Travel back to 1957-60 East Hampton where the Signa Gallery played a crucial role in shaping the art scene, introducing avant-garde art and challenging the conservative norms. Learn about the impact of artists like Elizabeth Parker and John Little, and the shift from abstract expressionism to pop art. Explore the challenges artists faced balancing creation and consumption, and the significance of gallery locations in attracting clientele.
The Signa Gallery revolutionized East Hampton's art scene by introducing contemporary art in a conservative community.
Despite financial success, the founders of the Signa Gallery struggled to balance running the gallery and pursuing their own artistic endeavors.
Deep dives
The Origin of Cigna Gallery in East Hampton
The Cigna Gallery played a pivotal role in the art scene of East Hampton from 1957 to 1960. Founded by John Little, Elizabeth Parker, and Alfonso Osorio, the gallery aimed to introduce contemporary art to local audiences in a conservative community. Despite being initially met with skepticism, the gallery attracted established collectors such as Evan Frankel and Ben Heller, but struggled to engage a new audience, relying on window shoppers rather than serious art buyers.
Challenges and Successes of the Cigna Gallery
As the Cigna Gallery ventured into its fourth season, it began to experience financial success, yet faced challenges as its founders, primarily artists themselves, found less time for their own creative endeavors due to the demands of running the gallery. Despite breaking even and attracting established collectors, the gallery struggled to appeal to a wider audience and faced limitations in cultivating a diverse art community.
Transition and Closure of the Cigna Gallery
By its final season, the Cigna Gallery had outgrown its original location and faced a substantial rent increase, prompting a move to a larger space at a former auto garage on Newtown Lane. However, the gallery's success led to internal tensions among the partners, who were also artists, impacting their ability to balance running the gallery and pursuing their own artistic endeavors. The Cigna Gallery ultimately closed in 1960, marking the end of an era in East Hampton's art history.
Legacy and Reflections on the Cigna Gallery
Reflecting on the legacy of the Cigna Gallery in East Hampton, Alfonso Osorio emphasized its role in introducing contemporary art to the community despite facing challenges and limited support from new art enthusiasts. Osorio highlighted the importance of taking risks and pushing boundaries in the art world, underscoring the gallery's impact on fostering dialogue and appreciation for contemporary art in a conservative environment.
Esperanza and Irwin travel back to 1957-1960 East Hampton. Despite the death of Jackson Pollock the year before, the Abstract Expressionist movement was thriving. Yet the East End was a more conservative place back then, and the Art displayed was more staid landscapes than abstraction. At least until the artists Elizabeth Parker, John Little and Alfonso Ossorio decided to change that. Taking over the space at 53 Main Street from the defunct Maidstone Market, the Signa Gallery was born. And in the course of four seasons, the Signa was instrumental not only in charting a new direction for Art and galleries on eastern Long Island, but amplifying the an American Art Movement arguably born in Springs.
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