| July 5, 1991 Local artists hold other jobs to pay the bills JILL LANFORD
Staff Writer It's an arts town, everyone agrees. lmpressive talent. Galleries by the dozen. Community support to rival almost any Southern city of comparable size. But if few deny it's a good place to enjoy art, whether it's a good place to sell it is cause for debate. "We may have some 200 people in this area who consider themselves professional artists, but they aren't paying the rent with sales of fine art," says Paula O'Hara, director of The Guild Gallery On Main. Instead, even Spartanburg's most prestigious, highly credentialed artists find it necessary to hold "day jobs," many of them working as teachers or framers, relying on the steady paychecks of spouses or comfortable in the financial security of their retirement years. "We've always had a reputation as being a leader in the arts, but I really don't know that anyone could make it in this town if sales were all he had to rely on," agrees Ava Hughes, director of special projects for the Arts Council. Contrary to popular belief, Spartanburg may well be a city of browsers instead of buyers: a place where openings draw throngs of patrons who go home enthusiastic, but empty-handed. For example, since mid-November, the Guild Gallery has sold around 50 pieces of art carrying price tags of $200 or more. Of these, 31 were purchased for corporate installations. Another half dozen were to Spartanburg visitors and three were to guild members themselves. "That doesn't leave much," O'Hara admits. She wonders sometimes whether art may be too available here - whether there's so much going on between the galleries and liberal arts colleges that there's less urgency to buy, Then there may be the stigma of being "local": the universal perception that if someone is really good, what's he doing here? It's a point both O'Hara and Hughes say is easily dismissed by Spartans' success elsewhere, Claire Hopkins, for example, has won national awards and had pieces accepted by the Pastel Society of America. Winston Wingo's work is represented by galleries in Atlanta, Charlotte and New York, Marian Jansen just began a show in her native Holland, selling a number of pieces opening night, Any number of Spartanburg artists have limited edition prints, many of which boast handsome sales throughout the Southeast, "Our artists are making money," O'Hara maintains, "but a lot of it doesn't come from here," Part of this, she admits, is only natural: "After all, if Levi (Strauss) built a plant here and only sold jeans in Spartanburg, they couldn't make it either." Making it in the art world is also a lot like achieving fame as an actor: To move within the inner circles usually means relocating to a large city. But beyond the natural limitations of population and geography may lie more troublesome barriers to sales: specifically, the persistent belief that original art is too expensive, or not worth the money. "Spartanburg has a reputation for being about a $250 town," says Scott Cunningham, whose commercial art must pay the bills for the fine art that is his passion. Anything above that price, and buyers shy away. Anything below that price, and Cunningham says artists are greatly limited as to the amount of materials and effort they can afford to put in. By the time they've covered costs such as matting and framing and gallery commissions, their efforts usually command obscenely low prices. It doesn't begin to pay for the spectrum of work artists must produce to be at their best: the thousands of paintings or sculptures that go into the creation of the comparatively few that sell. "Maybe we're selling the right number for a town this size," Cunningham says, "but it seems to me the majority of people still view art as decoration or entertainment." They may visit galleries to see art of cultural significance, but when it comes to what they put in their homes, many are just as happy with what he calls "living room art": a pretty print that will blend in with the sofa. "The good news is we're doing a lot toward building a future generation we hope will see the importance in buying original art," Hughes says. Aggressive, progressive arts programs in the schools is one way. Another is through Arts Council affiliate outreach programs designed to bring art to those who might never darken the doors of a formal gallery. Among the more unusual venues: the Greenville-Spartanburg Airport, Spartanburg County Courthouse and County Administrative office building. The opening in November of the Guild Gallery On Main also offers Spartans a location where they can always find a number of local artists' work. "Things are improving," Hughes says. "As it is now, Spartanburg is a wonderful atmosphere in which to create art. Hopefully, it will grow into one that's good for selling, too." |