Brian Gallup, president of Art Lending of Ottawa, showcases his paintings that can be borrowed through art lending sessions.
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. But it can also be worth thousands of dollars, and that has many people in Ottawa hesitating before they invest their hard-earned dollars in a new painting or sculpture.
As the economy worsens, people are steering clear of luxury purchases like fine art, and at least one local organization is starting to feel the pinch.
Since 1970, Art Lending of Ottawa has strived to make art more accessible to the local community by giving patrons the opportunity to temporarily lease a piece of art produced in Ottawa, and then choose whether to return it, renew it, or purchase it.
However appealing this idea may be to those who are wary about pouring their wages into artwork, organizers say the economic downturn and lack of publicity has caused a recent reduction in business.
Artist Nancy Maxwell has been involved in the organization for 27 years, and says that while the establishment is a good way to get local art into people’s lounge rooms and lobbies, it is having difficulty getting the word out about the advantages of the leasing system.
“There are a lot of people in Ottawa who have no idea we even exist,” she says.
Twice monthly around 80 artists gather to display their pieces for the lending sessions. If a patron fancies a piece of art, they can lease the item for around ten dollars a month.
Brian Gallup, a local artist himself, and president of the organization, has noticed a steady decline in clients since December. He attributes this to the recent economic downturn and the OC Transpo strike.
“In January, you could have rolled a bowling ball down the hall and not hit anybody,” he says.
The treasurer of the organization, Murray Sands, thinks that as fewer people are willing to spend on luxury goods, this method is opportune for those who want to redecorate on a budget.
“In recessionary times, it makes sense if you don’t have thousands of dollars to go out and buy a painting. For twenty dollars you might rent for one or two months and if you think it fits, you can choose to buy it,” he says. “It gives you some thinking time.”
Gallup agrees: “You can walk in to a high-end gallery and before you know it you’re walking out with a thousand dollar painting and you put it up and the wall and gasp and realize that you shouldn’t have bought it. A real good painting should almost grow with you and just keep getting better and stronger and emote to you.”
But giving people the opportunity to fall in love with their art over time has not been appealing enough to keep the customers coming back, and Gallup says the outlook for the volunteer-run group is bleak.
“If it were to continue this way unfortunately I can’t see it lasting another year,” he says.
Although the current decrease in patronage is a concern for the group, Gallup hopes that as the weather warms and the tulips begin to come out of the ground, so too will the customers, and even if the organization goes dormant for a few years, Ottawa’s tight-knit artistic community will work hard to resurrect it.
The next sessions for Art Lending of Ottawa will be held March 17 and 18 at the Unitarian Church Hall at 30 Cleary Ave. near the intersection of Richmond Road and Woodroffe Avenue.