A question that may cross an artist’s mind is whether he can make it in the international scene. An accompanying inquiry would be on the state of the art market so they can assess their chances especially in the context of the present pandemic.
The Visayas Islands Visual Arts Exhibition & Conference (VIVA ExCon) VCon 2 endeavored to shed light on this question through the moderatorship of Tin-aw Art Management founder and director Dawn Atienza and the valuable sharing of Jasdeep Sandhu of Gajah Gallery in Singapore and Queena Chu of Mind Set Art Center (MSAC) in Taipei.
Atienza started the virtual conference with a situationer that points to difficult realities like exhibitions being postponed and rescheduled, turning more and more to social media platforms, and how the art market in Asia has been coping.
Jasdeep Sandhu started his sharing with the beginnings of Gajah Gallery which has been around for 25 years now. He said that he started with very little knowledge and a low budget, a far cry from where the gallery is now. He first focused on Southeast Asian art, found that reading is important, and that resourcefulness and innovation factor in when you are starting from scratch.
He developed long-term relationships with artists and recognized that they must not get distracted and should stay focused. He learned that to make it in the international market, an artist has to make his price by making his art valuable. The artist needs to nurture depth of work, the use of artistry, and wit. He mentioned working with Filipino artists like Geraldine Javier. He also lauded the art market setups of Jogja Art Weeks and Art Fair Philippines.
Queena Chu, on the other hand, included Filipino artists Marina Cruz, Martha Atienza and Patricia Eustaquio in her presentation, among others. She emphasized the need to do something more community-engaged, to strengthen visibility and stay connected. She also discussed the art market in Asia in the next few years and shared that MSAC is also doing online events and utilizing online viewing rooms. They continue to nurture their relationships with existing collectors.
Sandhu said that part of the challenges of the art market during the pandemic is that collectors are in disarray, what with the shutting down of art fairs which are the backbone of galleries. Thus, the galleries are suffering and the artists’ mental health is affected.
It was discussed that part of the solution is creating different platforms to interact, implementing social distancing in galleries and following health protocols, keeping artists engaged, trying to carry on as normal as possible and it is important to develop a wider market.
Atienza’s synthesis of the discussion included the need to further respect the artist’s individuality and creative boundaries and to keep them encouraged. It is necessary to develop a gallery team to help, do rescheduling of art exhibitions when necessary and get in touch with writers, explore publications and strengthen research.
She emphasized the importance of being open to communication, never abuse the trust of the artist, and to have clear agreement and gallery conditions. She reminded us that Southeast Asian artists are world-class and the challenge is for galleries to step up to put the artists in the international platform
The Art Market Post COVID-19 was conducted virtually on April 17, 2021, but is available for a virtual viewing anytime at https://vivaexcon.org/ along with the other art-related webinars of VIVA ExCon VCon 1 and VCon 2. * (Text by Vincent Rose Cassiopeia Sarnate)