Opened this past weekend is yet another art gallery for inner-Melbourne-urbanites to add to the growing list of which to frequent in tight black jeans and an oh-too-cool look. But, alas, there is something wrong. There is something a little bit different. This does not seem to be the norm. This gallery, Fehily Contemporary on Glasshouse Road in Collingwood, is a little bit different. There appears, here, to be some sort of ‘feeling’.
Now, all easy puns aside; a quick moment to describe. The ‘feeling’, is not in any way related to any derivative of any kind of ‘vibe’ that might be already associated with any number of the burgeoning ARIs or contemporary private galleries around the place. The ‘feeling’, has nothing to do with rustic milk-crates-as-chairs style decor or associated trendy art-scene style. The ‘feeling’ has little to do with these notions and everything to do with the manner in which art, artists and how an approach to the art world is considered.
The Fehily artists are not referred to as ‘stock’ or a ‘stable’ and they, all, are considered equals as well as associates of the gallery; encouraged to contribute to the development of an artists’ agreement, not expected to simply fling their signature at an art ‘worker’s’ contract. The work that these artists produce is not forced so harshly into little pigeon-boxes that small pieces of it break off, leaving said artist trembling and sobbing in a bleak, stained, studio corner, broken and integrally disemboweled. It is, instead, welcomed with such relish, in all manners and with an holistic appreciation for its implicit evolution that the artists are almost openly encouraged to explore their practice and not merely ‘churn’ for the next decade. These artists are not owned. Represented within the Fehily family are an enlightening mix, which also adds to the feeling that perhaps there is another way for the art world to function. Young and mature artists, in both age and practice, are brought together as well as national and international representatives. Old faves Richard Lewer, Sally Smart and Ricky Maynard hang alongside contemporary buzz-names Ash Keating, Nick Devlin and Patrick Pound as well as long-time-working-short-time-trending artists like Scott Miles, Graham Brindley and Angela Ellsworth.
And the ‘feeling’? It seems good, the feeling is good. The Fehily’s ethos comes through in the space, the works, the set-up and their methods. That they consider a cyclical approach to the working of the art industry is evidence of their own passion and understanding for supporting artists’ careers. There appear to be no secrets and the Fehily’s seem keen to lay their cards on the table and encourage others to play with them.
Perhaps this is what the Melbourne (if not broader) art world needs the most. That perhaps when the gallerists, collectors and even curators level out and stop perpetuating an ‘us’ and ‘them’ scenario then that buzz, that energy, that feeling that seemed to be fading, will come back to our contemporary scene and the artists and all stakeholders within might actually be able to just get on with it, for all the reasons that set us down that path in the first place.
Fehily Contemporary Artists – THURS 12 MAY – SAT 4 JUNE – Glasshouse Road, Collingwood.
