Tell us a little about Art Pharmacy and your role?
Art Pharmacy is Australia’s first completely online gallery featuring original Australian artworks with accessible pricing for all art lovers. Art Pharmacy bridges the gap between the art and digital world by removing the need for a physical gallery space. Our mission is to engage with communities, promote local artists and foster artistic and innovative dialogue around their original artwork.
Art Pharmacy also hosts unique opportunities for art lovers to meet the artists and purchase artwork at our Pop Up gallery shows. By utilising vacant shop fronts, we construct pop up shows creating the buzz and energy that art lovers are always looking out for. Our aim is to form a meeting point for those passionate about the visual arts to connect, network and interact. The fresh and vibrant atmosphere of the shows also helps to re-invigorate the local community.
The A Team
What are the five words that people who know you would use to describe Art Pharmacy?
Innovative, Supportive, Passionate, Creative,Original.
What was the purpose of starting Art Pharmacy and how has the concept come about?
Founder Emilya Colliver has worked the high-end art galleries and institutions in London and Beijing, including Lisson Gallery representing Anish Kapoor, The British Museum, Eskenazi Chinese Antique Dealer, Hauser & Wirth, and with private art collector James Birch within his collection featured a variety of artists from Damien Hirst, Francis Bacon, Gilbert & George .
Having returned to Australia, after years of arts management experience overseas, Emilya discovered that there was a real gap in the market for accessible affordable art, available to all.
“I saw a real gap in the market to match artists that create original artwork, with buyers that can afford them, but just don’t have the time or knowledge to visit numerous galleries to find them. Being online keeps the cost down for collectors and artists.”
With the growing shift towards e-commerce and digital media platforms, Emilya saw an opportunity to introduce the Australian art market to a web based gallery space: ”We all lead busy lives, with children or long work hours,” she says. ”People don’t necessarily have the opportunity to come to you. What they can easily do, though, is go online at home.”
The online component creates more freedom for buyers to view original works from the comfort of their home or work space. It is also an opportunity for artists to engage their artworks with new audiences on a digital platform. Promoting, selling and showcasing original artworks is made simple and cost effective within a digital space. The ease, flexibility and accessibility of an online gallery space creates benefits for both the artist and art buyer.
Gallery Space
What are the most common issues that relate to artists who come to see you in your Art Gallery?
The arts can be a very difficult industry to break into and Art Pharmacy creates a unique platform for many emerging and established artists to start their career in selling their work online. Our main goal is to promote, sell and foster local artists and share their original artwork with our community of art lovers. Our virtual space is offered free for our collection of artists’ featured on our website and we take a small commissions on sales.
Tell us more about your services that you provide to the Art industry?
For artists: Art Pharmacy provides artists with their own profile page on our website featuring their biography, series of artworks, pricing, and an opportunity to be interviewed, which stimulates the popularity and growth of our collection of artists. Art Pharmacy is fresh, innovative and social media friendly. We regularly update our growing community of art lovers, subscribers and followers with art news and updates about our artists and their works. Outside of the digital space, there is also opportunities for our artists to participate in our pop up shows and events throughout the year.
For communities and individuals: Our mission is to engage with communities, local artists and business owners to create artistic and innovative dialogues, geared towards supporting artists and fostering the creative community through sharing original works. Not everything about what we do is virtual; our pop up shows create a dynamic space to meet and greet people in the industry, fellow artists or curators and collectors. Everyone is welcome, opening up the arts to public spaces and patrons who may not visit galleries or buy art often.
Tell us about your process for working with clients?
Our online store features the work of 33 hand selected artists and counting, with over 285 individual works. Our process involves working with creative and industry heads to scout and discover artists for the site. Art Pharmacy is run by creatives and innovators, so we understand the need to support and nurture artist’s development by letting them focus on what they do best – create. Our team strives to promote artists and their works through a multitude of platforms and businesses both virtual and physical.
Visuals are important. We also ask artists for high quality images so that we and share and promote their works on platforms like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and of course our own website www.artpharmacy.com.au!
Opening of Pop Up Gallery
What advice can you offer to artists who are looking for a gallery to represent them?
Firstly, don’t give up. Being knocked back can be a blow to the ego, but it always pays off to keep at it.
What’s your target audience? Are you selling to entrepreneurs, the skate or graffiti community, mums and dads, or newlyweds? Do your research on the galleries you’re interested in and the type of community they engage with.
Never be shy to negotiate and always be open to dialogue. The best way to develop relationships is through conversation. Be open to new ideas but always confident and professional in what you want.
Lastly, enjoy yourself. The arts is a unique industry where creatives and innovators meet, share ideas and collaborate on a wide range of platforms and sub-industries. Working with a gallery is no different. Don’t forget that most creative directors and curators are creative people who are just as passionate about art as you are!
Do you have a book that you would like to recommend?
Affairs of the art by Katrina Strickland
Peggy Guggenheim – Mistress of Modernism Mary Dearborn
100 ideas that changed art- Michael Bird
The Lives of the Muses (Nine Women and the Artist they inspired) Francine Prose
Where do we find your services? (list office, links websites & contact personnel)
Emilya Colliver – Founder & Director
e: iloveart@artpharmacy.com.au
p: +61 405 067 667
Jessa Melicor – Arts Editor
e: editor@artpharmacy.com.au
Celine Roberts – Press & Media
e: press@artpharmacy.com.au
Anna Maude- Art Source
E:Artsource@artpharmacy.com.au
Felicity Brading – Art & Events
e: art@artpharmacy.com.au
You can also find us on:
Fan: facebook.com/artpharmacy /// Listen: twitter.com/#!/artpharmacy /// Instagram: instagram.com/artpharmacy
Blog: artpharmacy.com.au/blog /// Buy Art: artpharmacy.com.au ///
Pinterest: pinterest.com/artpharmacy
Do you have a special offer to the ArtSHINE community?
A 10% discount to members for one month from 21st of August to 21st of October. During the check out process enter in the word “ArtSHINE” into the coupon code field to receive 10% discount.
