05 Oct Coaster Show in the Age of Covid
The 8th Annual Edition of Matt Kennedy‘s World Famous Coaster Show was a welcome return to tradition in a time when nothing is as it once was. As such, this year’s show became something of a referendum on the Covid-19 Pandemic, with some artists choosing to address the new normal in their artworks. A series of EventBrite ticketed events coupled with extended days and hours of operation allowed Gallery 30 South to accommodate groups of eight visitors at a time to select their preferred visit time helping to welcome hundreds of guests while observing strict safety and social distancing guidelines. Suffice to say that Year 8 opened to great attendance and even greater success and this year featured the most discerning collection of fine art coasters yet!
This year we opted to accept fewer pieces than ever, making this the most competitive presentation of mini masterpieces yet! The decision to limit the installation to eight individual Displays of 80 Coasters each (and one encased pedestal) allowed more space between each, offering a more comfortable viewing experience reflected in first weekend sales: a full quarter of this year’s artworks were sold out by the first Friday night.
It has been a Coaster Show tradition to host a special artists-only preview, which this year was extended from one night to several. We set up a separate password-protected preview on the website to allow peer-purchasing ahead of the public opening, and while much of the art world has seen a high degree of uncertainty we were humbled by the support artists gave each other–purchasing each others work at a record pace.
Because of evolving complexities with international shipping, we had more local artists by percentage than any prior year–including the first. The higher percentage of American artists was reflected in subjects ranging from political to social to cultural and incredibly relevant in addition to the usual nostalgia and pop reference work we continued to see. Styles include graphite drawings, acrylic and oil paintings, assemblage, appliqué, collage, photography, block-print, screen-print, digital lithography, and even taxidermy.
Started by Matt Kennedy as last minute substitution during his decade-long tenure as the director of La Luz de Jesus Gallery, the #CoasterShow has grown beyond a mere group show into an annual necessity. It provides a sense of camaraderie to artists and collectors alike, and has been a vessel of introduction for literally hundreds of artists who made their gallery debuts in this massive group show of tiny masterpieces.
This year it was more important than ever to stage a show with so many participants to give voice to the tragedies and triumphs of what will undoubtedly be seen as an historically challenging year. It was important to prove to ourselves and to the world that art still matters and that we’re not going away.
Thanks to everyone who participated and supported and purchased and enjoyed this edition of the Coaster Show. It’s on the walls through October 23rd, and we’ll be hosting three days of in-person pick-ups while dismantling the show to send purchased coasters to new homes further away.
No RSVP necessary to come see the show in person, M-F 12-6PM.
Gallery 30 South accepts submissions for the Coaster Show from June to September only.