Auction Hits in the Rhode Island Market

March 6th – April 19th
Gallery Night: March 15th
Closed Gallery Night in April

The billion-dollar art auction market is booming across the world and some Rhode Island artists are making their mark. Who are the 19th and early 20th century Rhode Island artists who have hit auction highs? What if an artist sells for $5,000 in a gallery and $500 at a Sotheby’s auction—how do you interpret the data? Visit Bert Gallery and get an insider’s look at how different Rhode Island artists are faring in the auction market. Find out about the secondary market, a critical component in securing an artists’ reputation in the art world.

April Gallery program

• Saturday, April 14, 2007 at 4pm - What does auction data mean? Discover the inner workings of the auction market. Among the panelists are Charlie Wharton of UBS Financial Services, Inc. and Dan Mechnig of Meckandil Tool Co., Inc., both local collectors.

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Who really creates the art market - museums, auctions, curators, critics, artists, collectors or galleries?
May 8th – June 22nd
Gallery Nights: May 17th & June 21st

The art world is made up of a variety of factions that create and affect the market. Ironically, no one in the field lacks in ego, and of course we each feel we are the masters of the art universe. How do you measure success in the art world—is it really about the art itself, those who create the art or the handlers of art? If an artist has a museum exhibit, does it increase the value of his or her art? Who reads the art critic’s review and what is its impact on an artist’s career? A dealer represents an artist: what does that mean? Once an artist sets an auction record, are they then ‘discovered’? Come to a round table discussion at the gallery and witness the debate. Space is limited—please call for reservations. Visit our website to submit your own questions on the topic.

May Gallery program
• Tuesday, May 22, 2007 at 5.30 - Round table discussion: curator & collector with moderator will James Hall from the RISD Museum. Among the panelists are Judith Tannenbaum of the RISD Museum, Nancy Grinnell of the Newport Art Museum, Ted Mattis, a long time local collector, and Linda Carlson, an active private collector from Florida.

June Gallery program
• Tuesday, June 12, 2007 at 5.30pm - Round table discussion: gallery, critic & artist with moderator Patricia McLaughlin, Senior Vice President of Institutional Advancement at Johnson and Wales who has been active setting up the Providence arts districts. Among the panelists are Bérge Ara Zobian of Gallery Z, Peter Bramante, director of the Arts and Business Council of Rhode Island and the Space at Alice, Paula Martiesian, Providence artist and co-founder & co-chair of Gallery Night Providence, and Nick Paciorek, international artist who resides in Providence.

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What is original art? Is it a Giclee?
July 10th – August 24th
Gallery Nights: July 19th & August 16th

Artists have long struggled with making a living creating art. Once it is sold, an original painting no longer generates revenue for the artist. In early art history, the introduction of printmaking and engraving helped to place multiples on the market and increase the artist’s income. However, new media often met with resistance from collectors and museums: photography, for instance, was not initially viewed as fine art but is now one of the hottest art forms on the market. As technology has advanced in the last few years, the Giclee has been introduced as a new medium. How does this affect the art market? Is it a commercial or fine art process? How does the art world accept it and what does it do to the value of an original piece of art?

July Gallery programs

• Thursday, July 19, 2007 at 6.30pm during Gallery Night Providence - Giclee Printer and Business: What is a giclee? Among the panelists is Susan Fader of Ditto Editions (Marblehead, MA).

August Gallery program

• Thursday, August 16, 2007 at 6.30 during Gallery Night Providence - Giclee in the art market:  Do they have any re-sale value?  Will an auction or a museum accept them in their collection?  Among the panelists are Carmel Vitullo, a local photographer, Erik Gould, a private artist and the photographer for the RISD Museum, Richard Benjamin, former Providence Journal photographer known for his photographs of Rhode Island sold exclusively by Picture This Galleries, and Ted Peffer, president of io labs, a Pawtucket printing company.

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Artists who marry artists
September 4th – October 26th
Gallery Night: September 20th
Closed Gallery Night in October

Artists as couples pose one of the most complex of human psychological drama. They make Freud’s Oedipus complex seem like child’s play. Just think of Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner! Visit Bert gallery and get a first-hand glance at the competitive, yet successful pairings of some Rhode Island artist couples, including Florence Leif and Gordon Peers along with Percy and Grace Albee. How did they negotiate home life and the world of art? Did they exhibit together or paint together? Does one artist dominate or influence the other? Look at their art and their resumes to decide for yourself.

September Gallery program

• Thursday, September 20, 2007 at 6.30pm during Gallery Night Providence - Meet artist couples: find out first hand how two artistic souls co-exist. The moderator is John Tessitore, former  Executive Director of Communications at the United Nations.  Among the panelists are local artist couples Kenn Speiser & Constance Brown, Jonathan Bonner & Jacqueline Ott and Craig Masten & Gail Armstrong.

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“I could paint that.” – Oh really?
November 6th – December 22nd
Gallery Night: November 15th

We live in a visual world, and who more than artists are the most creative interpreters of the visual? Images, not words, connect their ideas, often resulting in the most perplexing and intriguing works of art. What really makes a work of art—a professional creating an image, or the concept behind the image? Find out if we could indeed “paint that”—and discover why the professional artist has the upper hand in the creative realm.

November Gallery program

• Thursday, November 15, 2007 at 6.30pm during Gallery Night Providence - What makes an artist a professional? What can artists do that we can’t? What criteria do art historians and curators use to discriminate good art? Among the panelists is Frank Gasbarro, local artist and Todd Gernes.

December Gallery program

• Festive Merriment
• Bonnie Buck Trunk Show