Adventures in Art Collecting with Christopher Richards

On Wednesday July 14th 7:00 – 8:00pm, the Artists Archives will host Adventures in Art Collecting with curator and arts writer Christopher Richards. Follow Christopher on a virtual tour of his home which highlights his fascinating personal collection, including paintings by Ken Nevadomi, Ed Mieczkowski, Clarence Holbrook Carter, and other pivotal regional artists active before the 1990s.

“I never intended to be an art collector,” Richards explains. “I always felt that owning art was inaccessible and beyond my budget. But I learned to be savvy. I buy what is available on the secondary market, but also support working artists and galleries when I am able.  The hunt is part of the thrill of collecting for me. Finding something I recognize in unexpected places or discovering something I am not familiar with and learning about the artist and their work.”

Curated room by room, Christopher’s home is a living gallery – constantly shifting as displays are rearranged, pieces moved in & out of rotation or sold off entirely to make room for new acquisitions. “I like building collections within my collection,” he describes, “be it geometric abstraction, Pop art, figurative, or even floral still lifes. But they all tend to flow together and create interesting narratives. Whether the works are easily understood or challenging, they have to be something I want to live with.”

The program will also include Richards’ exciting stories about the unexpected places he has discovered art. “I find a lot of the art I buy at thrift stores, much to the chagrin of some artists. I think of myself as saving their works, adopting them, and giving them a good home. I’ve found some really wonderful pieces in old warehouses, in cardboard boxes in people’s basements, and in box lots of junk at auctions.” You never know where great art will emerge!

An audience Q&A will follow the 45-minute presentation.  To attend this free program, please REGISTER ON ZOOM!

About the presenter: Christopher L. Richards has been working in the fine arts for 10+ years. Formerly the curator and collection manager at ARTneo: The Museum of Northeast Ohio Art, Richards continues to work on independent projects. He has worked for galleries, auction houses, publications, and nonprofits including CAN Journal, Rachel Davis Fine Arts, and Wolfs Gallery. He specializes in regional art of the 20th century, and has published essays in catalogues on the Pop portraits by Phyliss Sloane, Post-Painterly Abstraction in Northeast Ohio, and the Abstract Expressionist paintings of James Johnson.