“When we first got the space, our parents and other adults were like, ‘There’s no way you can actually do this; the cost is tremendous,'” recalls second-year U of T cinema studies student Patrick Struys. Still, in less than three months, Struys and fellow curators Ryan Hughes and Luke Correia-Damude have turned a vacant space on Front Street into the newest artist-friendly threat to Toronto’s downtown gallery scene.
Whippersnapper Gallery officially opened its doors last Wednesday with a packed launch party, debuting the massive space and the group’s first exhibition-a diverse collection of over 100 pieces (ranging from paintings to mixed-media to video installations) submitted by 37 up-and-coming artists.
Fuelled by donations and volunteer labour, the Whippersnapper troika remain committed to their goal of providing budding young art makers with an accessible avenue through which they can publicly display their work. “Our main goal is to build a community for young artists to get to know one another,” says Correia-Damude, a second-year Ryerson film student.
Taking advantage of a connection with a large property management firm, Struys was able to acquire the 5000-square-foot space, which had been vacant for over a year, by brokering a pro bono deal that he playfully describes as a “corporate donation.” The deal allows Whippersnapper full run of the spacious first floor (a “low-priority space” to the property managers), as long as it remains on the open market.
“We said a gallery was a good way to bring people into the space-like potential buyers-and if someone buys it, then we leave and do this someplace else; it’s all part of the urban process,” explains Hughes, who is also in his second year of film studies at Ryerson.
Fortunately, the Whippersnapper guys aren’t in it for the cash-they’re artistic entrepreneurs.
“One of the property owners, the oldest and most serious one, was so skeptical about what we were doing, he was like, ‘How are you going to make money?'” Struys, 20, recalls with a grin. Obviously, he was missing the point completely.
Unlike other downtown galleries, Whippersnapper is strictly a non-profit venture, and never charges artists a commission fee on what they sell. So, for the time being, young artists have an attractive, low-cost alternative to renting out expensive gallery space themselves. Whippersnapper plans to install and promote a fresh show every two months featuring the best work that is submitted to them, regardless of personal connections or industry notoriety. This, they all believe, is central to their philosophy of avoiding the pretentious gallery cliché at all costs: they want to offer up the gallery space to good artists who might not have an extensive resumé or a trendy niche in the scene. Being young and creative are the only pre-requisites.
So far, good fortune seems to be siding with the Whippersnapper boys. It’s the kind of luck that accompanies hard work, relentless dedication, and random opportunity.
“Without the co-operation of so many people on so many levels, we wouldn’t have been able to do this,” Hughes modestly confesses.
The whole crew is quick to acknowledge that a large part of their venture has been dependent on donations of everything from the space itself to labour, office supplies, and services. Local businesses have responded generously to the gallery’s vision, providing Whippersnapper with free Web hosting, electrical work, wine, beer, classy Italian catering-a professional “corporate concierge” even volunteered to co-ordinate the opening gala.
“We’ve gotten to know a lot of great people that we never would have met if we weren’t doing this,” Struys explains.
“It’s just been snowballing-people have been jumping on,” adds Hughes, obviously exhausted from the herculean task of turning an empty industrial space into an art gallery in just a few short weeks.
“I actually haven’t slept in two days,” claims Correia-Damude, his ultra-intense deadpan subtly indicating that he is most likely telling the truth.
At the end of the day, the Whippersnapper Gallery is a labour of love that is already beginning to bear fruit. The gallery’s high-profile public opening attracted the attention of CBC, CityTV, Eye Weekly and dozens of young artists from across Canada who are eager to take advantage of this unique opportunity.
“We’ve actually had people come up to us and say, ‘We’ve been waiting for something like this forever,'” beams Hughes.
Now that the pressure of perfecting the grand opening is nothing but a hung-over memory, the WS triumvirate are concentrating on assembling artistic material to showcase in the next exhibition. They are currently accepting submissions from young artists either by mail or online at their website for their next show in May. They encourage all young creative talents to submit their work.
So what’s it like to be an overworked, underpaid insomniac gallery owner at the tender age of 20?
“It beats being the big wheel at the Crackerjack factory,” Correia-Damude cryptically offers, instantly recanting, “I actually don’t know what that means, but I am having a great time.”
Whippersnapper Gallery is located at 184 Front Street East, and is open to the public Thursdays and Fridays from 3 pm to 9 pm and Saturdays from 12 pm to 6 pm. Admission is free. For more info, see www.whippersnapper.ca.
