The stretch of independents residing on Castle Road is as eclectic as Southsea. Full of interesting businesses. I love the range of galleries in Portsmouth, and The Box Gallery adds depth to scene.
Although small, this gallery certainly packs a punch when it comes to bringing local, national and international art to the city. The Box Gallery wants to create a space where people can engage with art and with each other.
I caught up with Gary and Charlie, the founders of the business to talk about opening the gallery space on Saturday the 2nd of March from 10am until 8pm!
Hello, thanks for taking the time to answer some questions.
The Box Gallery. Why did you want to call it that?
The decision to start the gallery, and the name of the gallery, all started from an unusual, kind of random purchase that Gary made back in 1997. This limited edition box of art “Words & Pictures: Ultra-Paranoid (Extra-Spatial) Portable Art” contains 35 pieces of art which are all small in size but significant in their own way; created by a wide range of artists, many with critical acclaim, and many part of the 90’s YBA’s movement, including the likes of Turner Prize winners Jeremy Deller and Martin Creed, and other esteemed companies like Gavin Turk and David Shrigley.
A discussion with Pete Codling (one of the artists now involved in the gallery launch), led to the lightbulb moment for us – an exhibition highlighting the journey of all the artists involved.
Then the opportunity to take on our wonderful space in Castle Road arose – it’s situated next door to respected fine art framer, Steve Tyacke at CW Framing. Steve called us when it became available and all three of us jumped at the chance! Steve is now our business partner and we love being in our little team.
Whilst this original exhibition idea is on ice for now, the idea of a gallery showcasing contemporary art grew and grew. But the name ‘The Box Gallery’ has stuck!
Why did you want to start this business?
Gary has a career as Head of Strategic Business Development for a software company, but he has also had a lifelong love of contemporary art – as a collector, and more recently as a creator himself.
Charlie’s career as an Editor came to an end recently due to ill health, but that experience has inspired her desire to start anew with a business that brings her – and hopefully others – a lot of happiness.
Art has been especially important to us over the last couple of years – the importance of well-being and how art can help with this has been a huge influence on us. Gary loves the idea of Ikagai:
“Ikigai (生き甲斐, lit. ‘a reason for being’) is a Japanese concept referring to something that gives a person a sense of purpose, a reason for living.”
Now, with a heartfelt passion for art, and for the local community in Southsea, we can’t wait to join forces with Steve to begin this new journey at The Box Gallery.
Why Castle Road?
It’s the dream location for us, not just because it’s next door to Steve’s space, but because of its history, its popularity among Southsea locals, its position near to the common, the independent shops, and the creative hub of activity that’s already there in abundance.
We’re looking forward to becoming part of the business community in Southsea. It’s an area that’s supportive of independent shops and has so much artistic talent and interest.
What exhibition are you starting with first?
We are launching with a group show to present the kind of artists and the kind of work we want to work with going forward. We range from innovative digital-based printed originals from award-winning artist Alex Mayhew (BAFTA, Tate, AGO, MOMI NYC) and also have amazing mixed media collage DaDa’esque works from local artist Colin Merrin (Royal Watercolour Society). There are beautiful charcoal drawings from the winner of the London Art Biennale 2021, Pete Codling (who has recently been on an exhibition in Paris and won a prestigious award in the process), and an amazing new series by Brighton rising street art crew The Postman. There’s also some bold pieces by one of the best-selling artists online, Ta Byrne, and sculptures by incredible sculptor Suzie Edwards, plus much more!!
There are some themes running across some of the work from dada in Colin’s mixed media works, Alex’s work references Bowie using dada approaches to write lyrics, The Postman features Bowie and other music legends – there are some tenuous stretches of the word ‘curation’ – but at the heart of it these are artists we love, push some boundaries and are exciting in their space.
What kind of hours are you going to be open?
Wednesdays to Saturdays, 10-5pm. But extended hours this weekend for the launch, and for special events. We will also take private viewings for individuals or groups that you can book via www.theboxgallery.co.uk
What is your thought process as a gallery? What kind of art will you sell?
The Box Gallery was founded with a vision to bring local, national and international innovative contemporary art to Portsmouth. We represent a diverse group of emerging and established contemporary artists from around the world – we want this to continue. We are passionate about discovering new talent and supporting our artists. We work closely with them to develop their work and create opportunities for them to showcase their art. At our launch, we represent Portsmouth, Poland, Ireland, Thailand, Toronto, Colombia, London….
We will be focussing on mostly contemporary art, with a mixture of media. Yes, we would say it is Fine Art with a contemporary or abstract slant in the gallery, a level of innovation is something that excites us, and with a message to get across. I am sure the art we work with will evolve – but our love of contemporary art is driving how we are heading.
How did you get into art? Is it something you have loved for a long time?
Gary has been collecting in a small way for a long time and has always been a lover of art. He spent many years working around the creative industry on the digital side with the likes of Gorillaz, Usher, Paul McArtney, Spandau Ballet and many others. He also created and built DeadOnline in the mid-nineties which was the online version of Deadline Magazine (where TankGirl emerged from) – working with artists, illustrators, designers and musicians for many years. Gary also founded his own award-winning digital design agency based in Brighton in the late nineties which led to being a creative influence in what we do and focus on now.
What can visitors expect when they visit?
A great space to look around (small but well formed ), eclectic, emerging, established and exciting art and a warm welcome.. And fizz – fizz – lots of fizz….
Anything you want to talk about?
We have had great support from local artists, other gallery owners, the community and a huge range of local creatives.. Thank you for welcoming us to Southsea, thank you for the amazing people, culture, creativity and local love… I hope we can add to that evolving mix and bring something else positive to Southsea and Portsmouth.
Make sure to head along and see the new gallery and support them. Look at their socials for future events and things happening across the year.
