Blogg

October 2009

Early on this month we decided to visit the Hermanus Whale Festival, but on the way there my trusty Jeep broke down and had to be towed into Hermanus to where I usually have her serviced. Long story short and two weeks later she is back with a new timing chain and 16 brand new rockers in her engine, and a hefty invoice off course......

Being without transport for two weeks was a real pain....... and a blessing. It forced me into rethinking my business and work on ideas to get my work out to the public. I’ve tried the ‘gallery-thing’ for 3 years now, and not one of them are interested into taking the leap from painted art to photographic art. And the one’s that do deal in photographic art only deal with established names.

I have been in retail for 10 years before I moved on to fulltime photography. I realized that the only way to get my work out was to promote it myself and that meant opening my own gallery. The idea was slowly taking hold in my mind and I realised the best possible way for me to make a success of a gallery was to open it in an area that is a tourist hub. Hermanus being the closest to Caledon, my home town, was immediately my first choice. The day I went to collect my Jeep from the garage, I started making enquiries into rent prices. I had no inclination of opening a gallery yet, I was only doing some homework for my plans. I was told about a space in the middle of Hermanus, smack bang in the tourist hub and 15 m from one of the most popular restaurants in Hermanus, Ocean Basket. The rent was manageable and it did not take me long to put 2 and 2 together. These spaces do not open up on a regular basis and I would be a fool not to take it.

It was 15 October, if I wanted to catch the tourist– and holiday season, I had to be open by November. Sometimes, when things fall into place, you just know that it is meant to be. The lease in signed, the photo’s printed and framed (and looking STUNNING if I may say so myself) and we are starting shop-fitting on Monday and Liesel Kershoff Gallery will open for business on 06 November 2009.