Back Bay art galleries get creative

Time is running out to view 'Souvenir de Boston'
by Sandra Miller
Back Bay Sun
Art lovers will only have until January 15 to view Michel Delacroix’s, “Souvenir de Boston,” a winter scene of the Boston Public Garden on display at the Four Seasons Hotel.
It is the second such painting that Delacroix had made of the garden. He had created an autumnal view of the Public Garden for a benefit Axelle Fine Arts Boston did for the Friends of the Public Garden in 2007. “The painting was in the window, and we had clients fighting over it,” recalled Amse Hammershaimb, Axelle’s senior art consultant.
Based on the success of that painting, Delacroix decided to do another one, a winter version, which is a 24-by-28 ½-inch acrylic on canvas.
The 91 Newbury St. gallery consultant decided to loan the painting to the hotel, partly because it was a natural since the Four Seasons is featured in it.
“It was so stunning, and it was in front of the Four Seasons,” she said. “I couldn’t imagine a better home for this painting.”
Hammershaimb sent a letter and an image of the painting to hotel general manager Bill Taylor, who called her the next day. “He said he loved the painting, and he’d love to have it in the lobby for the holidays,” she said.
Delacroix is a French master of the naïf tradition whose work has been featured in over 300 US solo exhibitions, as well as around the world. Delacroix was selected an Official Artist of the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games and commissioned to paint three works.
The other reason why the gallery decided to loan it out was to try a little marketing creativity. The hotel used the painting for its Christmas card, and otherwise, the painting saw foot traffic the gallery may not have otherwise received.
“I do have to say that I believe that had our economic situation been a little more stable, this would not be only a loan,” said Virginia Lockwood, an administrator at Axelle. “We are, however, happy to have the exposure. This is a great way to reach both tourists and Boston natives that have yet to visit the gallery.”
Said Hammershaimb, “We’re thinking left and right on how to do the best we can in this economy.”
The happy result is that the painting was sold to former locals who now live in New York, and it increased foot traffic to both the gallery and the Four Seasons.
“It started as reaching out to the Four Seasons, but now it’s gaining exposure for the gallery,” said Hammershaimb. “It’s about thinking who might be interested in certain pieces. I definitely think we got people in here that we wouldn’t have received before. In turn, we have clients of Michel Delacroix that we’ve sent to the Fours Seasons as well. It’s a nice way for the Four Seasons to get exposure.”

side: Spotlighting the Vose Galleries by Sandra Miller

A cheapskate on a date can skip the entrance fees at one of the local museums and just wander around the many art galleries along Newbury Street.
Sure, you can look at the Museum of Fine Arts or other museums, but sometimes you just want to browse artwork that’s a little more available.
“You can see a lot of great art, take a break from your shopping, see art in a great brownstone,” says Beth Vose, whose family owns Vose Galleries at 238 Newbury Street. “A lot of people spend a lot of time looking at the pieces. We were named a good date place by one of the local magazines.”
And maybe, just maybe, on a whim and a roomy credit card, you might just be able to afford one piece of art from Vose Galleries of Boston, who now feature a “Works Under $10,000” section.
Vose specializes in 18th, 19th and early 20th century American realist paintings and works on paper. They started the “budget” section to target those who love art but are scared off by some of the local galleries’ price points. It’s still high quality paintings, but it’s a 400-piece collection of “moderately priced” works by artists such as Ernest Albert, Thomas Allen, Joel Babb and Reynolds Beal.
Vose Galleries is a multi-generation gallery that opened in 1841, but they’re definitely in the 21st century, with a sophisticated website that includes search features, a “personal gallery” for your own browsing consideration, an e-newsletter, and e-mail alerts about newly added artworks for sale. “We’re doing a whole lot over the Internet,” says Vose.
Passed down through six generations from father to son- now daughters - Vose says it is the oldest family-owned art gallery in America, with paintings hanging in over 150 museums nationwide, and it claims to have the largest inventory of American realist paintings in New England.
In 2001, after a nearly 40-year hiatus, Vose Galleries opened a contemporary division, marking its return to handling the work of living artists.
“The Works Under $10,000 is fairly unusual because many galleries don’t like to put prices on a website,” says Vose. “We think it’s important. We may be reaching those who would otherwise feel uncomfortable contacting us. Maybe they’re a beginning collector. Some people don’t realize we have works under $10,000.”