AOG was founded nearly 10 years ago in 2015, initially located in Boston and since 2022 the gallery is LA-based. Abigail studied art history and her class was sent off into the world by Conan O’Brien with the words “if you majored in fine arts or philosophy (…) you are now qualified to get a job in ancient Greece.” Determined to apply herself in a meaningful way in today’s society, Abigail worked in tech, advertising, a hardware store, managed restaurantsand took her time to connect with the local scene, find her artists and eventually opened her namesake gallery. Today they work with 20 permanently represented artists, participate in fairs such as Future Fair, Volta Basel, Spring Break Art Show (LA / NY), and Art on Paper. As a gallery they encourage lifelong learning for themselves and the artists they represent. We sat down with Abigail to ask some questions about running an emerging and mid-tier level gallery, the best advice she ever got and what her vision for the future is.
AOG – Place Setting – LA, July – August 2024 (Luke Forsyth (right), Thomas Martinez Pilnik (sculpture in the front and painting left))1) Why did you choose this arguably hard segment of the market, as in nurturing yet to be discovered artists?
Our entire team at AOG feels incredibly passionate about helping artists when they need the support the most, and we are not afraid of a challenge! Art schools are now beginning to address the previously taboo topic of actually selling your art and becoming a working artist. Many students leave some of the most prestigious art programs well-equipped to make the work and speak and write about it, but they are lost when approaching galleries, setting yourself up as a business, networking, handling taxes, growing consistently in your career, and more. We work hard to provide opportunities to artists that bridge that gap in art education. I have found that good mentors in the art world are crucial to success, so with the risk involved, we hope to bring our artists forward and into the main stage of the art market. We are happy to take the gamble 🙂
2) How do you find your artists?
In most cases a trusted art world colleague introduces us, sometimes another gallery who knows our program well, a curator, or consultant. We also find artists through guest curated exhibitions, which gives us a small introduction to working together and we can see how our audience responds to the work, and then we can decide to continue the relationship from there. Pro tip to artists: be flexible, open minded, and try to be easy to work with – we notice!
3) How would you describe your program overall?
Our program ranges from emerging to mid-career artists who work in a variety of media. If you had asked me this question 5+ years ago, I would have said we have a focus on painting, but if you look at our two current shows you can see we have evolved. Our gallery artists are very process-based, with artworks that comment on daily life or address large-scale issues in society today. Their work provides a common voice through relatability – offering stability in life’s large and small moments. The exhibitions are a reminder that you are not alone, topics addressed in the work include immigration, new parenthood, mental health awareness, systemic racism, lost loved ones, black maternal mortality rate, the unknown of the future, and much more. The more we speak about these issues we allow space for collective thought and action, with the goal of ultimately finding joy.
4) Do past jobs like at the hardware store or running restaurants help you with being a gallery owner?
You cannot control a lot of things when you run a small business, each day is different with new hoops to jump through. Watching the owners run their store and restaurants showed me the grit you need to survive!
5) What was the best advice your parents, both educators ever gave you and how have they influenced you?
My parents were true leaders by example, they worked incredibly hard and never wavered in their work ethic. They were passionate about their work, never gave up, pushed themselves to grow professionally as the world evolved, and seemingly were never tired (despite having four kids!). Much of their work made an impact on individual lives – which can often feel like the wins are small initially (much like what we do), but watching the longterm success of a person from the foundation you provided – that’s the real magic of it all. My mom’s best advice was to be patient and keep learning, the more you learn from others the more you can grow personally. My dad often said the phrase, “it takes 5 to 5,000 repetitions to master something.” A friendly reminder that while we are eager to become masters in our careers right away, it can take a lot of work and fine-tuning (and repetitions) to get there. Gallerists and artists – be patient and do the work!
6) We spoke about Matchmaking in relation to selling art, can you explain what you mean by that?
Contemporary art is visually compelling, but almost equally important are the words behind the work. Alison Croney Moses currently has walnut sculptures on view in a show titled “Brown Out,” a visually stunning presentation of her artwork. In a time of profound upheaval, divisiveness, and hate stemming from the inability of our society to deal with its past, Croney Moses notes: “I want to be protected. I want to be surrounded by warmth and familiarity. I want what Brown represents.” In “Many Small Cuts” featuring Leigh Suggs and Elspeth Schulze, the repeating patterns and small windows within the work, reminiscent of warp and weft in woven structures, create a directed visual experience that Suggs notes is not so far from hallucinatory. The work becomes an optical illusion, a window that is physical and spiritual. These windows were born from a reckoning with grief after losing her father, an event familiar to many others who have lost a close loved one. From a recent solo exhibition by Wilhelm Neusser, figures amidst rugged mountainous terrain and Boston’s dense urban grid ask us to attend to the question: what will we have done? Reflecting on the outcome of our current choices. Neusser’s powerful suite of paintings considers how our future selves – and generations to follow – will see and understand our actions. It is easy for me to go on and on about the impact our artists’ have on others, as you can see the work allows curiosity, pain, processing, and conversation. Our collectors feel such a strong connection to the artwork that once it lives in their home it is truly the perfect match.
7) Three values you love in an artist?
Hardworking
Seeking change in society
A passion to create their art regardless of circumstances (with natural pauses in their career path, but always returning to the work).
8) What would you love to see change in the art market at large? Or do you see that change in the 10 years you have been in business?
There has been an increase in collaboration across galleries in the past few years, I hope it continues. We’ve found that in the art world, we have more power when working together. Galleries are now much more likely to loan works for shows, collaborate on events, and support each other in new ways.
9) Favourite ever moment with an artwork?
The time I was most impacted by seeing art that likely pushed me to pursue a career in the arts was when I was around 15 years old and living in the suburbs of Washington DC. I took the Metro into the city to the National Gallery of Art and laid eyes on original Old Masters which I had only seen on Art History slides. I recognized the vastness of the art world and how much I needed to learn, so ever since I have pushed myself to meet new people and learn new facets of the market. It also greatly impacted me having a grandmother who painted while having 9 children, this was an early glimpse into leadership trough example. She painted no matter what and her still-life and landscape paintings lived in our home growing up. This both peaked my interest in learning about her process, and also showed me that you can pursue a passion alongside a growing family. A helpful perspective for me at this current moment – expecting our third boy in July!
Learn more at Abigail Ogilvy Gallery (AOG) Website
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Header image: Abigail Ogilvy Ryan by Mikael Jorgensen in front of Yasmine Esfandiary
