An Art History graduate from the University of Warwick, Sophie had the incredible opportunity to spend a year in Venice during her degree and completed an Arts and Cultural Management course upon her return to the UK. She worked as an Exhibitions Co-Ordinator at the Oxmarket Centre of Arts before she joined the 03 Gallery in 2007 as a Gallery Manager. Sophie’s previous sales and marketing experience coupled with her artistic eye, have resulted in the O3 Art Gallery fast becoming one of Oxford’s most talked about art galleries. Leila Siddiqi met up with Sophie to find out more about the plans she has for this charming gallery.
Oxford Castle was looking its very best on a glorious, sunny Saturday morning with dozens of well dressed visitors milling about and enjoying breakfast with family and friends outside Carluccios Café in the Castle Square, amidst exotic stalls selling an array of jewellery and arts and crafts gifts. A musician was playing cheerful tunes in the background, adding to the festive atmosphere. Over a delicious cup of hot chocolate, I ask Sophie about the goals and objectives of the O3 Gallery.
“We offer something special; not just an art gallery but the whole Castle complex. We want to promote the entire area as a cultural destination; ultimately as a cultural hub in Oxford rather than just a collaboration of restaurants. We are friendly, welcoming and would like people to feel free to browse and see what sort of art is being created on their doorstep.
“The O3 Gallery is owned by Trevor Osborne and was set up by OVADA. A year after its opening it needed a gallery manager who could take what was then a little known gallery and raise its profile in Oxford and beyond.
“The gallery provides local artists with a city centre space to display their work. We create the entire package for the artist, from hanging their work to writing press releases. We are here to help upcoming artists launch their career. Sometimes I will approach artists if I believe their work will display well at the gallery, but on other occasions, artists might send us applications with examples of their work.
“An exhibition can take up to six months to prepare for. Artists are welcome to come and promote their work whilst engaging with the public. Previews and open evenings prior to the exhibition work very well.“
One of the unique qualities of the gallery is its interior, as Sophie illustrates. “It is incredibly unusual, being circular with grey old prison walls on two half levels. Artists need to take the feel and look of the gallery into account when they approach us, as some work just won’t display well. We have a wide range of art in the gallery, but I particularly like strong, evocative photography which I firmly believe should be accepted as a valid art form.
“Due to the restriction on space, we have to stay clear of sculpture, but we have started to look into creating outdoor events so that we can offer our visitors a variety of artwork.”
Sophie is quite obviously proud to be a fundamental part of the Castle development, and the close link to Trevor Osborne enables her to use the site for the gallery’s distinct advantage. If you like, the site is Sophie’s blank canvas. “We have a great site and want to use that to our advantage,” admits Sophie. “A lot of effort is being put into reaching this goal. Various events such as the Oxford Castle Art Competition, Opera Anywhere and collaborations with art societies to do group shows such as the Oxford Printmakers Co-Operative at Christmas, are being held in order to increase awareness about the gallery.”
The venue is also available to hire for corporate events.
Additionally, O3 has also become a major sponsor for
the Artists and Illustrators magazine which has Sophie
as one of the judges on their panel.
I was interested to know what, in Sophie’s opinion, qualified art as ‘good art’. “Good art can be beautiful to look at, but should be considered. It should have a message, something to say or make a statement. As well as contemporary art, I love Renaissance and Italian art, probably due to the time I have spent in Venice. I am also very interested in sculpture and like the idea of art in public spaces where it is accessible to everyone.”
Sophie has some particular favourites who have exhibited at O3. “Jim Le Fevre presented an animation piece consisting of a journey beginning from the Oxford Central Library ending at the gallery. Melissa Sturgeon’s work was also excellent and sold particularly well. She presented unique paintings, mainly café images of different parts of Paris and Spain. Tom Green’s installation last year worked well also.”
The very nature of art would, in my humble opinion, place it at odds with a commercial world. I ask Sophie if the actual transactional side of selling art is something which she enjoys?
“Sometimes people need some persuasive pushing and I have to admit that that is the part of the job I like least. Art should be able to sell itself. We don’t display the work of artists who have an international reputation – that sort of work tends to walk out of the door. The art we display needs to be given background and customers like to know more about the artists, their inspiration and how long a certain piece took them to create.
“Most of the art we sell is in the ‘affordable’ price bracket, not silly numbers, so we do attract a cross-section of enthusiasts and casual collectors. Some customers are very knowledgeable but, equally, we will have visitors who just want to buy an attractive decoration piece for their home. We also get our fair share of tourists, due to our location.”
Sophie’s future plans include helping Castle Manager, Jean-Pierre Morilleau (the feature of an interview in B4 Issue 11), to create various cultural events around the site and working with Oxford Castle Unlocked to integrate their audience. “I would also like to ultimately extend the gallery’s remit to feature more regional artists. We have also worked hard to raise our profile through direct mailings and Blink Design recently revamped our website and have provided me with an excellent e-Newsletter facility so that I can stay in touch with my client base efficiently and cost effectively.”
One thing which Sophie doesn’t lack is her almost contagious enthusiasm. With her drive and passion to make her vision for the site as a cultural focal point a reality, there is no doubt that the O3 Gallery will continue to thrive and flourish and ensure that Oxford Castle’s profile is a major beneficiary. |
