Mark and Blake Fletcher are the father-son duo behind Cloud Gallery, based in downtown Orillia.
Their gallery, which displays and sells art out of Creative Nomad Studios on Mississaga Street West, opened in April 2020.
“We were open two or three weeks, and then we got shut down,” says Mark. “But COVID was actually good for the art business. People were not travelling or spending any money on travelling. They were in their homes and cottages, sitting there looking at their walls. Suddenly, they go, ‘I need something nice on the walls.’”
Mark says the average cost of the art pieces sold through the gallery is $3,000.
“It’s above that threshold where most people would just say, ‘OK, I’ll buy it without seeing it in person.’ Usually, the buyer starts online, but in almost every case, they will come in physically to see the art,” he says.
The gallery also offers payment plans to make purchasing art more accessible.
“We have an interest-free, no-fees payment plan so that if you wanted to buy a painting, you just pay 50 per cent today and you take the painting with you,” says Mark.
Most of the gallery’s buyers come from outside of the Orillia area.
“We have a lot of Muskoka clients and Toronto clients, and then over to Collingwood, Barrie and Midland,” he says.
“Most of our artists are in other galleries as well. They tell us from the beginning that we sell more art than the other galleries, typically. We love art, and we love selling art to share it and celebrate it with other people.”
“Everything is seen through the lens first of ‘will it help us sell more art?’ That’s our No. 1 goal.”
Both Mark and Blake come from business backgrounds. Mark is a professor in Georgian College’s business and management program, and he says that has helped them to sell more art through their gallery.
“Most gallery owners are art people first, but we’re businesspeople and we love art. We love working with artists. So, we run the business in a way that reflects our business backgrounds, and I think that’s helped us celebrate a lot of art,” he says.
When Cloud Gallery first opened, its featured artists were exclusively local. The goal was to feature art that highlighted Ontario landscapes.
“Now we do have artists from about four or five other provinces as well,” says Mark. “We have art from Victoria, B.C., and we have Alberta and Quebec now, too.”
The gallery continues to feature artists from the local area, including Cathy Boyd, who lives in Midland, Patricia Clemmens, from Oro-Medonte, and Liz Schamehorn, of Orillia.
Both Mark and Blake say the space is a balance of local and national art, aiming to attract Canadians from everywhere.
“We also want to invite people who are local to come in, browse, and just experience this great slice of Canadian artwork in the town,” says Blake.
The gallery will be running a few events throughout the summer that are open to the public. Mark encourages people to stop by.
The gallery’s first group show of the summer will be held June 23 to July 27. The My Happy Place Show, which also took place last year, will feature works from each of the gallery’s 30 artists. Artists are asked to capture a specific place in Ontario’s wilderness where they feel their happiest and most inspired.
There will be another group show in August focused on the beauty of summer in Ontario.
The gallery will also host an art show for the Society of Canadian Artists in early October.
“Their last big shows in the last few years have been in Montreal and Toronto, but this year, it’s going to be Orillia. So, we’re pretty proud of that,” says Mark.
The gallery runs its Collectors Corner, which features a collection of one artist’s work in their main gallery.
More information about these events will be posted on Cloud Gallery social media.
The current featured artist is Kerry Walford whose work will remain in the Collector’s Corner until June 12.
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