The KungFoox Collective: FOOX: 9 Questions x Andrew Hosner

1. Tell me about the name THINKSPACE. What is it all about?

Our friend and amazing surrealist, Nathan Spoor, came up with the name, as he helped bring the two parties together – my wife and I (who were doing Sour Harvest at the time) and L. Croskey (mastermind behind the Cannibal Flower) monthly events that had been going strong for almost five years at that point). We wanted a name that conveyed community and open-minded vision – a name that would fit a gallery such as ours that has a very eclectic, yet focused, exhibition program. When he came up with it, we knew it was the one. From there, things took off, and we continue to grow and expand with each passing year. Many thanks to Nathan for providing that initial spark and encouragement.

2. If someone comes up to you and says that they would like to start an art gallery - what are you going to say to them? (No…really)

Not now! Hahaha… nah, seriously, once the economy gets back on track, I couldn’t endorse doing so enough. It’s a thing you have to nurture, and so many things are at play from building artist relations, to balancing the bills, to keeping in touch with your collectors, not to mention building a collector base… that, in and of itself, is a very hard thing to do for many galleries. We hit the ground running due to having many of Cannibal Flower’s regulars come over to us and support, and we had a strong following of art lovers via our weekly art updates we did as Sour Harvest, so together we had a big advantage going into opening Thinkspace. Past all the start up challenges, it can be a very rewarding experience, especially watching your artists become more and more popular. We thrive to enable others to live off their art, as I wish I could have that freedom, but sadly I’m not as blessed as those we work with, so we get to live vicariously through their accomplishments.

3. When JiRaF and me were sitting at THINKSPACE waiting to talk to LC, I noticed tons of artists coming into your space and presenting their work to the curators and managers. Is this something you offer emerging artists? And how does it work? Set times etc?

Since we opened LC has had his ‘Thursday Portfolio Reviews’ which are open to the public, no appointment necessary… pretty much come on, if someone’s there, hang out and wait and maybe pick up a pointer or two from their review, as all is done in the open in our back project room area usually. We don’t do them the 2nd Thursday of each month though, as that’s the day before our 2nd Friday openings and just too busy, past that though, totally open and come on through. We’ve found some amazing talent via the reviews, and if something’s not possible with our gallery proper, LC still brings many up via his one-night event, Cannibal Flower. Cannibal Flower is entering its ninth year of being a pillar in the LA art underground, mad props.

4. How would you describe the genre of art that grace the walls of Thinkspace? Is it pop surrealism or a different beast?

Our roots are in pop surrealism, but we’ve grown into an all-together different beast. All seems to cross populates these days, as what was once considered low brow and pop surrealism has now morphed into one big melting pot that many now refer to as New Contemporary. There are still artists that can be labeled as low brow or pop surrealism, but so many other artists have entered this lil’ bubble of the art world, so heavily influenced by Juxtapoz magazine and the counter culture of California as a whole that the lines are forever blurred it seems. Some take it further and refer to it as Urban Contemporary, but that only really focuses on street art and graffiti driven works. We ultimately show what we like. Ultimately, whatever grabs our eye, we go after. Both my wife and I and LC are huge collectors and were first and foremost before the gallery was even a notion for either of us. We are all a bit eclectic in our tastes, but that is one of the things that makes us, ‘us’, and our collectors and patrons appreciate that, as we feel that one of the things that brought them to us in the 1st place is our eye for showcasing a number of different artists from a number of different backgrounds and skill sets. We’ll bounce from more modern portrait driven work to pop surrealism stylized work to street art derived work to folk art driven work and back again all within a span of a few months sometimes in our exhibition program, but that’s what keeps it fresh and exciting, both for us and our patrons/collectors. We are all over the map in terms of our personal tastes and program focus, but it is all linked via a carefully curated eye towards a thread that ties it all together. The majority of work we show deals with the human condition or the plight of animals in this ever changing landscape, or a combination of the two. We like work that conveys emotion and doesn’t have to be ‘explained’ to you and pitched as an ‘investment’ by some twit who thinks he knows more than you.

5. Speaking to art collectors, what is your advice on how to go about acquiring art?

First and foremost, buy what you love. Buy what moves you and connects with you. That approach to buying art is what has slowly filled the walls of our home with more art than we have room for, but we’ll never stop acquiring more work. We buy what speaks to us, be it an immediate emotional response to a work or one that draws us in and gives new depth and meaning each time we dig into it. If the art you acquire goes up in value and demand, all the better, but we believe most people that buy art, are buying it for life, to become part of their home, perhaps their heritage to their family, and it stays and grows for years to come within their lineage. Obviously that is not always the case, as tastes do change, but whenever possible we love to place works in home/collections that will cherish them for some time to come. When it comes time to buy, find a gallery owner that you can connect with and trust. Look at their past exhibition schedule, does their eye for talent meld with your own vision and likes, if so, you’ve found the perfect fit. Once you have found a few galleries with similar tastes and vision, look for one that has a strong sense of customer service and helps with questions and takes the time to get back to you with thoughtful responses, and does so in a timely manner, that will be the one you should go with and focus your collecting with. All these things help to make the process of buying art all the more pleasurable.

6. Now speaking to the art investor, what is your advice on how to go about acquiring art? (Same advice or different)

I’m not used to folks that buy art as an investment, as we don’t approach our collecting that way and we don’t push our artists as ‘product’, so I just can’t even connect on a larger scale with folks that are in it merely to flip the works in 3-5 years for profit. At the same time, I don’t have my head in the sand, and I can tell when an artist we are working with really has something and is developing a secondary market on the collector boards and to a smaller extent on EBay – all great indicators that demand is reaching a fever pitch and true secondary market action can’t be far behind. Definitely a different mindset when hunting for work strictly for profit, but there are those out there in our scene who I would definitely steer someone towards, should that be their main goal at the end of the day, but I may still suggest there are more tried and true methods when it comes to financial gain.

7. Broadly speaking, why art?

Art opens up minds and unites people and, simply put, is something all should cherish. Not all can create, and those that can, should be held in high regards and looked up to. We believe that and provide a platform with our gallery for as many people as possible to be inspired and touched by those we choose to support.

8. What the hell is going on with the California art scene?

We are taking over and it is so amazing to be in the thick of it all. The art world at large is taking notice finally, as there have been more exciting developments in the LA art scene than any other in recent years. At the heart of it all is the surfer and skateboard sub-culture that thrive in the beach communities and infiltrate popular culture as a whole, not only in California, but the nation over. These maverick subcultures and the freedom they represent have helped to form the foundation of the California scene. Through this, numerous support systems have popped up from smaller galleries and boutiques to skate shops and one-night events, all providing growth outlets for developing artists, and all in a very open-minded community of like-minded folks. It’s just a self incubating scene, and one that is growing the world over through the internet and like-minded artists that move out of the area into other lil’ hot beds like Portland, which is really starting to catch fire as a hotbed of talent (due to numerous California transplants now calling it home).

9. Tell us about some of your upcoming shows for this year. What are you looking forward to?

We’ve got a packed year ahead, and some amazing shows to look forward to. I hate to pick any one particular show, as we booked them all with the notion of making each special in their own right. Some that I’m sure our collectors are looking forward to include the 2nd solo show at our gallery with Brooklyn-based artists Stella Im Hultberg, whose recent show at Roq La Rue showed continued growth and we can’t wait to see what she comes up with next. Very much looking forward to the full solo shows with Matthew Feyld and Timothy Karpinski as well. Both of whom have had smaller solo shows in our project room, and we’re excited to see what they do with the main room, as we’ve been working with both and watching them steadily grow for three years now and that’s a very rewarding feeling. There’s the big curated show in August from the Mod Art folks over in Europe, that’s going to be special and will feature some big names and artists that will be showing in LA for the first time, so that should prove to be pretty epic. The east coast solo debuts of Esao Andrews and Turf One – just giddy over both those shows. Just a stellar lineup ahead, with shows also on tap from Sarah Joncas, Camilla d’Errico, Tony Philippou, Andy Kehoe and many more. Our 2010 is already shaping up amazingly too, and we’re very excited to further introduce some new folks we’re working with next year in bigger capacities like Joao Ruas, Hannah Stouffer, Mr. Jago and others.