yoga.

When I worked at an art supply store and the boss wanted to put in a gallery, but ultimately didnt' because of the cost of the special insurance.

I think this would be a great addition for your studio, Lauren! I hope it works out.

At the galleries here the the artist is responsible for the cost of the food/drinks/advertisements. So the cost to you doesn't have to be a lot, unless the opening is held at a time you'd normally be having a class?

Good luck!

Sounds like a wonderful Idea and great experience for your daughter

Thanks everyone. Today I picked up paint chips and looked at track lighting. I'm really enjoying this idea.

Originally Posted by Lauren_

p.s. When I got the idea I was so excited I called my friends for an emergency epiphany meeting at the nearest coffee shop. I left the whole giant bowl of tabbouleh sitting out!! I guess i have to throw that away now. *sob*

Great idea, Lauren!!! My yoga studio rotates art work from her friends gallery on her walls- so she gets double the exposure for the artist and we get something other than a blank wall to look at...not quite your idea, but love it!!!

I believe I've solved the $500+ gallery hanging system problem.

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