Where Art and Business Meet

Baltimore is home to a wide range of artists of all levels of skill and professionalism, and despite not having a reputation as an art destination, the city is also home to some excellent galleries.

Traditional "white wall" galleries, even those with excellent reputations, still have difficulty surviving in Baltimore. While traditional galleries are closing, however, new mixed spaces are opening. The streets of Station North are lined with mixed-use spaces where live events, concerts, and drinks bring people into view of local art. The Windup Space is a bar with art, or, at times, a gallery with a bar. Down the street the Hexagon and the Metro Gallery mix the same ingredients of art and events to enhance both.

Events can provide the audience artists need, while art can make each space unique. "You'll never rent the same space twice," says Jordan Faye Block of her new location at 1401 Light street. The old city library has been converted into a space for parties, receptions, and, of course, art. "I'm not doing just a straight gallery because I like the idea of having more people see the work, and I'm a people person. The more people come into the event, the more client�le that can be introduced to the gallery."


Artful dining

Across Baltimore, dozens of restaurants and bars have developed a similar approach. It seems every other restaurant in the city now decorates its walls with the work of local artists."Restaurants are great because the majority are very supportive of the artist. They don't usually take a sales percentage of the sold art," says Eli Halpin, a Baltimore oil painter who is amongst the rare artists that make a living off their work.

The situation benefits restaurants as well. "What we get out of it is we get to grow our customer base and support the artist," says Nelson Carey of Grand Cru in Belvedere Square, where hanging artists have receptions that bring in customers for Grand Cru and provide a strong event for themselves.

Donna's is another local restaurant that shows art. Kelly Walker, a Baltimore painter, said her most successful show was at Donna's, where she sold out, replaced her work, and nearly sold out again. It doesn't always work out that well. "Buying a piece of art at a bar or restaurant is really an impulse buy," says Carey. Few diners have the disposable income to eat out and buy a piece of art as well. One of the reasons for Ms. Walker's success at Donna's was that all her pieces for that show were priced under $500.

Lobbying for space

Hanging in bars and restaurants has become a valuable way to get exposure for artists, but Ann Wiker went even further. She had been working as an artist agent for friends and was looking for something outside of the traditional white walls space. She approached the Downtown Partnership about some of the vacant windows downtown. The Downtown Partnership liked the idea, suggested she work in the lobbies of buildings as well, and the idea blossomed into Art Exposure Inc. Ann now fills vacant store fronts with a rotating portfolio of artists and take on curatorial services for many downtown offices and lobbies.

The concept proved so successful that Art Exposure has spread to Fredrick, Annapolis and D.C. Wiker even consulted for a woman in Chicago intent on borrowing the idea for the windy city. Baltimore remains the most successful. Wiker says it's because "we've got a wide range of artists. It's not very difficult for an artist to move up the hierarchy here in Baltimore if they're talented and smart, business-wise."

Art Socials

One aspect of smart business for artists is a website. Many artists now use well-designed websites that let customers peruse entire portfolios. A good portion of an artist's sales can come through their online presence. Twitter and Facebook seem less common amongst artists. Often those tools are just one more thing artists haven't had time to learn.

"There's a lot of artists out there who are purely creative, and it's a struggle if they don't have someone working with them." says Wiker. That's why people like Wiker and Block are so important. Not only do they work with artists, they work with the public. Though Wiker has taken art out of galleries and Block works mostly in one, both agree that art is affordable. "What I'm also trying to do is build young collectors. Convince people my age they can afford to buy something." Block, who is 30, says.

In Baltimore, it seems, selling art isn't necessarily a question of the price being too high, but of matching the right patron with the right art. It's about coming up with new answers to old questions. How can a business beautify it's lobby? How can an event planner find a truly unique space? How can a local artist find a market? Baltimore has discovered that the answer to one of these questions can be the answer to the others as well. In a uniquely local and challenging business, it is this creative thinking and spirit of innovation that succeed.


Michael Cook is a freelance writer born and raised in Baltimore. He now lives in Federal Hill.