Are you still changing exhibitions as you would if open and are the exhibitions virtual-only now? How’s that going?
We haven’t slowed our programming at all during quarantine. The opening reception for Sarah Svetlana’s solo show, “Secret Garden,” was on March 7^th, with the show scheduled to run through the end of that month. The opening was well attended, but the effects of the coming changes were already being felt. Attendees were elbow bumping instead of shaking hands and I recall a conversation with [art writer] Genie Davis about COVID marking the end of hugging at art receptions. The week after the opening is when the lockdown orders came and Sarah was literally in the gallery in the middle of painting new works to replace some of what sold during the opening reception. Those unfinished works remained on the gallery floor for the run of the show and were great conversation pieces for the closing reception and artist talk, which we hosted on Zoom.

We were so surprised by how well Sarah’s Zoom reception was received that by time we opened, “Go Figure,” in April. We were confident that we would have a decent turnout. Our gallery is known for having large opening receptions and the tradition followed us onto the virtual platform. We’ve worked with a local real estate photographer to include virtual 360-degree scans of our current shows, and are including them on Artsy as well. The feedback I’m receiving from artists participating in these shows is that they are feeling taken care of by the gallery during these new and uncertain times.

Sarah Svetlana’s “Secret Garden” exhibition with paintings on the floor during lockdown.

Are you breaking any laws by opening your gallery for appointments-only, if say, a collector wanted to see the artwork before investing in buying?
That’s a great question. We took the quarantine orders seriously and kept the gallery closed to the public. During that time had I been contacted by a collector wanting to see a work in person, you can bet I would have figured out a creative way to make that happen.

Pre-COVID ShockBoxx opening.

Are you still participating in the art fairs as they still seem to virtually exist. If so, what’s your opinion of the new virtual trend?
As a gallery, we’ve yet to participate in an art fair. Funny you should ask that question though, because we did just have an art show called, “Not An Art Fair.” This show had the same success with a virtual opening and closing reception that the previous two shows enjoyed. It was cool to look across the Zoom call and see artists that had work in previous shows logged on from all over the country. We are hearing from artists and patrons that they feel like they are learning more about the artists and works for each show. In addition to this feedback, we’ve seen an increase in overall art sales as well.

“Not An Art Fair” empty during quarantine.

Do you think your space will be open this summer with limitations of how many people can enter your venue?
We will definitely be open this summer. When quarantine started we put out a call for a show called, “Don’t’ Touch Your Face.” This call came with the commitment that the show would open once we could allow visitors into the gallery. We are going to open the show on June 20^th, with a virtual artist reception and then on the 21^st we will begin gallery hours with proper social distancing in place. Since this is a group show, we feel that trying to have the opening reception be live and in person would create more stress than success, but are looking forward to seeing everybody come through beginning on that Sunday.

Program artists Paul Roustan, Drica Lobo, and Scott Meskill.

Things get creative and exciting after that because one of our program artists, Kymm Swank, is having a solo show in July. I called her the other day to let her know that if she wanted to delay the opening until things were more, “back to normal,” that I was cool with that and Kymm said she was wanting to go through with the opening and take advantage of the situation with some creativity around how we move people through the show. We will definitely have a virtual component to the opening, and Kymm is planning to have an extended, “opening,” that includes reservations, velvet rope and ways to make the experience more personal. Our gallery has always been experimental and we are just the right sized space to make playing around with ideas like this part of our regular jam. I am confident we will come up with something that makes this summer, and Kymm’s show sizzle.

Pre-COVID ShockBoxx opening.

Are openings now a thing of the past and can you foresee a new trend for announcing a new show instead of the traditional art opening?
I don’t think that openings are a thing of the past, but I think the way we generate the buzz of an opening will change for sure. The opening is the party. The opening is the hype. As an artist and a gallery owner, I have always thought about openings as part of the experience and brand. I don’t think the opening is where you sell the art. The opening is where you celebrate the work and everybody involved. This is where patrons get involved with the scene and become part of what’s happening. From this perspective, concepts like what Kymm is working on for her opening will serve to keep the buzz and uniqueness of a good opening moving forward. I do believe that the metric for measuring the “success” of an opening will shift from how many people attended toward something more like, how many people are talking about it in the days and weeks after.

“Go! Figure” exhibition empty during quarantine.

Is there anything surprisingly positive you have noticed so far for the art world as we know it today? Or something you feel you or we all could learn from this?
More cool than surprising, I’ve noticed how the part of the art world that I’m connected to has banded together through this. As a gallery, ShockBoxx has a group of artists that we call, “The Program.” These artists have always rallied around the gallery and none of them showed signs of doubt during COVID. In fact, we’ve all worked together to use this time to level up and into a new way of working together. In addition to home base, there are various small galleries in Los Angeles and throughout the country that I’ve been in contact with. We are all sharing ideas and resources to move through this and grow in the process. The lesson is one that always rings true: We are always stronger when we work together.