Eileen
Kinsella
The New York Times has a
shocking account of the elitist and rude behavior endured by art lovers at the
hands of unfriendly gallery assistants, often referred to as “gallerinas” (not
to be confused with their male counterparts, “gallerinos”), usually young and
well-coiffed, who man the front desks at imposing Chelsea galleries. Take, for
instance, the experience of Nicola Barbieri, an Italian musician the Times
“interviewed,” who visited roughly 60 galleries in Chelsea during a month-long
visit: “And not once did he get even a hello from any of the workers at the
reception desks.” Said Barbieri: “They are a little cold.”
Gasp!
The story takes readers “inside
the pristine white spaces” of these galleries where “visitors are likely to
encounter a reception area defined by a chest-high counter, beyond which
gallery associates or interns are stationed at desks.” This hard-hitting insider
account also includes presumably first-hand experiences such as this gem: “If a
visitor walks up with a question, as one did at several establishments
recently, they still might not raise their heads unless spoken to first.”
We’re still scratching our
heads over why Times writer Ann Farmer believes there is anything new about
this type of behavior at art galleries, whether inside or outside the New York
art world, and, further, why she believes it’s limited to Chelsea. We’re pretty
sure you can count on getting this type of arctic acknowledgement—if that’s how
you interpret it—in any neighborhood, be it Chelsea, 57th street, the Upper
East Side, Soho, or the Lower East Side. According to the report, “an air of
exclusivity has seeped into the world of galleries, and not just the high-end
ones, which have always exuded a certain air of elitism.”
Huh?
Chelsea gallery owner and
dealer Douglas Heller insists the practice of chilly reception is unique to
Gotham, telling the Times that at galleries outside New York, “visitors are
greeted with open arms and engaged immediately with the hope of doing
business.” Heller further points out that he keeps the price list “handy,”
while the policy at “other” galleries seems to be: “if you have to ask, you
probably can’t afford it.”
In fact, some of us prefer
being ignored since it allows for looking at and enjoying the art unhindered by
having to engage in often-banal conversation about the artist or the work. The
piece does acknowledge this fact, quoting dealer Joseph Kraeutler of Hasted
Kraeutler, who says: “It can be a big turnoff if you come in and everyone
swarms you. We don’t harass.”
We’re still not convinced this
aloofness is exclusive to New York galleries. In fact, we recently did some
“reporting” of our own on a trip to Los Angeles (see “Driving the Los Angeles
Gallery Scene“), where we visited several Hollywood, Santa Monica, and Downtown
LA galleries. Believe it or not, no one greeted us when we walked in the door.
But we didn’t take it personally. We just chalked it up to surviving another
day in the cold, elitist world of art galleries.