from Castle Galleries over the years? When Castle Galleries was born 20 years ago, the majority of prints we sold were behind glass due to them being largely paper products. Now the majority of what we sell doesn’t use glass, but instead might come in the form of something more durable, like canvas on board. Responding to demand, our original works are nowmainly oil or acrylic, as opposed to pastel and watercolour. In general, the works we sell our nowmuch bolder, stronger and contemporary than those 20 years ago. Representation is a powerful tool for artists trying to make their name. What can being stocked on Castle Galleries’ shelves across the UKmean for an artist? Representation can be key to an artist’s success – unfortunately, there are still far too many artists that have an amazing talent but will never really be appreciated in their lifetime due to a lack of representation. When an artist is signed to provide artwork for Castle Galleries, they all of a sudden have 150 gallery staff talking about their work day in and day out. When I started Castle Galleries I decided we would only stock art work fromWashington Green, the UK’s leading fine art publisher, and in this way the work that we stock and the artists we
represent can be seen as a barometer for the whole of the arts industry. 20 years is a significant milestone in the brand’s history. What’s on the horizon for Castle? We are constantly looking to improve our offering so we will be continuing to refurbish our galleries nationwide, and looking for opportunities to expand into newmarkets. 20 years in the business also marks the transition for our brand from Castle Galleries to Castle Fine Art. When Castle Galleries first opened it was mainly a print based business, but nowwe sell as many originals as we do limited editions – one of many developments that has occurred during our history as a business. We feel Castle Fine Art reflects our high quality product, and who we are today as a brand. Art is not a necessity. Why should people continue to buy art? As the late actress Stella Adler said: “Life beats down and crushes one’s soul but art reminds us that we still have one”. In other words, everyone needs art in their life. Whether they realise it or not, the world would be such a poor place if art wasn’t in our lives.
AUTUMN2015 FIN e ARTC o LL e CT o R 7
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