By Brian Goslow
Attleboro, MA – “Possessions: Prized and Otherwise,” currently on view at the Attleboro Arts Museum, 86 Park St., Attleboro, Mass., is the result of a nationwide call to artists to use any and all artistic mediums, regardless of size or how outrageous the concept, to explore the meanings behind “the things we hold dear – and the things we just plain hold.” The over 80 works — juried by Nancy and Lucy Grogan of Grogan and Co. Fine Art and Jewelry Auctioneers of Boston — and curated by museum executive director Mim Brooks Fawcett, include family heirlooms, travel souvenirs, treasured bric-a-bracs and items that unexplainably survived moving day.
Artscope managing editor exchanged questions via email with co-juror Nancy Grogan to get insight into how the work featured in the exhibition were selected.
HOW DID YOU APPROACH LOOKING AT THE WORK SUBMITTED FOR “POSSESSIONS?”
We were curious and eager to see how the artists interpreted the theme of the exhibition. We approached the day with an open mind and were excited to see the scope and creativity of the submissions.
HOW DOES THE PROCESS COMPARE TO SELECTION ITEMS TO BE OFFERED FOR AUCTION — AND DID YOU RUN ACROSS ANY WORK THAT YOU THOUGHT WOULD FIND A MARKET IF IT WENT THROUGH THE AUCTION PROCESS?
The auction market is a difficult one to break into for living or newly established artists. The value assigned to pieces we offer at auctions is based on the “Fair Market Value” (i.e. past auction records) for a given artist, rather than on any aesthetic, decorative or intrinsic value the piece may have. That said, we would encourage artists to test the waters of the auction world, but caution them that prices realized at auction are often 50 percent lower than those found in gallery or retail environments.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE WORK IN “POSSESSIONS” AS A COLLECTIVE GROUP?
We were very impressed with the breadth of the works presented to us, and it is difficult to characterize the entire corpus of the submissions succinctly. From the two dimensional paintings to the elaborate three dimensional assemblages we saw, we were continually impressed by the quality and creativity of the submissions.
(“Possessions: Prized and Otherwise” runs through July 23 at the Attleboro Arts Museum, 86 Park St., Attleboro, Mass. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. For more information, call (508) 222-2644. To learn more about Grogan and Co. Fine Art and Jewelry Auctioneers of Boston, visit http://www.groganco.com.)