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There are some descriptions of Sara Nightingale that are irrefutable: Forward thinking, optimistic, and possessed of a good eye for artistic talent are a few qualities that spring instantly to mind. If you asked her to describe herself, she’d say she’s lucky.
Her upbeat attitude held fast throughout last weekend while she was going about the business of closing the business bearing her name in a storefront on Montauk Highway in Water Mill that she founded 10 years ago as a combination framing shop and art gallery. After a few years, she excised the framing operation and devoted her energies to selling contemporary art by artists with undeniable talent.
She opened the gallery, she said in a series of interviews last weekend, because she loved art and the time seemed right to try her hand as a gallery owner. In the same way, closing the gallery now feels like the right move, she said, noting that she will continue to work with artists and collectors from her home in Sag Harbor.
Most of the reasons for closing the gallery are practical: the building that houses it is on the verge of being sold, and the lease would have to be renegotiated. The economy is in a downswing, art sales are suffering worldwide, and the effects of this week’s presidential election and pending government bailout plans are anyone’s guess. Even in times of economic smooth sailing, selling art on the East End in the winter is difficult.
Inspired by news articles examining the ways the art business is changing, Ms. Nightingale threw caution to the wind and made a decision to close the gallery immediately. She said the time feels right to make a change and discover new ways to sell art that fit the times. She also feels the timing of the potential sale of the building—now and not in May or July—is lucky for her.
“There didn’t seem to be any sense to keep the gallery going during the winter,” she said. “I’d rather take the money I would have spent on rent and start traveling to see how other places are selling art, make new connections, and see what’s going on in the contemporary art scene. I could never do this if I was chained to the box.”
By spring, Ms. Nightingale hopes to have a new business model in place that will serve her artists and her commercial interests. Despite the tumultuous times, Ms. Nightingale is optimistic about art’s ability to rise above the moment and continue to hold a place of importance in people’s lives.
Her opinion is grounded in changes she has observed in the art world, she said. Contemporary artists will always need to figure out ways to sell their art, and gallery owners will always have to sell art to stay in business. Regardless of commercial considerations, artists will always respond to the compulsion to create new pieces, and they will have to find ways to make it work.
Ms. Nightingale sees one signal of the changing times in the business of art in the groundbreaking decision by auction houses to include works that were sold only two years prior instead of five years. The exception was prompted by sales of British artist Damien Hirst’s work, whose active role in the sale of his own work is legendary, as well as steeped in continual controversy.
This shift has repercussions for galleries selling contemporary art that is not yet clear, Ms. Nightingale said. Regardless of the ripples, she sees the new approach offering different opportunities, and not as a death knell, as some have asserted, for galleries in the forefront of selling newly-made art to the works’ first purchasers.
The shifting business landscape contributes to Ms. Nightingale’s upbeat attitude as she shifts from gallery owner to art dealer. She plans to continue her business relationships while working from her home in Sag Harbor, and is considering opening a gallery in Sag Harbor in the future.
Mostly, her optimism arises from the rising fortunes of artists who have exhibited at her gallery over the last 10 years. The gallery never required the artists to sign on for exclusive representation because Ms. Nightingale said she didn’t have the resources or connections to provide a broad enough base of collectors and buyers through her gallery alone.
After exhibiting at her gallery, many found success with Manhattan galleries and museums. Ms. Nightingale is not claiming she provided the sole pipeline to opportunity, but said the artists reported to her that exhibiting at the Sara Nightingale Gallery helped open doors.
“I feel like I was a bridge in the Hamptons from this community to galleries in New York City,” Ms. Nightingale said. “A lot of artists did get New York gallery representation or museum shows after they told the directors or curators they exhibited here, or if I took them to the art fairs and someone saw their work there.”
Bill Armstrong currently has a show at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Steve Miller has had multiple museum and university shows. Rima Mardoyan currently has a solo show at Guild Hall in East Hampton. Michael Dweck now exhibits with the Keszler Gallery in Southampton and Manhattan. Rachel Owens currently has a solo show at a Chelsea gallery. Sarah Trigg received a gallery show in Toronto after being spotted at Scope with the Sarah Nightingale Gallery.
“Before anyone knew their names, you could have seen them at the Sara Nightingale Gallery and gotten in on the ground floor,” Ms. Nightingale said. “I exhibit some artists that are known, but mostly I focused on artists who hadn’t been given a chance yet.”
Sara Nightingale Gallery was the first area gallery to exhibit at national and international art fairs. By a stroke of luck, Ms. Nightingale said she participated in the Flash Forward fair in Miami in 2001, which gave her gallery a spot when Art Basel arrived the following year and transformed the city into a hot spot for international art fairs. Over the years, Sara Nightingale Gallery exhibited at Scope in New York and Miami, ArtLA, the AAF Contemporary Art Fair in Manhattan and others.
Above all, Ms. Nightingale said she loved to show cutting-edge art that is layered with meaning. She is committed to having her artists do well and wants them to take their careers as far as they can go. Getting to meet talented artists and being able to live with the artworks she exhibited was a particular joy.
“Exhibiting artwork that I thought was cool and said something was important to me,” Ms. Nightingale said. “Even if I didn’t think I could sell it, I wanted to exhibit it anyway. I love art and I like to have cool art around me.”
Considering her gallery lasted 10 years in a hamlet where there’s no pedestrian traffic to speak of and people typically drive by on their way to somewhere else, Ms. Nightingale has no complaints.
“It’s an accomplishment to have a gallery for 10 years,” she said. “Now it’s time to move on and figure out the next best way to sell art and keep it going.”
Ms. Nightingale can still be reached through her website, www.saranightingale.com and via phone at 631-726-0076.
on Nov 4, 2008