DIY Art Gallery

There was an interesting article in last Sunday's Washington Post about art galleries.

Not your traditional, snobby, high end gallery- but a new type of gallery that has been springing up....

Recently, in the news and on tv, we have been seeing, hearing about, and sometimes eating at, pop up restaurants- where a restaurant will just pop up out of no where just for one night. Its customers are foodies who follow these non traditional "restaurants" on twitter or FB, or simply thru text messages. It's a new idea that seems to be taking off.

For years, in the musical underground,  bands have been doing house shows - instead of large venues- they travel the country, their state, or just around town, playing in basements, backyards, or row house living rooms, setting up a "merch" table in a corner or in the back of their van, selling their CD's and t-shirts.

Now, it appears to be the artist's turn! Or, maybe, it has always been the artist's turn, but the general public (like me) is just now finding out about it, in this do it yourself age!

                                       (above photo by Matt McClain for the Washington Post)

For the local artist, the alternative artist, the one lacking a "big" name, or a creative, artsy type who just wants to share what he or she creates- a DIY gallery, micro gallery, or home based gallery for a night seems to be the way to go!
Blogging is certainly a way for people to see one's art, but there is nothing like experiencing, seeing, feeling a piece of art in person. And, for most struggling artists, or those who think and create outside of the parameters of an art critic's "box", a showing in a mainstream art gallery is usually way out of reach.

Local curators and art critics can be very choosy and /or critical- leaving the big art venues hard to access for the small or unknown artist.

There is, now, at least one national guide to alternative art spaces, put together by a Chicago organization named three walls 

The newest printing of their guide, entitled Phonebook 3, lists 200 "domestic" galleries around the country.
Baltimore and Washington, DC have their fair share of alternative galleries. I am sure NY must have some also!!

Here are more links from that Post article:

Porch Projects

Judy Byron

Pleasant Plains Workshop


This has me thinking.....maybe there is a new life, in the future, for my old, crumbling, yet charismatic, goat barn out back.........