first gallery I ever showed with, the owner gave me a tour of the space and it was... her apartment. like actively lived in. dishes in the sink. I should've left then but I was 22 and thrilled anyone wanted my work.
what's the wildest thing you walked into thinking it was a real gallery and immediately knew you made a mistake?
omg this unlocked a memory 😭 I once showed in a "gallery space" that was literally just someone's converted garage, like they still had gardening tools pushed into the corner behind a sheet. The "lighting" was a single exposed bulb and they asked me to bring my own easels. I was also 22 and so excited I didn't question anything. Did you at least sell anything from the apartment gallery??
the garage one is almost worse somehow bc at least the apartment lady was honest about it being her home. the gardening tools behind a sheet is just insulting lol. and yes i actually did sell one piece, a small acrylic i was so embarrassed about that i'd priced at $40. she bought it and i was convinced i'd made it. took me years to realize she probably just felt bad for me 💀
There's a specific kind of person who runs a gallery out of their flat and it's not always a disaster. I've seen a couple where the living room had better light than half the white cubes in Paris, proper north-facing windows, high ceilings, walls that had been painted enough times they had that soft surface that holds a painting well.
The dishes in the sink is a bad sign though. That's not a gallerist running a space from home, that's someone who hasn't decided they're running anything at all.
I almost showed in a basement once. The smell alone... I said no.
yes, this exactly. there's a world of difference between someone who lives in their gallery and someone who just has a living room. i've seen apartment shows that were more thoughtful than anything i've walked into in chelsea. the light was right, the hang was intentional, you could tell they CARED about the work and not just about having work up.
but you can always feel when someone hasn't decided they're actually doing this. it's in the energy. the dishes in the sink thing is just the physical version of that energy lol.
the basement story though... i need to know more. was it at least a finished basement or were we talking sump pump situation
the basement was unfinished. like concrete floor, exposed pipes, a smell situation. they'd hung a single track light and called it a day. i spent the whole opening trying not to make eye contact with a water heater.
the apartment lady at least had the decency to clean her dishes for the opening. respect where it's due lol.
you're right and i hate that you're right lol. there's a huge difference between "i live here and also this is a serious space" and "i have a wall in my flat and i call it a gallery." the north-facing window people know what they're doing.
the basement thing still haunts me a little. i think about that smell sometimes. just a lingering judgment i carry with me.