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St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Missouri)

April 13, 2007 Friday

THIRD EDITION

The risk of making ART WORK Art gallery owners must have a sense of style,
but they must have business sense, as well.
BYLINE: By Rebecca Roussell St. Louis Post-Dispatch

SECTION: BUSINESS; Pg. B1

LENGTH: 1027 words

At a passing glance, an art gallery might appear to be like any other store with products inside for sale. But it's not.

It's a much riskier business than trying to sell brooms, vacuum cleaners or hammers. Each day is a grab bag for art
gallery owners.

"From a business (point of view), the risk is like when a fireman walks into a burning building," said Gary Passanise,
director of painting at Webster University.

The people who have careers in the art industry are not focused on making money and often supplement themselves
with other jobs to survive, Passanise said.

"They do what they want to do," he said. "Sometimes you can turn it (art) into a career that is profitable and sometimes
not."

The potential pitfalls can start early on for art galleries.

Owners must select the right location to have optimum exposure. After that, the expenses pile up fast. Costs include
rent, insurance, advertising, gallery show openings for artists, and setting up and maintaining a base of art collectors.

"If you come without the elements necessary to have a successful business, then I say it is risky," said John Van Doren,
a co-owner of the Greenberg Van Doren Gallery on Washington Avenue and a board member for the Art Dealers
Association of America. "(It) requires a certain amount of experience and capital to make it successful."

Success in the art gallery business can also take time.

In 1994, Duane Reed opened an art gallery in the Central West End with $12,000. The rent alone ate up $1,000 a
month.

"We really would have to beg, borrow and have really creative ways to make that payment, (but) there was never a
moment I second-guessed what I was doing," Reed said.

Today, Duane Reed Art Gallery is on the fringe of downtown Clayton at 7513 Forsyth Boulevard. It's a more upscale
location, with a higher rent. Most of his clients come from outside the St. Louis area.
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The risk of making ART WORK Art gallery owners must have a sense of style, but they must have business sense, as
well. St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Missouri) April 13, 2007 Friday

As with most other gallery owners, Reed relies heavily on show openings, where a new artist is introduced or new
works from current artists are on display.

The gatherings usually include drinks, but Reed doesn't take time to sip the champagne at the openings.

"Everyone (show attendees) is relaxed and the music is playing and they are sipping champagne," said Reed. "I am still
trying to get to that point (being relaxed)."

A business marriage

Gallery owners usually take a percentage of the artists' commission from pieces sold. Reed said last year's revenue was
close to $2 million, but that is not a reflection of how the business goes because it varies from year to year.

"I think in this business you have to really focus on the long term and be willing to take a five-year look as opposed to a
month-to-month look," Reed said. There can be "slim months and slim years."

Perhaps the most critical factor determining success is the relationship between art gallery owners and artists. Reed
described the partnership as a marriage. Each side might be in a position of courting the other.

Generally, artists hustle constantly to get their work recognized by top dealers who have good reputations in the
industry. In turn, gallery owners take chances on some artists - hoping that it will be a profitable investment for both
parties, said Reed.

Coming to terms can take a long time. It took Reed almost two years to lure noted glass artist Dale Chihuly to St. Louis.

Seattle-based artist Katja Fritzsche calls art gallery owners the "in-between communicators."

Fritzsche and her husband, Danny Perkins, had their work displayed jointly during a show at Reed's gallery last month.
Fritzsche is a master metal worker, and Perkins is a glass sculptor and painter.

"It (the relationship) is really important because they (gallery owners) are the front line and they are discussing your
work to the clients," Fritzsche said. "It is very important that you are conveying the same information and that the
passion is always being expressed."

An emerging marketFinding such passion in St. Louis can be tricky.

When talking about art, St. Louis is rarely mentioned in the same sentence with New York, Chicago or Los Angeles.
But experts say every city has a niche, and the art culture in St. Louis is emerging and garnering respect.

"We have many things that are very positive and many things that are going (well) for a city of this size," said Van
Doren.

Van Doren said St. Louis has a vibrant gallery scene and successful museums such as the Contemporary Art Museum
St. Louis. The art programs at the local universities also are good.

The thriving scene brought a local artist back home from the West Coast.

Philip Hitchcock will unveil his latest piece of art, his own gallery, called phd, on April 21.

The gallery, at 2300 Cherokee Street in St. Louis, will showcase at the opening Hitchcock's speciality, life casting, or
molded life-size sculptures of humans. Future shows will include artwork from other local and national artists.

Hitchcock had spent 30 years in Los Angeles before desiring a change of scenery and returning to St. Louis in 2005. He
also knew it would be more affordable to open his gallery in St. Louis.
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The risk of making ART WORK Art gallery owners must have a sense of style, but they must have business sense, as
well. St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Missouri) April 13, 2007 Friday

"Mere mortals can no longer afford to buy real estate anymore (in Los Angeles)," Hitchcock said. "(It would have)
required a huge capital investment - well beyond the couple of hundred thousand (dollars) I am putting into this (project
in St. Louis)."

Hitchcock says he is not in it for the money and understands the gamble he is taking.

"I think you open a gallery, not so much to make money, but to make a difference," he said. "It is not like you have a
financial light at the end of the tunnel."

And yet, Hitchcock said he has thought out his business plan carefully, making sure that he allows for leaner times.

"I wanted to have a practical business plan in place that will allow me to do something as impractical as sell art,"
Hitchcock said.

Hitchcock said he should be able to fund the gallery on his own for about a year. But if times get really tough, he will
scale back one space of the gallery and lease it to another business, which would be another source of income.

"I do see this commitment as being long-term," he said. "We will re-evaluate at the end of the year and make
adjustments."

LOAD-DATE: June 26, 2007

LANGUAGE: ENGLISH

GRAPHIC: PHOTO
PHOTO - Duane Reed is a veteran art galley owner. He opened his first St. Louis area gallery in 1994 with just
$12,000. Odell Mitchell Jr. | Post Dispatch

PUBLICATION-TYPE: Newspaper

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