The gallery that said no then called back a year later
I got turned down by a gallery in Paris, nicely but firmly. Fine. I moved on, kept painting, didn't think about it. Then a year and a half later the director emails me out of nowhere, says she remembers my work, the spot is open, come show us something new.
I took it. It went fine, nothing spectacular, but it taught me something: those first no's were personal taste, not a verdict. The work stayed the same, their situation changed.
Has a gallery ever come back to you after saying no? And did you go, or did you hold a grudge that cost you nothing but pride?
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That's a lovely one and I'm delighted you went back. There's a fierce temptation to take the no personally and file it away as a grudge you can polish like a good bit of silver. Costs you nothing but pride, sure, but pride's a dear thing to keep paying tax on.
Happened to me with a small press up in Belfast actually. Turned me down flat for a folio of prints, lovely polite email, all the usual. I'd nearly forgotten about it and then eighteen months later the editor rings me out of the blue asking if the hare series was still available, their other artist had let them down at the last minute. I said I'd think about it, hung up, and my wife gave me the look. The look that says don't be an eejit. I rang back within the hour.
It went grand. Two editions sold out at an arts festival, which is about as fancy as my life gets. And you're right, the work never changed, their situation did. I think you nailed the whole thing there. They're not judging you, they're just juggling their own crowd.
Anyway, I'd say that painting that got you in the door is probably a better one now than it was when they first said no. That's the real outcome of it, isn't it?
Your bit about pride as a tax you keep paying, that's really exactly it. I've known painters who'd rather never show again than walk back through a door that once closed on them, and it's such a waste. The door doesn't remember. Only you do.
But Belfast, that's a proper story. Eighteen months and the editor remembers your hare series well enough to ring you? That's not desperation, that's the work sitting in someone's head. I hope you took it.