Putting down roots

For any artist, the act of exhibiting is the first step on the path to sales as well as an essential validation in its own right, but quality gallery space is not always readily available and comes at a cost. Art at The Works, in Tavistock, Devon, was established in November 2010 to provide contemporary, commission-free gallery space for selected artists to showcase and market their work, self-managing their exhibitions, selecting, displaying, promoting and selling their work themselves. Unlike a traditional gallery, exhibitors pay a small fixed contribution to cover the costs of overheads but retain all proceeds from any sales they achieve. Located on the ground floor of The Works, in what was originally intended as a reception to the first-floor design studio of our busy town centre architectural practice, the irregularly shaped space offers approximately 16 metres of hanging length across eight walls, with 26 square metres of internal floor area plus an external courtyard.

After consultations with local artists and the local authority arts officer, the gallery was created with the installation of a picture hanging system, new lighting and building signage, and a dedicated website was established to promote it, all funded by the architecture business. The opening was marked by a curated exhibition of six contemporary artists, including photographer David Bailey and prominent South West-based painters John Raynes and Richard Sowman. Bailey’s endorsement of the venture inevitably attracted interest and we have since hosted three exhibitions with two more in the pipeline. Joint events have emerged as the favoured approach.Feedback on the gallery space and on every exhibition held has been warmly positive and we have received terrific support from the town’s local press. Generating footfall – and sales – has been a challenge, however, not helped by a harsh winter and the general economic climate.

On the agenda as our first year comes to an end are the extension of core hours (currently Monday to Friday 2–5pm) to offer greater accessibility to the working population, and the commissioning of additional exhibition signage. We are also considering a request for an extended block-booking by collective local artists looking to set up a long-term display of rotating exhibits on a low-commission basis. This would reduce artists’ upfront costs and mean we could market the gallery to the public as a place to visit regularly, which is difficult at the moment with intermittent short-term events.

For us, meanwhile, there is the financial challenge of balancing not-for-profit with not-for-loss – it is easy for costs to run away. It is also tempting to get overly drawn into gallery matters for the pleasure of it – workplace enhancement through the presence of art cannot be overstated. Art at The Works was born of a desire to support the local art community. As we look to our second year, we hope this is a role it will continue to grow into.