The Claire Oliver Gallery is expanding to include the upper floors of a four-story townhouse near Harlem, New York.
The gallery will continue its street level space as part of this expansion, with the upper level now working to showcase artwork in a more intimate salon style.
“Our expansion of the gallery space marks the return of our space as a salon-style, anti-white box, where visitors can spend time in art to inspire conversations and community,” Shop owner Claire Oliver said in a statement. “When we set up the gallery 33 years ago, it was always our goal, becoming a welcome place for all kinds of collectors, artists and art lovers; we are delighted to open the upper floors as a convening space.”
The move is being signed in at galleries like Blum, Venus, and all recently closed galleries like the art market, with some shirking away from traditional galleries and fair models to provide more fluid options.
Where others might see limitations in traditional spaces, Oliver has long seen opportunities: “When we bought townhouses in 2016, we envisioned a wide range of exhibitions and creative spaces on all floors, never a white cube. Our gallery’s plans have been focusing on the artist’s work,” said Oliver’s artist, “Oliver’s boundaries.” Artnews. Now it seems that the space follows the example.
Oliver is a good company for Ben Hunter and Sebastian Gladstone, who have recently expanded their gallery space in London and Los Angeles, respectively.
Claire Oliver Gallery will inaugurate the new space with a solo exhibition by BK Adams on the ground floor and a group show on the upper floors highlighting represented artists Barbara Earl Thomas, Carolyn Mazloomi, Gio Swaby, Jeffrey Henson Scales, Judith Schaechter, Sami Tsang, Sharon Kerry Harlan, and Stan Squirewell.
“One of the goals is to mix media and work together, from small ceramics and prints to paintings and large textiles, which is for everyone. Our vision is to make the upper floors more intimate, so it will be comfortable for both the Metropolitan Mets and the curators who collect art for the first time,” Oliver added. “Our mission is always driven by art and artists, and we want to spark conversations and meaningful encounters that go beyond the surface, deeply engage and inspire dreams for the future.”
