The Big Announcement

Yep, we are starting an online division of Gallery1988, and it's called 88POINT5. In addition to our gallery shows in LA and SF we will also have monthly online shows at WWW.88POINT5.COM.

In starting this project, we really wanted to focus a lot of attention on the artist. On the site you will see 15-20 new artworks for sale, the artist's bio and direct link to their website, and most important, we're adding a discussion forum. You will be able to communicate directly with the artist, ask them questions, give comments and have discussions.

We're launching 88POINT5 with an incredible artist named Jeannie Lynn Paske! You can check out her website here: http://www.obsoleteworld.com.

Jeannie's show opens on October 4th (very soon!) and future shows (just to name a few) will include Juri Ueda (Nov. 1) and Dan Goodsell (Nov. 29).

We feel that 88POINT5 is a great opportunity for us to really feature and give a lot of attention to emerging artists, while giving collectors a chance to purchase work at reasonable prices.

You can read more info on this new project in the press release that is posted below.

Gallery1988


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Katie Cromwell
Gallery1988 San Francisco
1173 Sutter Street
San Francisco, CA 94109
(415) 409-1376
gallery1988sf@gmail.com
www.gallery1988.com

Gallery1988 Opens New Online Gallery
Emerging Artists and Affordable Artwork
October 4, 2008

At one point in 2008, Gallery1988 owners Jensen Karp and Katie Cromwell sat down to finish their 2009 exhibition schedule with the sense of confidence and ease they usually displayed during the 5 year history of owning and running their Los Angeles and San Francisco locations. It only took a few minutes of research to realize things just weren’t what they used to be. Artists who they had steadily exhibited since their inception in 2004 were now approached by galleries throughout the world, and most frequently in Los Angeles, booking their work, in some cases, 3 years in advance. The artists that one time were readily available to deliver a painting on Tuesday if you told them early enough on Monday morning, were now prepping for shows in a future decade. And yes, we are extremely happy for these artists. But we did realize this new way of booking so far in advance has created a large dilemma and obvious problem for our industry. With everyone booking so insanely far into the future, we fear that new artists, the new cycle of soon to be household names, will now find themselves without a home or outlet to show their work, as every space they strive to exhibit in will be filled until the next Olympics. Think of it this way – in 2005, if we would’ve booked 3 years in advance, imagine all the artists that were introduced during that time – and imagine that now, no one can be discovered.

With this in mind, Karp and Cromwell threw around ideas, hoping to keep the “catch a rising star” reputation they’ve created over the past 5 years, but still stay competitive amongst the newly created galleries and not be left in the cold. And this is where 88point5 Online Gallery was created.

88point5 Online will be a virtual art gallery, viewable only online at www.88point5.com, giving emerging artists an opportunity that seems less and less possible with the state of our industry – a solo show to build a young career. Every month, a new artist will debut a complete solo exhibition of 15-20 pieces at 88point5 Online, offering buyers an opportunity to be introduced to a new name and purchase affordable pieces before the whirlwind of popularity and inevitable price jumps. 88point5 Online will become the outlet to discover incredible new artists, finding themselves shut out of the gallery system because of paranoid competitive scheduling, and still able to offer affordable prices to create new fans.

And in addition to just showing their work on www.88point5.com, each artist will be partaking in an interactive message board, where this site can offer even more to the buyer than the gallery experience. Each month the featured artist is committed to answering questions and becoming involved in conversations on the site’s message board, allowing the perspective buyer to directly communicate with the artist through a click of a button. This feature will add a sense of personalized communication to your purchase, as well as create a brand new buying experience within the art world.

Although learning that artists are booked into 2011 came as a shock to Karp and Cromwell, it also doubled as a blessing for Gallery1988. It allowed the curating team to visualize the future void of introducing new artists without just including them in a yearly group show, offering three artists “solo shows” in one gallery all at the same time, or giving a tiny wall in the back of our space a hip name and pretending it’s in a different exhibition room. 88point5 Online will give these artists the opportunity to create a solid body of work and allow the buyer to become involved in their story and growth, eventually leading to more visibility at Gallery1988 LA and SF…because the truth is, our schedule is pretty open.

88point5 Online will launch October 4, 2008 with an online show featuring the work of Jeannie Lynn Paske. The online shows will rotate monthly.