Gallery

As I mentioned before, T-san, the lovely crafter of miniature art, is leaving the space below my office after three years there.

It is sad to see her go. But my brain, always scanning the horizon for something new and exciting, has been busily considering the options of what to do with the space.

When she moved in, I renovated the space at my own cost, to her specifications. To recoup that cost, I charged a bit more rent than I would have otherwise. This may have hastened her exit, but was kind of unavoidable.

The partition pictured above was the only thing she installed on her own dime, and she will take it with her. I lack a good photo of the whole space without the partition, but it is not too bad for the narrowness of the building, and in any case, probably works for a place like Takao.

When it opened in early 2022, I was chuffed at the prospect of creating an art gallery space in our community. I had visions of interesting exhibitions that would draw visitors but also enrich the locals at the same time. It was a high-minded thing, about which I knew nothing. Even the few shows that did happen there were a lovely thing to see.

The problem was that T-san needed a lot of time and quiet to focus on the commissions she produced, and exhibitions were sometimes intrusive to her work. Also, I think there was a limit to how many artists were in her network who wanted to rent a space to display their work.

The other problem (in my uneducated opinion) was that in her kindness, she placed the sundry crafts and artworks of friends in the front area and large street-facing window of the space, changing the feel from “slightly o-share and cozy gallery” to “cluttered shop.” I wouldn’t be surprised if this kept some artists away, too. I could be wrong.

All of this is to say that my brain, helped along by friends with whom I have discussed this, thinks maybe the space could still function as a rental gallery.

If I were to rent it out as a gallery, the most important thing would be that I never have to do any things, ever. Pretty simple. Like an Airbnb, but for a rental art gallery and not an odious destroyer of affordable housing.

Looking online, there do seem to be sites listing and comparing various such spaces. Yeah, I think I will try out lending it out that way, at least until another tenant comes along. A gallery is much more attractive to me than a food establishment, for example.

Do any other uses come to your mind when you look at the space? It is located between Takao and Takaosanguchi Stations, meaning that there is a bit of tourist foot traffic going by on National Route 20. (There is a weird gringo upstairs who blasts disco and yacht rock records, though 😔.)