by Kelli Armstrong
The Art Scene in New York has been breaking creative ground long before Patti Smith was hanging out at Andy Warhol’s Factory. But now it’s not just locals finding success in the industry… we meet five Australian gallerists curating in the city.
Caroline Tilleard Co-Director, Cuevas Tilleard Projects, Lower East Side. Opened: December 2013
After meeting at New York’s famed Upper East Side space Skarstedt Gallery where they both worked, Caroline and Anna Maria Gonzalez Cuevas found a shared love of emerging art and launched a pop-up exhibition, Changing With The Stars, before securing a permanent space.
“Our focus is to put the artists and young collectors together so everyone can champion each other,” says Caroline.
The Space
The two-story, white-walled space is located on Manhattan’s Lower East. It’s a really supportive community. The works we show are sold for between US$2000 and US$5000 because we’re looking at attracting young collectors; our peers who want to acquire affordable art.
How Did You End Up in New York?
I studied architecture in Melbourne but realized I didn’t want to work as an architect so I came to New York in 2009 and studied art history and art business. I got an internship at MoMA in the painting and sculpture department and worked on a Picasso show. That’s the moment I decided I wanted to stay.
How Are the Opportunities Different Here?
New York really is the centre of the art world. The number of artists, galleries, museums, auction houses and art fairs that exist here is amazing! People travel to New York to make art, to see art, to sell art - at all different levels. I get to venture into Brooklyn warehouses to visit studios of recent MFA grad students, to hang out with the artists of my generation. I don’t know how I would do this at home.
Where Would You Send Visitors to in NYC?
I always send people to some ‘hidden’ art spots in Soho (a break from shopping!) - Walter De Maria’s Earth Room and Broken Kilometer.