Gallery 101 on Bank Street is still thriving despite funding cuts.
Michelangelo, the great sculptor, painter and poet said, “faith in oneself is the best and safest course.” Centretown’s Gallery 101 is an artist-run, not-for-profit art gallery that proves this statement true.
Gallery 101 continues to thrive despite a failing economy, construction barriers on Bank Street and funding cuts to the arts sector.
“We’ve had an increase in all our operational funding this year,” says Leanne L’Hirondelle, director curator at the gallery.
The gallery depends heavily on contributions from the community.
It is supported by members and patrons, the City of Ottawa, Ontario Arts Council and Canada Council for the Arts.
L’Hirondelle says part of the reason why Gallery 101 remained unscathed by funding cuts and the economy is, ironically, because of its not-for-profit nature.
When funding cuts strike, both artist-run and commercial galleries are vulnerable to the marketplace. But L’Hirondelle says artist-run centres are unique because they don’t have to cater to commercial interests.
“We have the intellectual freedom to do things that we would like to do instead of catering to – is this going to sell? Or, whose taste is this and who’s selecting what?”
“A commercial gallery caters to more of a public taste and we’re not really about taste,” she says. “We’re about research, we’re about dialogue, we’re about the creation of art.”
Another contributing factor to Gallery 101’s continued success is its relatively new location.
Gallery 101 relocated to Bank Street two years ago, but L’Hirondelle admits that over the past year, business was slow.
However, the issue wasn’t funding. Bank Street construction was the biggest road block – literally – to the gallery’s success.
“I’ve noticed a difference when the street is closed and when the sidewalk is shut down,” says L’Hirondelle.
“I noticed a definite decrease in people coming to the gallery, and now that the sidewalk is being opened again, there are actually more people coming up.”
Somerset Coun. Diane Holmes says it’s quite tough for businesses when streets are being reconstructed.
But she says the good news is that the sidewalks on Bank Street are going in now, and the project will be finished by the end of November.
Holmes says the street will be much improved.
“It’s got wider sidewalks. There is some tree planting,” she says. “There are new light standards so it’s very much a dressed up street and very good for pedestrians.”
This is good news, not only for the gallery, but for all shops lining Bank Street.
Jeff Banks, retail store manager at Wallack’s art supply store in Centretown, says the construction, which started last year, has swallowed up many small businesses who couldn’t survive without the usual walk-in traffic.
“Just up the street I counted that there are 11 stores empty that weren’t at the beginning of last year,” says Banks. “It’s definitely hurt the business down here.”
But against all odds, L’Hirondelle prides Gallery 101 for having continued success on Bank Street, even though it’s away from the downtown arts core on Daly Street.
“The most unique thing about Gallery 101 is it’s managed to still maintain its vigour and enthusiasm for art,” she says.