The artist will create ground-breaking work. The galleries will hear about the innovative emerging artist and will come in droves, bestowing their unique selling proposition upon them. The artist will choose its perfect match, display the work and the show will sell out on opening night.
That’s the dream, right?
Unfortunately, supply and demand is always the driving force behind any commodity, and art is no exception. And with far more supply of great art than demand from dealers, when it comes to galleries, forget a sold out show, you’re lucky if you get a response to an email.
So what’s an artist to do?
That’s the question that Sasha Court is trying to help emerging artists answer through a new group art show called A Matter of Time, opening this weekend. A contemporary ceramics artist, she has navigated the challenges of establishing partnerships with galleries and has seen firsthand the limited opportunities available to new artists.
After 20 years climbing the corporate ladder, Court was laid off from her job as director of sales and development at a fast-growing Halifax based tech company. And while her ego was understandably scorched, she saw the opportunity to pursue art on a full-time basis.
“I had all the skills from the corporate world. I was very strategic and very analytical. And I thought ‘if anyone can do this, it should be me,’” says Court. “As long as I get the work to a place where it is valuable, I should be able to make a go of this.”
After experiencing success with online sales and retail while building her social media presence, she decided to dedicate a few months to creating a gallery-worthy collection and trying to make her way into the gallery world.
“I was at a crossroads: should I continue to sell online or should I try to get gallery attention,” says Court. “And of course, every artist’s dream is to be in a gallery. You get the representation, you’re not going to have to worry about sales and marketing. You hit the jackpot.”
It turns out that not unlike the casino, hitting the jackpot is, well, nearly impossible. And the house almost always wins.
“I was able to get the attention of a few galleries, but I very quickly realized that galleries don’t make an artist, especially an emerging artist,” says Court. “You can send them work and they could just sit and not sell unless they have really high buying power.”
The realization that came to her through the process is that yes, the art market is crowded, but whether you’re a seasoned artist with 20 years experience or you’re just out of school, your art deserves to be seen, purchased and appreciated.
sashacourt.com
“The more art I make, the more I free my spirit. Everything I do is about coming back to a place of our natural born state of love,” says Sasha Court.
“I do believe that there isn’t enough opportunity for artists, but the bigger problem is that there isn’t a big enough art market,” says Court. “There are so few galleries here and my work is very contemporary. So if my work doesn’t align with the gallery owner’s singular taste, I’m out of luck.”
That being so, artists have to look elsewhere for a gallery that matches their style and vision and nine times out of 10, galleries will say on their websites that they don’t accept unsolicited work.
“Supply and demand is so skewed that galleries don’t even need to respond to artists whose work they thrive off of. They can just handpick who they want. The art world has put up these walls on purpose so that the art that they do sell is considered exclusive and they can put huge price points on them,” says Court.
Court believes artists could really make a living selling at a lower price point if the market could expand. And that means exposing the public to great art that they can bring into their homes, experience and enjoy rather than running out to HomeSense and buying “low vibes” pieces.
That’s the impetus for her new show—A Matter of Time—set to take place this weekend. The exhibition is dedicated to emerging visual artists with the goal of allowing new artists to showcase their work and grow their audience.
“With this event, I want people to realize that hey, there is great art here. Let’s celebrate the dedication to these artists’ practices. Let’s come out and celebrate our love of art. But also let’s experience art together,” says Court.
A Matter of Time will feature 15 emerging artists selected from an open art call, featuring work from various visual mediums, including paintings, textile art and ceramics.
The exhibition kicks off with an opening reception on May 16 and will be open daily until May 19. Click here for more details.
