There was an interesting article in Apollo magazine in March,* which I have to confess I have only just got round to reading. It is about the importance of “gatekeepers” in the world of art. “Curators, art advisers, independent gallerists, tutors, other artists, anyone in a position to drop a name, make a recommendation, share a picture, include a work in a show, buy it, sell it or commission more”. Our progress (*or lack of it) as artists is in the hands of so many significant others. It is important to note, incidentally, that the larger proportion of these are concentrated in the capital.
Even more depressing is the observation that one of the larger art schools in the capital turns out more than a thousand graduates each year. We work in a very over-crowded profession.
Two thoughts came into my mind as a result of reading this piece. I guess that I am extremely lucky to have the exposure and response I do have, given the obstacles which attend every artistic career. Given the competition, the normal operation of the market probably results in a depression of prices where supply is so large (one might even say, excessive.) My recent reflection on the prices I am constrained to ask for my work, it seems, should surprise nobody. Not only are we very much at the mercy of an army of “gatekeepers” in advancing our profession, but probably there are just too many of us.
* There always are!