Gallerist Q&A - Nicolai Wallner

How did you end up becoming a gallerist rather than follow a more conventional path?

I was recommended by a high school teacher in the late 80's, to visit a lot of galleries. At the time, these were mainly artist-run. During these visits I became very curious about the phenomenon of being an artist. Not because I wanted to be one myself - quite the opposite - but because I could see that these people could really benefit from some management.

I was fascinated by their different way of life. People who were not part of society’s machinery and who were doing something that, fundamentally, there was no real need for. I found it very interesting - and generous - that they did it nonetheless.

Back then I had no background in the art world and no money, so I started organising small exhibitions in the basement of the apartment complex on Vesterbro where I grew up, mainly with and for friends.

Later, we began exhibiting ‘real’ artists from the academy who did not yet have a gallery. At that time, in the early 90's in Copenhagen, the few established galleries rarely showed emerging artists. So, I joined forces with some of them, and we all contributed to cover the rent for a very modest space we had found. Collectively, we agreed that the gallery should bear my name, as it was important to signal that this was a real gallery, not merely an artist-run project.

How did the gallery transition from basement exhibitions to becoming an internationally oriented space?

After opening the first space in Store Kongensgade, I was convinced that by showing the next exciting generation of young artists, museum people would come flooding in. I however quickly became aware that that was not going to happen.

I experienced that the art scene in Copenhagen was extremely provincial at the time. Established Danish artists exhibited in Danish galleries, and that was that. And, of course, my artists did the same — they exhibited with me, and that was that. Until one day, a Swedish gallerist visited the gallery and asked if we wanted to participate in a small art fair in Stockholm.

So, by recommendation of this Swedish gallerist, we began attending international art fairs. Already at the first fairs — the Stockholm Smart Show in 1994 and Art Cologne the same year — we were met by a deep and genuine interest in what we were presenting. Not a financial interest, but a curatorial one, and I quickly realised that this was exactly what we had to pursue. There was no future sitting in that damp basement space, waiting for someone to eventually take an interest.

I somehow knew that this interest would eventually come to Denmark, but that it would take many, many years. So, in the meantime, we decided to focus our attention on the international scene rather than the local one.

How does this international focus shape the way you work with artists?

From the beginning, I realised that what was truly interesting was showing Danish artists abroad and international artists in Denmark. Even from the start, there was interest from foreign artists in exhibiting in Denmark, even in a small, quirky gallery like ours. We showed a number of international artists in the gallery in the 90's who later became quite significant, such as David Shrigley, Philippe Parreno, Wolfgang Tillmans, Paul McCarthy, and Kai Althoff.

Building our programme around creating international careers is what has given the gallery the significance it has today. The only reason a gallery or an artist becomes important is that they are part of a larger network.

It is also very beneficial for the artist to have representation with more (good) galleries alongside ours. Keeping an artist exclusively and thinking it an advantage is a huge mistake. We can never do for an artist in New York what a local gallery there can. Of course, that means we will not receive every work, but the market becomes much larger, which creates more more interest and demand.

How do you see your job as a gallerist in relation to artists?

The artists’ job is to make their art. That is their job. Our job is everything else. And “everything else” is, first and foremost, creating opportunities for the artist. We have always been very aware that an artistic career is built by generating opportunities internationally. For this reason, we have devoted significant time and resources to attending international art fairs. Not merely to make sales, but to cultivate interest and open doors abroad for the artists we represent.

Beyond this, our job is also about selling works. And in selling works, there is a great deal of long-term strategy involved: Who do we want to sell to? How should it be promoted? Should certain works be held back for a later moment? Are there pieces we would prefer to sell to a museum rather than a private collector? What about pricing? When demand is high, is it still wise to maintain a certain price level and ensure the works find the right owners?

For young artists who we have just started working with, things might be different than for those who are well established, self-sufficient, and represented by five other galleries. In their case, it’s a different set of considerations.

How do you decide which artists to represent and what makes for a successful collaboration?

There are, of course, many more talented artists than we have the capacity to work with. First and foremost, it must be an artist whose work we find genuinely interesting. We do not only consider what they are creating right now; we also think about how their work might develop and unfold in the future. We would never take on an artist thinking this is the best they will ever do. We know that something stronger will come, but this is a compelling starting point.

It is also about asking: Can we do something meaningful for this artist? Can we contribute to their career in a way that allows them to grow? If the answer is no, then there is no reason to enter into the collaboration.

It helps, too, if we feel a personal sympathy for the artist. There may be people who do not understand our approach or the way we operate - and that is perfectly fine. But when a mutual understanding exists, it can lead to a very strong and successful collaboration.

After many years of focusing primarily on the international scene, the gallery has increasingly begun to turn its attention to the Nordic region. How do you view the Nordic art scene today, and what role does the gallery play in it?

Lately, my team and I have been reflecting a lot on the gallery’s overall significance, asking ourselves: What is it that we do that creates value? What legitimises our existence? Why should we occupy a space in this landscape? This has led to the realisation that our purpose is to create something meaningful for artists in the Nordic region. Of course, we need to sell art and generate income, for both the gallery and the artists, but it has to be more than that. Making money was never the starting point.

We have begun to think of the gallery as a Nordic gallery. With an international platform, of course. That is a particularly interesting perspective from which to operate, as it opens up many possibilities. There are numerous artists who would not be known internationally if we had not helped make it happen. And this does not mean we cannot exhibit artists from Mexico, the USA, or Germany; it simply means that our real strength lies in creating long-term value in a Nordic context - that is what we can truly offer.

Turning to collectors, of which there have undoubtedly been many different kinds over the years. How do you see the demographics having developed?

For many years we sold 90% to international institutions and collectors. Our exhibitions were still here in Copenhagen, we lived here, and people came in to see the art here. For a long time, I felt that this was fine. Whether the work was bought by local buyers or international collectors was essentially the same. We had cultivated the international market to such an extent that this was where the real interest lay — and the artists were, of course, happy to see their work going out into the world.

In the last ten years, however, I can one hundred percent say that there have generally come more collectors and people buying art in Denmark today. So, we started spending a lot of resources, thought, and time in turning our focus back to Denmark, and started selling much more here than we ever did before.

There has also been a generational shift, where some of the collectors, who have been buying art here for many years, their children are now showing up, clearly wanting to buy something different from their parents.

On the global scene I have noticed a change, very apparent in Art Basel Miami, where tech billionaires are dominating the market, completely different from twenty years ago. These people buy houses worth a billion and are looking to purchase art to hang in their homes. They are still passionate about their purchases, of course, but they don’t necessarily identify as 'collectors'. Often, they have a different identity, perhaps as a CEO of a tech company, and don’t need that label.

If you could encourage today’s collectors to adopt one new habit, what would it be?

It is hard to name just one habit, but one primary habit I think people should cultivate more, is curiosity. Ask every single question you have. What is this all about? Where else is the artist exhibiting? Is the artist represented in any museums? Does the artist have a museum exhibition coming up? How much do the works cost? Why are they priced that way?

Unfortunately, it’s a habit that often fades as we get older, because we become afraid of asking 'stupid' questions and aren’t quite as uninhibited as we once were.

How do you work to make the gallery space more transparent and less intimidating?

It’s something we’ve put a lot of thought into, removing the intimidating aspect of the gallery space. It is the way the art world has mystified itself and tried to make itself into a closed club that you had to be invited into. We always make it a point of greeting guests as they enter the gallery, letting them know that we are there to answer any of their questions.

I would also like to see people challenge the gallery. We should be able to justify why art costs what it does. If a piece of art costs a lot of money, I’m happy to explain why. An answer could be that the artist is represented in a number of museums, or that the artist produces only ten paintings a year and there are 500 people who would like to buy them. There can be many reasons, and we actually want to explain this to demystify the process.

I also believe that a major paradigm shift happened when we began openly stating what things cost. This also has to do with the new players who have entered the market. It sounds a bit cliché, but those tech people, who are used to buying houses or cars on their phones, won’t click a button that says “Inquire for availability”. Of course they buy into the exclusivity of owning a work of art that is extremely expensive. But not in the sense that you aren’t allowed to know the price. At least, that’s no longer the case.

If you could go back to when the gallery opened in 1994, what do you think the young Nicolai would find most surprising about the gallery today?

There are so many things. The main point that stands out is that, previously, and for many years, I was the driving force, making all the decisions on my own. Today, it is very different. First and foremost, I would like to emphasise the importance of surrounding yourself with talented people. The gallery’s development and success in recent years can be attributed to a combination of the foundation I built over the years and the renewal that has come through dialogue and close collaboration with strong individuals who have helped inspire and shape the gallery. Without them, we simply would not have experienced the same dynamism and forward momentum.

Today, the gallery is run in partnership between myself and my two partners, Anders Jensen and Caroline Hjordt. They have been crucial to the gallery’s continued success and to the many opportunities we have been able to create for our artists.

As for the art world more generally, I must highlight how accessible the art world has become. Today, you can open a gallery and have art professionals and foundations visiting and buying work. Something I could never have imagined back then. Also the ease of buying art online. The slow process of sending tiny dias slides by mail, often hearing nothing back, stands in sharp contrast to today, where information can be shared instantly by email.

What are the next steps for Galleri Nicolai Wallner?

Recently, we have taken on quite a few new artists, which has been possible as the gallery has grown stronger and better equipped to represent more talent.

Looking ahead, we will continue to work with more artists, as space and resources allow. Unlike when we started, bringing in a new artist now generates a lot of immediate activity, because the gallery is more established and we have a much stronger network. This has made us far more open to new collaborations, as we can see that they succeed.